In rural Karnataka, young women with no formal training are filling a critical mental health gap – offering adolescent rural Indian girls a trusted, judgment-free space to talk. Meet the “barefoot counsellors,” trained by the Karnataka Health Promotion Trust, born during COVID, and quietly redefining community mental health support at the grassroots.

Every night Rani (name changed) worried about her mother’s safety.

The eighth-grade student from Kunikeri village in Karnataka’s Koppal district often lay awake listening to fights at home. Her father struggled with alcohol addiction and arguments could turn violent fast. The tension left Rani anxious and distracted. She found it difficult to focus on schoolwork and worried constantly about her mom.

Like many young people facing emotional challenges, she had no idea how to get help.

Her mother had considered seeking help from local support centres and even the police, but Rani was terrified. She doubted anyone would listen or even be able to help. Luckily, she found a shoulder to lean on.

I felt nervous at first, but talking to Shashikala made me feel heard.

Shashikala was not a psychologist. But the 21-year-old woman from a nearby village was a great listener. 

In fact, she was a trained “barefoot counsellor.” 

Finding someone who listens

“I felt nervous at first, but talking to Shashikala made me feel heard,” says Rani. “I could tell her everything without being judged. Slowly, I started to feel that maybe things could change.”

The two met during a mental health awareness programme conducted by the Karnataka Health Promotion Trust (KHPT) through its Sphoorthi initiative. There, Rani found something she had been missing for months – a safe space to talk.

With encouragement from the barefoot counsellor, Rani eventually contacted the police. Officers visited her home, spoke to her father and issued a notice explaining the consequences of his violent behaviour.

The intervention brought change.

We learned simple but very useful techniques like listening without interrupting, not judging.

Violence at home reduced and Rani gradually began to feel safer. “Now I sleep better at night. I can focus on studies and I even enjoy learning again. I feel stronger and more confident than before,” she says.

Who are the Barefoot Counsellors?

For many young people in rural India, access to professional mental health support remains limited. Common mental disorders such as depression and anxiety account for a significant share of mental health cases in Karnataka, according to the Karnataka Mental Health Report 2019. But stigma, never mind a lack of awareness and a shortage of trained professionals, often prevents adolescents from seeking help before problems become crises.

In the Koppal district, KHPT is trying to bridge that gap through a network of 60 barefoot counsellors (BFCs), trained community members who provide basic counselling support to adolescents and young women.

Most are students themselves. 

Pandemic inception

In the same tradition as “barefoot doctors” and “barefoot teachers” – BFCs are members of the community with limited formal qualifications who are trained to provide essential services in places where professionals are scarce.

Their role is not to replace psychiatrists or even psychologists but to offer a trusted first point of contact for young people struggling with stress, anxiety, family conflict and other emotional challenges.

The model grew out of the Sphoorthi initiative, which develops young women as community role models and leaders, during the Covid-19 pandemic. During the lockdown many Sphoorthi members found themselves informally supporting friends and peers who were struggling with uncertainty, family pressures and isolation.

Recognising the value of that support, the organisation began training selected young women as barefoot counsellors.

For many of the young women, the experience has been transformative. Counsellor Kavitha Madiwal, 21, from Huligi village, says the training equipped her with skills she now uses every day.

“We learned simple but very useful techniques like listening without interrupting, not judging, asking simple questions and keeping things confidential,” she says. “Through role plays, I realised how people feel when someone really listens to them without blaming.”

When a crush becomes a crisis

Seventeen-year-old Lalitha (name changed) from Bandiharlapura village found herself consumed by thoughts about a boy she liked.

What began as a teenage crush gradually spiralled into something more overwhelming.

“I wanted to spend all my time with him and started bunking classes at college,” she says.

When her parents discovered what was happening, they sent her to another village. The move left her feeling isolated and anxious. “I didn’t know who I could talk to in order to come out of that mindset.”

A friend suggested she speak to Umadevi – a BFC from her own village. At first Lalitha was hesitant to open up. But the conversations slowly helped her make sense of her emotions.

“She heard me without judging me, without blaming me and without scolding me,” says Lalitha. “For the first time, I felt that someone was truly listening to me with care and understanding.”

Over time, Lalitha began to appreciate her parents’ concerns and refocus on her studies.

Today, she hopes to score well in her exams.

Helping others, healing themselves

For Umadevi, stories like Lalitha’s are a reminder that emotional struggles often hide behind everyday experiences.

“Being a barefoot counsellor is not just work for me. It has become a part of my life by helping me understand my own emotions,” says Umadevi, a 22-year-old barefoot counsellor from Bandiharlapura village.

“This journey has given me support and strength to cope with my own mother’s absence. It is also motivating me to continue my higher education and become independent.”

Many adolescents, she says, are dealing with stress, anxiety, sadness and overthinking long before anyone notices. Sometimes, what helps most is not advice but simply being heard. 

And in villages where professional mental health support remains out of reach, that listening ear can make all the difference.

First Published by Village Square on 03 June, 2026.