Tarini grew up in New Delhi, India, and attended Wellesley College in Boston, USA, where she earned her BA with a double major in Economics and Philosophy. After graduating, she worked on Wall Street at Morgan Stanley for two years during the 2008 recession. However, after a few years, she followed her heart and moved to Kampala, Uganda, to work on proposal writing for fundraising in the international development sector.

Tragedy struck after just six weeks of her planned-one-year stay in Uganda. Tarini was hit by a speeding vehicle while riding a motorcycle-taxi (boda boda) without a helmet, suffering a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). She lost consciousness immediately and remained comatose for three months. Despite the limitations to her mobility and cognitive functions upon regaining consciousness, Tarini was determined to continue pursuing her dreams. She applied to Yale University’s School of Management (SOM) for an MBA, and graduated in 2020, six years later than she had originally intended.

Upon her graduation, Tarini moved back to New Delhi after sixteen years overseas to work in the education sector. She intends to return to this sector in some form once she completes significant work on her book. Before November 2022, she worked at the World Bank, India and Central Square Foundation.

In her memoir, ‘Beyond a Lifequake’, Tarini shares her powerful story of recovery, snippets of which are also documented on her personal blog. Through her experiences, Tarini believes that individuals, have the fundamental right to shape our lives according to our preferences, and it is our collective responsibility to create opportunities for others to do the same.

Tarini currently works as Manager , where she leads the inclusion of faculty and students with disabilities at higher education institutions in India at 9.9 Education, a pioneering institution building firm in the country.