Kolkata Sanved was founded in 2004 by Ashoka Fellow Sohini Chakraborty, a sociologist and dance activist.

For the victims of violence and abuse living in NGO and state-run homes, rehabilitation continues to follow a stale routine - the usual counseling and vocational training in tailoring, block printing and knitting. There are very few innovations in counseling techniques or finding new opportunities for the victims. For mental health patients in the state run hospitals, little attention is given to the development needs of the patients, they are treated as prisoners living in a jail like environment and denied their basic human rights. Many mainstream children are sometimes hyperactive and/or slow to learn. Some children do participate and express themselves well but remain introverted. For the domestic workers , they face a monotonous, humiliating and often abusive routine with no outlet to express their rights in society. Children suffering from HIV/AIDS often have negative attitudes towards their bodies and their lives and must deal with negative stigma on a daily basis . Children who live on the platform and in slums face daily violence and aggression. They have to fight through daily activities in order to stay alive. This type of life keeps the children from loving their bodies and minds.

In 1996 Sohini started a dance project within Sneha (a shelter and care home for trafficked women and girls run by Sanlaap) as a volunteer. For twelve years Sohini experimented with breaking the barriers of traditional dance.

This experiment proved that body movement, when used sensitively, could become a powerful tool for rehabilitation and advocacy. This tool transforms young victims of sexual abuse from being a "rehabilitative victim" to a "proactive advocate" - someone who has made peace within her violated soul and is now ready to voice her concerns through physical movement.

The success of Sohini's work led to the establishment of Kolkata Sanved in 2004 with five founder members who are residents of Sneha. Members communicate in workshops and performances on the issues of trafficking, violence against women, and child exploitation through the intimate and powerful medium of dance.

Today Kolkata Sanved has expanded its program to work in rural and urban India, Bangladesh and Nepal to establish dance movement as an alternative approach to recovery and healing for the psychosocial rehabilitation of victims of violence and trafficking, mental health patients, women and children suffering from HIV/AIDS, domestic workers, railway platform children and mainstream school children. Kolkata Sanved has performed and conducted workshops worldwide.

Dance Movement as an alternate mode of therapy and rehabilitation for these vulnerable populations is a proven success with the Sanved model. Not only does the process bring about positive changes in mind, body and spirit, it also enables the women, children and youth to interact with mainstream society on an equal footing.

Kolkata Sanved's self generated curriculum, Sampurnata (completeness/fulfillment) trains survivors of trafficking, exploitation and abuse to become peer educators, advocates, trainers and performers, enabling them to lead a life with dignity and respect..