A social activist, Ashish believes journalism provides him the platform to expand his understanding of social issues. He has been associated with several mass movements, such as the Nirbhaya and Anna movements, and has worked on the Stop Acid Attack campaign since 2013.

Ashish Shukla is a journalist and an anti-acid attack activist. He is also the director of the Chhau Foundation.

Ashish hails from Unnao.

Recalling his childhood, Ashish says that he had a pretty normal childhood. He finished his education from the U.P. board. He then went on to study journalism at Delhi University. He says that coming to Delhi was a turning point in his life. Choosing journalism as a career helped him grow intellectually and provided him with a larger platform to express his thoughts on several sensitive issues in society.

During his stay in Delhi, he participated in mass movements such as the Anna movement and the Nirbhaya movement, as there was not much pressure from his family to give financial support. So, together with his roommate, they started the Stop Acid Attack Campaign in 2013 in Delhi. Although he knew the path they were going to walk on was filled with struggle, he never backed down.

Ashish feels that students often choose their career field under the pressure of society. He chose commerce in high school and aspired to become a CA, but in the back of his mind he always wanted to do something in the area of journalism.

Sharing about his mistakes, Ashish feels that we often commit mistakes in our selfishness and hurt others with our behavior, and he tries not to make such mistakes. He feels relieved to have chosen what he wanted to do in his life, which is journalism, rather than choosing CA, which would have been a major mistake in his life.

Talking about his struggles, Ashish says that he embraced all the challenges that came his way. However, he has had some really cherishable moments in his journey as an activist.

When asked about his role models, Ashish says that his acquaintances, Aalok and Aseem, have been his mentors and guides through his journey and have taught him a lot of things about communication and campaigning skills.

In his spare time, Mukesh likes to read. He is also fond of writing and enjoys reading poetry. He tries to stay away from social media. He feels literature provides us with the opportunity to learn about different perspectives on life.

His life mantra is that he can contribute to people's happiness and tries not to hurt people even by accident.

Ashish advises all to start working towards fulfilling their dreams, as life is too short. He asks everyone to contribute towards making a better society. Change starts from within, and one should not sit still and wait for society to change but should stand and work towards bringing about the desired change, he says.