In 2021, Shivani Dhillon spoke on The Good Vibes Show with a voice that felt like home—unhurried, candid, and full of love. She talked about her young daughter with Down syndrome, about joy and difficulty moving side by side, about systems that fail and surprises that teach. For most, the episode ended when the credits rolled. For Rahul Jindal, somewhere between a flight and a long drive, it was only the beginning. Something in her words—the warmth, the lack of performance—stayed with him. Almost without thinking, he sent a message on LinkedIn, asking her if they could talk sometime.
Shivani answered, expecting little. But moments later, Rahul replied: How about now? What followed was a phone call about his own son, about the questions without answers and the urgency to build something better. Then came the spark: Do you want to start an organisation with me? It should have been impossible. She didn’t know him; they hadn’t even met. And yet, trust came quickly, like something waiting to be found. One call became many, messages became plans, and before they had even shaken hands, the foundation of the SDF was already real.
Smiling Dandelion Foundation