Professor Manjula Datta O’Connor

MBBS FRANZCP DPM MMED

Professor Manjula Datta O’Connor is a psychiatrist in private practice with clinical and research interest in migrant women’s mental health, family violence, complex trauma and trauma therapy.

She is Hon Clinical A/ Professor at the Department of Psychiatry University of Melbourne, and Adjunct Professor UNSW Department of Social Sciences. Manjula is the immediate past Chair of the Royal Australian New Zealand College of Psychiatrists Family Violence Psychiatry Network.

Manjula participates as an expert on committees and contributes to public discussions concerning the safety of migrant women regularly.

She is the author of bestselling book Daughters of Durga and invited for book reading at the Brisbane Writers Festival 2023.

Manjula co-founded the NGO, the AustralAsian Centre for human rights and health (ACHRH) in 2012. As the Executive Director of ACHRH she successfully led the dowry abuse campaign in Australia culminating in law change in Victoria in 2019, inclusion of dowry abuse, as an example of coercive controlling tactic in the National Principles to Address Coercive Control in Family and Domestic Violence 2023, and successfully advocated to change Federal Family Law Act to include dowry abuse as an example of financial abuse.   ACHRH under Manjula’s directorship won the Innovative Award for designing Mutual Cultural Respect, migrant community education around Australian culture. In its short existence (12 years) ACHRH has won around $1million in grants.

Recognition and awards

Manjula is the recipient of 2024 Victorian Senior Premiers Award 2025, Inducted in to Victorian Honour Roll 2025, Multicultural Honour Roll 2024, Meritorious Award of the Royal NZ College of Psychiatrists Victorian Branch 2023, Victorian Government multicultural award ‘Excellence In Service Delivery in Women Health 2012’, Changemaker award at Women’s Agenda 2020, Australia India Business and Community Excellence Award. Recognised as top 100 Indians of Australia 2022.

Manjula’s name has been cited in the Federal and Victorian Parliament several time

Invited speaker panel discussion Brisbane Writers Festival, May 2023.

Invited panellist, Indian film festival August 2023, with the team of famed film Darlings, male lead actor Vijay Varma and screen writer Jasmeet Rana and

More information can be found on www.manjulaoconnor.com