One in seven Indians, roughly 197 million people, suffer from some form of mental disorder. Yet between 70% and 92% of them receive no formal treatment.
India has only 0.75 psychiatrists per 100,000 people, when the WHO recommends at least 3. The treatment gap for common mental disorders stands at over 85%. And about 40% of teenagers in India report stress and anxiety as their main concerns, while most schools still lack trained counselors.
These aren’t just statistics. These are parents searching for answers. These are children struggling in silence. Families exhausted by a system that wasn’t built for them.
A mother in Bangalore had visited multiple centers, searching for help for her child with ADHD. Mentally exhausted and nearly ready to give up, she walked into a Sunshine Child Development (LISSUN) center, not expecting much, just hoping for something different.
What she found wasn’t another clinical checklist but a team that helped her reframe the entire journey, one that wasn’t chasing overnight results but was focused on small, achievable goals on a lifelong journey.
“Today, when my son achieves those small goals, it just brings a smile to my face and makes me happy,” she shared. “Sunshine Centre didn’t just help my child, they helped me heal too.”
This is the story behind LISSUN’s numbers. Behind 50,000+ individuals supported. Behind 10,000+ children reached. Behind 20+ centers across India.
Behind every data point is a family rediscovering hope.
Recognition First, Then Care
In the world’s best mental health systems, something happens before treatment begins: recognition. Recognition that mental health is health. That seeking help is strength. That the right match between person and therapist changes everything.
LISSUN was built on this principle. When 85% of people with mental disorders in India don’t receive treatment, the problem isn’t just access—it’s that the journey is too confusing, too stigmatized, too lonely.
The Personal Spark That Started It All
LISSUN didn’t begin in a boardroom. It began with two people who had witnessed emotional and mental health struggles up close—in families, in workplaces—and saw how the system failed again and again.
Dr. Krishna Veer Singh, Ph.D. (IIT Delhi, IIM Ahmedabad) with leadership experience at Uber and OYO, and Tarun Gupta (ISB Hyderabad), who has led strategy and operations at Flipkart and OYO, co-founded LISSUN to build and scale consumer-centric mental health solutions.
They identified what they call the 6A challenge—Awareness, Acceptance, Anonymity, Access, Affordability, and Assurance. India’s mental health ecosystem was failing on all six fronts.
Their solution? An India-first model that blends clinical expertise with technology, ensuring no child, adolescent, or adult has to struggle in silence.
LISSUN’s solution? Intelligent curation powered by technology.
RayAI becomes your 24/7 companion on WhatsApp—offering instant guidance, milestone tracking for parents, and answers when anxiety strikes at 2 AM.
Therapist Co-Pilot ensures your clinician comes prepared—handling session notes, progress tracking, and insights so they can focus entirely on you.
Being creates hyper-personalized journeys for adults—emotion journaling, daily check-ins, and pathways tailored to your specific struggles.
Spark works behind the scenes—smart scheduling, billing, data aggregation—so the logistics never get in the way of care.
From your first message to your hundredth session, LISSUN matches you with the right therapist, the right intervention, and the right support system.
Because healing begins with being seen, understood, and guided to the right place.
Quote:
“There’s also a shift from seeing therapy as a “last resort” to viewing it as a proactive, preventive step. When we see fathers sitting through therapy sessions with their children, or corporates integrating LISSUN’s (Employee Assistance Programs) into leadership programs — that’s the kind of change that fuels our optimism,”
– Dr. Krishna Veer Singh, Cofounder CEO at Lissun
Building a Business Model That Scales Care
While the human impact drives LISSUN’s mission, sustainable business fundamentals enable it to reach millions.
Since its August 15, 2021 founding, LISSUN has raised approximately ₹40 crore (~$5M) from RPSG Capital Ventures, IvyCap Ventures, Multiply Ventures, Inflection Point Ventures, and Rainmatter Capital. This backing has fueled expansion to 20+ Sunshine Child Development Centers across Bangalore, Delhi, Noida, Ghaziabad, Hyderabad, Jaipur, and Lucknow.
But individual therapy is just one revenue stream.
LISSUN has built a robust B2B model, serving 500+ corporate, school, and healthcare clients. Their workplace solutions—Employee Assistance Programs enhanced with adaptive AI—help organizations support employee mental wellness proactively, not reactively.
Small Shifts That Signal Big Change
India is beginning to move from shame to sharing.
Parents today are far more open to seeking early interventions for their children. Schools are initiating emotional well-being programs. Workplaces are integrating mental health into everyday dialogue.
There’s a shift from seeing therapy as a “last resort” to viewing it as a proactive, preventive step.
When fathers sit through therapy sessions with their children, when corporates integrate Employee Assistance Programs into leadership programs, when a mother can openly talk about her child’s ADHD journey—that’s the cultural shift LISSUN is both witnessing and catalyzing.
LISSUN has already partnered with 500+ B2B clients, working with corporates, schools, and healthcare providers to normalize mental health support across institutions.
The Dream: Mental Health as Natural as Physical Health
LISSUN’s dream is simple but ambitious: for mental health in India to be spoken about as naturally as physical health.
Every home, school, and workplace should see emotional well-being not as a taboo, but as a shared responsibility.
With ₹40 crore (~$5M) in funding from RPSG Capital Ventures, IvyCap Ventures, Multiply Ventures, Inflection Point Ventures, and Rainmatter Capital, LISSUN is scaling that vision.
The company is expanding Sunshine centers across India—currently present in Bangalore, Delhi, Noida, Ghaziabad, Hyderabad, Jaipur, and Lucknow—and integrating AI-powered personalization through SunshineAI and RayAI.
The goal isn’t just access. It’s assurance. Not just awareness, but acceptance.
If India can talk openly about emotions and act early with confidence, not fear, mental health will finally be solved at scale.
Healing is a Family Journey
That mother from Bangalore understood something profound: healing isn’t just about the child. It’s about the family. The support system. The community.
LISSUN gets that. Their omnichannel, AI-enabled, clinically led model ensures that when someone reaches out, they’re not just accessing therapy—they’re entering an ecosystem of care.
An ecosystem where technology meets empathy. Where data informs, but humanity heals. Where every small goal achieved is worth celebrating.
Where the first “hello” is met not with judgment, but with hope.
LISSUN pitched at the 1st Edition of the Sankalp Bharat Summit’s ASCEND programme, championing accessible and stigma-free mental health care. Now it’s your turn to share your impact story at the 2nd Edition of the Sankalp Bharat Summit’s ASCEND programme on the 11th-12th Dec at Lucknow. Apply before 25th Oct and we could feature you at the upcoming Sankalp Bharat Summit – https://bit.ly/473M6EH
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