From Exclusion to Belonging: The Story Behind Shamime Jan

In her Legacy Bench conversation, Shamime Jan shares a story shaped by community, cultural understanding, and a long-standing commitment to rethinking how women’s health is supported in underserved communities.

As the Founder and Director of Bollyfit Active CIC, Shamime has spent over a decade building a culturally responsive model of health and wellbeing that reaches women who are often left behind by traditional systems. Her work is grounded in a simple but powerful belief: before behaviour change comes belonging.

Shamime developed The BELONG Method™ through years of lived experience working closely with women who were not engaging with mainstream health programmes. She discovered that the barrier was rarely a lack of information. Instead, it was a lack of trust, connection, and culturally safe spaces where women felt seen and understood.

That insight became the foundation of her mission.

At the centre of her work is a clear question: What if the missing link in public health isn’t more services, but a different starting point built on belonging?

Shamime is now scaling this approach through Bollyfit Academy, training women as community-based health and fitness coaches to create a sustainable, grassroots ecosystem. Her vision extends beyond local impact, aiming to build a national and international model that bridges the gap between communities and health systems.

She speaks to the transformation already taking place. Women who were once disengaged are now attending regularly, improving their health outcomes, and stepping into leadership roles within their own communities. For Shamime, these changes are not isolated successes—they are proof that the model works.

At her core, she represents a shift in thinking about public health. One that prioritises trust over instruction, connection over compliance, and belonging over behaviour change.

Her story is a reminder that real transformation doesn’t always begin with systems. Sometimes, it begins with how people are made to feel.