Payal Sawhney has spent more than two decades working at the intersection of mental health, social work and community well-being. As the Founder and Executive Director of Saahas for Cause, she now leads a Southern California nonprofit created to help South Asian immigrants navigate the emotional, cultural and practical challenges of building a life in the United States.

Sawhney founded Saahas for Cause in 2019 after years of professional experience across hospital systems and nonprofit organizations. Her work included developing clinical teams, supervising graduate and postgraduate clinicians and creating programs focused on mental-health prevention and community well-being. She saw that many South Asian immigrants needed support that understood not only their clinical concerns, but also their language, family structures, cultural expectations and immigration experiences.

That understanding became the foundation of Saahas for Cause. The organization’s mission is to educate, empower and enable South Asian immigrants to improve their quality of life. Its services are designed by clinicians and professionals with relevant expertise and lived immigrant experience, combining culturally responsive care with research, prevention and practical community support.

Building Support Around the Entire Family

Under Sawhney’s leadership, Saahas has developed a family-centered model that supports people across different stages of life. Its work now spans youth engagement, family and women’s wellness, older-adult well-being, and community education and research.

For older adults, the organization addresses isolation, language barriers and difficulty navigating technology or public systems. Its programs include community wellness gatherings, language classes, technology instruction, yoga and movement sessions, and assistance understanding public benefits. Youth volunteers also help older adults learn how to use phones, video calls, online services and other digital tools, creating an intergenerational model in which younger and older community members support one another.

This work is particularly important for immigrants who may have left close family networks behind or become dependent on others because of limited English proficiency, transportation challenges or unfamiliarity with American institutions. By creating regular spaces for education, activity and social connection, Saahas seeks to help older adults remain informed, independent and connected to their communities.

Supporting Women, Survivors and Families

Women’s health and violence prevention have remained central to Sawhney’s work. Saahas provides culturally sensitive support to individuals and families affected by domestic violence, elder abuse and other forms of hardship. Its services include counseling, case management, safety planning, referrals, education and assistance accessing legal or public resources.

The organization’s Saathi program focuses on preventing intimate-partner violence before a crisis occurs. Through workshops and community education, the program addresses healthy relationships, communication, parenting, teen dating violence, financial empowerment and independent living. Saahas also works with community members and leaders to reduce the stigma surrounding domestic violence and mental health—issues that can remain hidden when survivors fear judgment, family consequences or social isolation.

More recently, Saahas has highlighted Dhaaga, a stitching and rehabilitation initiative that combines creative activity, mentorship and practical skill-building. The program is designed to support survivors of violence and new immigrants as they work toward healing, confidence and greater independence.

Sawhney’s approach reflects the belief that intervention alone is not enough. A stronger community also needs prevention, early education and trusted relationships that allow people to seek support before a situation becomes an emergency.

Combining Community Service With Research

Sawhney has also helped position research as an important part of Saahas’s work. The organization studies concerns that are often underrepresented in mainstream data, including acculturation among South Asian immigrant women, youth mental health, bias and discrimination, domestic-violence prevention and culturally specific family relationships.

Saahas has presented its work through public-health and mental-health conferences and has collaborated with academic researchers on formal studies. One research project examined how South Asian immigrant women experience the process of adapting to life in the United States. Another involved youth studying the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on high-school students’ mental health. Its research and education efforts are intended to help the organization identify community needs, measure outcomes and design programs based on evidence rather than assumptions.

This combination of clinical knowledge, grassroots trust and community-specific research distinguishes Sawhney’s model of leadership. Instead of applying a general program to every population, Saahas adapts its services to the experiences of South Asian families and uses feedback to improve how those services are delivered.

Watch full interview on The INDUStryShow:  https://theindustryshow.org/payal-sawhney/

Growing From Grassroots Work to Regional Impact

The scale of Saahas’s work has expanded significantly since its founding. In a 2024 organizational recognition, Saahas reported that its work during the previous year had reached 3,108 older adults, provided counseling support to 467 women, mentored 73 young people and delivered community-health services to approximately 33,500 individuals.

That same year, Sawhney received a Certificate of Appreciation recognizing her leadership and grassroots service to the Indian community. The recognition highlighted her commitment to building a future in which survivors can find safety, older adults do not have to experience isolation and young South Asians have opportunities to become confident community leaders.

Saahas has continued expanding its community engagement. Its 2025 donor event brought together 140 supporters and highlighted the organization’s prevention-focused family model. The gathering also reflected the growing network of volunteers, clinicians, donors, civic partners and community members supporting its programs.

The nonprofit currently provides services across Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties through wellness forums, support groups, educational meetings, individual sessions and community outreach.

A South Asian American Leadership Story Rooted in Care

Payal Sawhney’s contribution is not defined by a single program or recognition. Her impact comes from building an organization around needs that many immigrant families experience privately: loneliness, cultural disconnection, mental-health stigma, domestic violence, parenting challenges and uncertainty about where to seek help.

Her work demonstrates why representation in mental health and social services matters. People are often more willing to seek support when they feel that their language, culture and family circumstances will be understood rather than judged. By combining professional expertise with cultural awareness, Sawhney has helped create pathways through which South Asian immigrants can access care while retaining dignity and trust.

Her leadership also reflects a broader shift within the South Asian American community—from addressing challenges informally within families to building institutions capable of providing professional, measurable and sustainable support.

Through Saahas for Cause, Sawhney is creating more than a collection of programs. She is helping build a community infrastructure in which older adults can remain connected, young people can become leaders, women and survivors can find support, and immigrant families can access resources suited to their lived experiences.

Key Takeaways About Payal Sawhney

• Payal Sawhney is the Founder and Executive Director of Saahas for Cause.
• She is an MHA, MSW and LCSW professional with more than two decades of mental-health and social-work experience.
• She founded Saahas for Cause in 2019 to provide culturally responsive support to South Asian immigrants.
• The organization serves youth, women, families and older adults across Southern California.
• Its work includes mental-health support, domestic-violence prevention, community wellness, public-benefit navigation, youth engagement and older-adult programs.
• Sawhney has helped integrate community-specific research into the design of Saahas’s services.
• She received a Certificate of Appreciation in 2024 for her grassroots leadership within the Indian community.
• Her work is helping create a stronger, more culturally informed support system for South Asian immigrants and their families.

About ASAN

South Asian Spotlight is an initiative of the American South Asian Network (ASAN), a national nonprofit connecting and advancing younger South Asians across the United States through community, mentorship, leadership development, professional opportunity, representation, and well-being.

Join ASAN’s mailing list, attend an upcoming event, or get involved as a volunteer