Narika was started by a group of committed and passionate South Asian women. Originally, a number of South Asian women in the Bay Area loosely organized a group that met as a mutual support group. It was first called the Bay Area Indian Women's Support Group and then the South Asian Women's Support Group. There were long hiatuses and the group had a changing membership. Eventually Shobha Hiatt, Viji Sundaram, Inderpal Grewal, Yasmin (Nina) Kabir, Lalita Prasad, and Manuela Albuquerque became the core group that founded Narika. Since many of the members were being asked to help with domestic violence related cases in their professional lives, they decided to explore the establishment of a formal structure to help victims of domestic violence.

July 1991: Shobha, Viji, Inderpal, Yasmin, Lalita and Manuela decided that if a domestic violence helpline was to become a reality, they had to commit themselves to organize a group and educate themselves about the issues in a consistent way.

April 1992: Narika created a helpline 

1992-1993: The founders began meeting several times a month and collaborated with other domestic violence agencies, to become familiar with available resources and develop a referral guide. They received technical assistance and training from Becki Masaki, the director of the Asian Women's Shelter, and Firoza (Chic) Dabby, They also drafted articles of incorporation, by-laws, and statements of philosophy.