PARVAAZ LEGAL FELLOWSHIP 2026–2027

Call for Applications

Deadline: 25 January 2026 | 12:00 midnight (IST)
Duration: 1 April 2026 – 30 September 2027

The Parvaaz Legal Fellowship is a learning-focused fellowship to strengthening feminist lawyering at district courts. The fellowship supports diverse women and trans* community-rooted lawyers working or keen on working at the frontlines of access to justice – where law meets lived reality. Open to diverse women and trans* lawyers practising in: Andhra Pradesh | Karnataka | Maharashtra | Odisha | West Bengal

Why Parvaaz
India’s Constitution promises equality and dignity; yet for many women and trans persons, justice systems remain inaccessible, intimidating, and unresponsive. At the same time, women and trans lawyers in all their diversity, especially those practising
at the district level, are under-resourced, isolated, and expected to navigate deeply unequal  and exclusionary systems with little and fragmented support. Parvaaz exists to change this. It strengthens feminist lawyering by placing trust and resources in community-rooted diverse women and trans lawyers, enabling learning and collective strength to translate into skilled, accountable, and rights-affirming legal practice, and into stronger frontline infrastructure for justice.

What the Fellowship Is
Parvaaz is a capacity-strengthening fellowship, where fellows deepen feminist engagement with law and practice through and within their everyday work. Legal practice becomes the site where learning is applied, reflected on, and strengthened.

The fellowship offers:

• Peer learning and collective reflection across regions
• Structured spaces to strengthen feminist, rights-based, effective lawyering
• Mentorship from senior women lawyers
• Opportunities to build professional confidence and legal networks
• Support to engage justice institutions and mechanisms with purpose, care, and accountability

Role of a Parvaaz Legal Fellow
Fellows are expected to:

• Actively engage in fellowship learning spaces, including expert sessions, mentorship, and peer learning
• Apply learning within their regular legal practice, including pro bono and low bono support to women and trans persons seeking legal remedy and justice
• Practise and promote gender-responsive lawyering in district courts
• Engage with local justice ecosystems to encourage rights-based, care-centred practices

How to Apply
The Fellowship Announcement and Application Form are available in English and Hindi.
Apply online, or
Email your completed application to: fellowship@womensfundindia.org
Please read all documents carefully before applying.
Questions? Want to know more?
Write to us at fellowship@womensfundindia.org
We welcome questions, clarifications, and conversations.

Parvaaz is an invitation – to learn, to practise with skill and care, and to be part of a growing
feminist legal community shaping access to justice from the ground up.