Founder – Director

Aanandghar- Child care center

Adv. Chhaya Golatgaonkar

B.Sc., LL.M. (Criminal Law and Constitutional Law)

LLM (Business Law and Administrative Law)
Advocate | Mediator-Counsellor | Arbitrator

Founder-Director,

ADVOCATE CSG & ASSOCIATES, Pune

Links:

मुलाखत – सकाळ – ‘फुलां’ना समजून घेताना…
Interview – Pune Mirror – Game Plan
आनंदघर – लेखमाला

Dear Friends,

Adv. Chhaya Golatgaonkar is a Lawyer, Certified Mediator, Counselor, and Social Worker. For over twenty years, she has been active in the fields of Law, Childcare, Education, and Mental Health Care. She has handled criminal, family, and property-related court cases. She has also successfully resolved many disputes amicably, through mediation, before they reached the courts. Additionally, she has managed to settle some pending cases through reconciliation. Resolving conflicts through dialogue and establishing peace is the expertise of her legal practice.

She holds LL.M. degrees in Business Law from ILS Law College, Pune, and in Criminal and Constitutional Law from Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar. She has also completed diploma and certificate courses in Medical Jurisprudence, Mediation (AIIMAS, Delhi), and Arbitration (IAMC, Hyderabad).

As the Founder-Director of Anandghar Childcare Center (Daycare), Learning and Research Center, Pune, she conducted innovative experiments and research in education and child rights between 2015 and 2020. More than 50 of her articles, reports, and interviews have been published in newspapers and magazines such as Sakal, Maharashtra Times, Pune Mirror, Udyacha Marathwada, Palakneeti, YinBuzz, and others. Recognizing her work, in 2018 the Council for Creative Education (CCE), Finland invited her to an International Education Conference and Symposium. During that visit she presented a research paper on Anandghar’s educational experiments before representatives from 22 countries. It was a study tour of Finland’s education system also.

She has served on the editorial board of Palakneeti, a magazine dedicated to parenting, and she also contributed to special issues such as Daycare Special Issue (2017), Child Rights Special Issue (July 2023) and Diwali Issue (2022).

Since 2011, she has been working as a counselor in the field of mental health, offering continuous online and offline counseling services during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Her interview on “Mental Health and Law” was broadcast on Mumbai Akashvani Asmita channel and is also available on YouTube.

She has been invited as chief guest and speaker by organizations such as Parivartan Sanstha, Rotary Club, Women’s Self-help groups, Stree Mukti Sanghatana, as well as various schools and educational institutions. She has delivered lectures on law, women’s empowerment, child rights, mental health, and personal development.

For nearly ten years, she worked with the documentary film-making group Avkash Nirmitee, producing films on social issues. She actively participated in documentaries on education and other social issues, all of which are available on YouTube.

Apart from her legal and social work, she has a passion for adventure sports. She has participated in trekking, rappelling, and parasailing. She is also a solo bike and car rider-traveller. As a solo traveller she believes solo traveling is not just an adventure but it is journey within. She has published three articles based on her solo travelling experiences.

Her love for photography led her to start a Facebook page titled “छायाचित्रण- A Visual Storyteller”, where she shares experiences related to nature, forts, and life.

During her college years, under the National Service Scheme (NSS), she was honored with the NSS Best Volunteer Award (2000) by the Government of Maharashtra.

Thank you!

Aanandghar- Child Care Center (Day Care), Learning and Research Center, Pune was established on November 1, 2015.
Aanandghar was founded on the basis of in-depth study and experience in diverse fields such as child rights, child growth and development, inclusive education, and child psychology.
Learning and education at Aanandghar is a process that integrates holistic growth and development, creative expression, life skills, value education, and emotional literacy.
The primary objective of Aanandghar is to provide quality childcare and education for all children. For this, it seeks to create a safe, nurturing, clean, beautiful, and sensitive environment. Child growth and development involve interconnected aspects—physical, mental, social, emotional, and intellectual—and Aanandghar’s concept is built upon this principle.
At Aanandghar, activities are designed according to the age and developmental needs of children. The concept is woven around the question: “How does a child learn?” The uniqueness of Aanandghar lies in viewing each child as an individual personality. Therefore, regardless of age, the child decides for themselves which activity or game they want to engage in—or whether they want to do nothing at all. Songs, stories, sand, soil, water, stones, trees, leaves, flowers—in short, the surrounding environment—becomes the centre of the child’s curiosity. Through play, observation, and direct experience, learning happens naturally.
There is an inclusive structure for children with special needs. Aanandghar organizes workshops, camps, and dialogue programs for parents, teachers, helpers, and caregivers working with children. These initiatives aim to create education and awareness about childcare. Additionally, Aanandghar serves as a centre for raising awareness about alternative parenting and social parenting.
In short, Aanandghar is an experimental and value-based childcare and education centre that honours child rights and believes in love, safety, freedom, and the joy of learning.
“At Aanandghar, children are not moulded, but are allowed to blossom with their natural abilities—joyfully, confidently, independently, with life values and life skills.”
-Adv. Chhaya Golatgaonkar

Supporters

1. Mrs. Jyoti Kulkarni
2. Late. Nayan Barhate – Artist – Nanded
3. Mr. Ram Shewadikar – Editor – Nanded
4. Mrs. Prerna Date
5. Dr. Lalchandani – Nagpur
6. Mr. Hedge
7. Mrs. Sneha Bhoyer
8. Mrs. Urmil Bal
9. Mrs, Sampada Pardeshi
10. Late Mrs. Dipali Potdar

Facilitators

1. Mrs. Pallavi Shirke
2. Mrs. Arati Mahadik
3. Mrs. Ashwini Gujar
4. Mrs. Manasi Nimbalkar
5. Mrs. Swapnali Patil
6. Ms. Vaishali (Khelghar Student)
7. Mrs. Deshpande Ajji (Songs & Storytelling)