About Us
Our Mission
Violence against women is very common: according to the World Health Organization, 1 in 3 women have faced
a form of physical or sexual violence. Girls are taught from a young age to travel in groups, come home early, and
wear certain clothes, all in the hopes of avoiding assault. But it is still not enough.
Danger cannot simply be avoided. Girls must also learn how to face their attackers, so that if they cannot run or call for help, they are able to defend themselves and their bodies.
BAM strives to provide girls around the world with free self-defense lessons. We believe that
the ability to defend should be common knowledge for girls.
Benefits of BAM
1
Practical Application
BAM prepares girls in martial arts self-defense techniques, enabling them to protect themselves if someone attempts to assault them.
2
Confidence
Through the self-defense training, girls will boost their confidence and will generally make them feel safer.
3
Exercise
While learning self-defense, the girls will also build vital strength and endurance skills.
Our Process
We work with grassroots organizations that help underprivileged girls in their communities.
We provide a mix of free instructional videos and live lessons taught by experienced martial
artists and more importantly, personalized feedback throughout our five-week training program.
Our goal is to make sure each girl feels adequately prepared to deal with any kind of attacker. Besides providing girls with self-defense abilities in dire situations, we hope that having this preparedness will also increase confidence and ability in the young girls that we reach.
Our Team
Sejal Kaushik
Founder
Hi! I’m Sejal Kaushik, a junior in high school. I fell in love
with Taekwondo at the age of 10 and have been doing it ever since- I’ve gained so much
through it, from heightened confidence to good fighting skills.
I realized that the self-defense knowledge that I had could help so many underprivileged girls who are faced with dangerous situations on the daily. That’s why I started BAM, with the hope that eventually, all girls will be able to fight back, gender-based violence will stop and girls will be able to enjoy themselves without the constant fear of being assaulted.
Zainab Ashraf
Director of Marketing
My name is Zainab Ashraf, and I am the
marketing director here at Basic Applied Martial Arts. Our organization’s goal is to provide
females around the world with the defensive strategies they need to protect
themselves from violence of any kind. Nobody should fear their surroundings because they are unable to defend themselves, and members of our organization promote this attitude through many pathways. On top of my job as BAM’s marketing director, I enjoy playing sports in my free time, and I have a black belt in taekwondo, which is one reason why I originally joined BAM as a martial arts instructor.
Rayaan Pookutty
Director of Outreach
Hi! My name is Rayaan Pookutty and I’m from Mumbai, India. I have a passion for film and photography and I also like socializing and helping out others. I joined BAM because after I came to know what they did and
what their goal was I felt as if it was my moral duty to help them achieve it and thanks to Sejal, the Founder of
BAM, I have gotten the opportunity to do so!
Bhavika Shekar
Marketing Member
My name is Bhavika Shekar and I’m currently a junior at Lebanon
Trail High School. I enjoy watching movies, debating, cooking, and trying new things. But what I
enjoy the most is helping people by making a world a better
place and BAM is the best way to make it happen
Zara Jamshed
Outreach Member
Hello! My name is Zara Jamshed and I am currently a senior at Lebanon Trail High School in Dallas, Texas. I am Pakistani but my family moves around a lot. I love to read, write, and watch cringey Netflix shows in my free time. I joined BAM because I loved their
mission and want to help underprivileged girls with the opportunity that I was lucky enough to get.
Alexia Dobrin
Marketing Member
Jahanvi Verma
Outreach Member
Hi!! I am Jahanvi Verma, a Grade 12 Humanities student from India. I am also a Graduate in Dance and Music and a General Awareness Writing enthusiast. As an aspiring Criminal Justice and Human Rights
Lawyer, I have realised the importance of bridging the gap in the various components of Gender-Based Violence. That led me to join BAM (Basic Applied Martial Arts) as an outreach member.
Medha Tomar
Finance Member
I’m Medha Tomar, and I’m a junior in high school. I love art, reading,
and running. Since I have a background in track, I joined BAM because I believe in empowering
girls through sport.
Evelyn Yu
Finance Member
I’m Evelyn, and I’m currently a junior in high school. I joined BAM because I believe in empowering girls through concrete, physical action. In my free time, I enjoy art, films, reading, and yoga.
Aaliya Stoman
Outreach Member
Hello! My name is Aaliya. I am a third year university student at
Western University. I am in medical science, specifically interdisciplinary medical science. My
hobbies include: doing new things with friends,
working out, volunteering, and listening to music. I joined BAM because I’m really interested in the initiative and it’s something I believe is important.
Anika Rastogi
Outreach Member
Abdul Rahman Bajaman
Marketing Member
I am Abdul Rahman from Saudi Arabia. I am in 12th grade. I enjoy playing basketball and reading. I joined BAM to help them with their mission and combat gender based violence together.