The White Rainbow Project

Transforming Widows Lives in India

The Stigma of Widowhood

​ABANDONED BY THEIR FAMILIES

​Imagine being married off at a young age to a man you have never​ met. You have a few children and start a happy life together.​

Suddenly, your husband dies in an accident or from an unexpected illness. You grieve but instead of comforting you, your family abandons you. They take your children away and blame you for his death.

Society say it's because of your bad karma. ​Life as you knew it is over.

Many women carry the burden and stigma of being a widow. But White Rainbow Project is working to change that.

Learn More About Widowhood in India

Who We Are

 The White Rainbow Project is a nonprofit 501(c)3 humanitarian organization.

We are dedicated to empowering destitute widows in India by giving them love, hope, job skills, counseling, food, & medical care.

Our non-profit was started after our founder, Linda Mandrayar and her husband Dharan Mandrayar created the film "White Rainbow." Inspired by true events, one widow goes to Vrindavan to help other widows find hope and job skills and create a center of learning and safety for the women. Scroll below for the link to watch the movie.

This inspired our founder to create a real organization inspired by the film. The film name and organization's came from the fact that widows are forced to wear white to show a voidness of life. Our goal is to bring all the colors of the rainbow back into their hearts and lives.

“We want to shift their perspective, from despair to joy, because we believe that they are not unlucky or unworthy, but that they should be loved and cherished.” -Linda Mandrayar, Founder

What We Do

The White Rainbow Project creates centers of learning and partnerships to empower, employ, and educate widows and at-risk women in India. The first White Rainbow Open Home Center was started in 2012 and located in Vrindavan.

Since its inception in 2012, White Rainbow Project has also grown to collaborate with new partners in both North and South India. Together we work to supply training to village women’s co-ops and self-help groups. 

Providing a safe place to grow in independence, women of the White Rainbow Project family can expect a hot chai, a warm embrace, a new skill set, and income in their position. We also prioritize the medical, emotional, and situational needs of each woman we reach. 

We welcome the challenges of serving a diverse population.  Whenever a need arises, we collaborate to solve it with respect and understanding. 

Our Mission

Transforming lives by sharing love, hope, and opportunity with the widows of India—empowering them through community, job skills, medical care, and compassionate support. This transformation extends beyond the women we serve to those who champion, support, and engage in this mission.

The Inspiration Behind the White Rainbow Project

​Inspired by true events is the story of Priya (played by Sonali Kulkarni – Bride & Prejudice), a beautiful, affluent young woman suddenly widowed and left to fate. Alone in a land of extreme contrasts, she seeks peace in
​the “City of Widows,” but instead of finding solace, Priya finds a cruel world filled with brutality.

Despondent, she meets three remarkable women and together they embark on a journey of empowerment as they fight for the rights of the widows of India in this ultimately hopeful and uplifting story.
​
The film inspires us all to see the Rainbow present in all women.

Watch Movie

Commitment to Change: Hope Restored

​We seek to change the world, one widow at a time. Widowhood is an inevitable fate for millions of women around the world, not just India. The debilitating stigmas of widowhood will continue to enslave women if they are not given avenues to gain their independence. If we pay attention to eliminating these stigmas, we will also find solutions to cycles of poverty, sex-trafficking, and unemployment.

Rescue a Widow in Need