vineel… the new kid on the block
Vineel is a new student in the creche. He was born without forearms, his hands awkwardly stuck to his elbow making it quasi impossible for him to do simple tasks like hold a pencil to write or pull down his shorts to go the loo. If he falls, he hurts his nose or face...
a buzz in the air
There is a buzz in the air. In a little town in Spain another book sale is organised by our dear friends Irene, Andy and Mike; in Singapore the Indian Women's Association organises and NGO Forum and project why is one of the featured organisations. The project is...
of stolen shoe laces and missing dusters
Yesterday we spent some time with the kids at the boarding school. Two of the wonderful persons who have made this incredible adventure possible for were in town and wanted to meet the children. Calls were made and permissions obtained and we reached the school a few...
I am here to stay
As I writes these words, little Meher is on her way home after her second surgery. She now looks like any tiny girl and not the little ET she had been for the past three months with her huge expanders. Meher will now look just like any other 4 year old, barring a a...
the washermen
Utpal loves taking pictures. Every time I go to his school he takes my camera and shoots to his heart's content. He did just that last week during his PTM. He took pictures of his pals, his bed, his favourite teachers and more. Then he handed me back the camera and...
a great PTM
Sunday was PTM day for our little foster care kids. This was the first PTM since school opened. For the past week there had been a flurry of activity to prepare for D day. All the parents had to be informed and plans made. It was decided that the parents of all our...
remembering nanhe
It was very hard to walk into the pwhy building yesterday. For the past 6 years I had been greeted almost every morning by Nanhe's huge smile, and if for some reason I was lost in my thoughts and failed to look in his direction, Nanhe, the child who could not speak,...
a smile lost forever
Yesterday the God of Lesser beings reclaimed what was rightfully his: Nanhe's smile. Yes, you heard it right little Nanhe is no more with us, he left for a better world taking his smile with him. I still do not know how I will make it through today and days to come, I...
where are they now..
Recently a donor asked us to find out where the pwhy alumni was today. I felt a little sheepish as this was an exercise we should have done but somehow it slipped our minds. So it was time to set out and find out where all our past students were. We began class XII...
where it’s due
This is the I time normally remember Ram and what he meant to me. Every year since his departure I have never forgotten to reminisce about him, particularly on his birthday, celebrated on the very day of India's Independence. There is however another birthday that is...
Happy Independence day
It was I Day celebrations at pwhy! And a very special one at that. It all began with a request from the special section teachers to drop by their class before I left the building. I was in a for a big surprise. The children had planned an entire show with many items....
a fun filled day
Last Friday the Sari Kids had a special treat in store for the creche children: an outing to the Children's park. It was truly special as most of the creche children belong to extremely poor families and never get to go out. Notes had been sent to the parents...
indiameme
Received a mail this morning asking me to write about a new venture called indiameme! I clicked on the link given and landed on a bright and colourful page that caught my immediate attention. Indiameme is a place where you can get all the news about India at one...
a short brush with fame
As expected Dear Popples did not make it to the short list of the Golden Quill award. Its brush with fame was short and fleeting. It did sit proudly and bravely for weeks next to giants but then got knocked off. Did I believe it would ever make it: I guess the heart...
a right at last….
The Right to Education Bill has been passed. After 62 years of Independence the children of India have finally got the fundamental right to free and compulsory education! Wonder why it took so long but then today let us simply celebrate the event.It is true that...
a unique rakhi
Yesterday the girls of the special section tied rakhis on the wrists of the boys of their class. These were very special rakhis as they had been made by the girls themselves!The moment was solemn and touching as each girl got ready to proceed with the small ceremony....
the joy of giving
I received an email informing me about a new initiative: the joy of giving week! The mail said: The "Joy of Giving Week" is planned for Sept 27-Oct 3, 2009 as a national movement that aims to engage more than two crore Indians in different "acts of giving" -money,...
the sari group
For the past three weeks Project why has again be touched by the magic of the SARI Kids. These are a bunch of young students from an ivy league business school in France. They come each year and spread their own brand of love to the children of project why for a whole...
threads of love
Last Friday the special section spent the day making rakhis as Raksha Bandhan is being celebrated next week. Threads, glue, sparkles, coloured papers, paint, brushes and scissors were set up and everyone set to work.There was a palpable excitement in the air as the...
a moment of fleeting glory
I had to share this picture. It is my fleeting moment of glory as Dear Popples still sits proudly amongst giants valiantly battling for an elusive yet coveted prize. I do not know whether Dear P will be a David but the fact that it got here is already praiseworthy....
dreams in the making
Remember Nandini? The young girl with a hole in our heart, a hole that could not be fixed because she was too old. The one who wants to be a doctor? The brave little girl was in town for a check up and dropped by project why to see us. She is now in class VIII and...
a suprise nomination
Dear Popples has been nominated for the Golden Quill awards were the words that greeted me yesterday morning when I woke up and found an SMS from my editor. I must be dreaming was my first reaction. But it was no dream. or was it just that: a dream come true, one that...
Irene Andy and Mike
In Valencia a little town in Spain live three wonderful people: Andy, Irene and Mike. Andy and Irene are old friends. They came some time back and spent a few days at pwhy and helped us build a brand new floor for our Okhla project! I guess they got touched by what I...
growing new wings
Rinky is one of our oldest students. This beautiful and extremely talented hearing impaired girl is one of a kind. She is a fully trained beautician and works part time in a local beauty parlour. While with us she also took sewing classes and tailoring classes.For...
just a fruit salad
Elise and Catherine, two of our summer volunteers, decided to make a fruit salad with the junior secondary girls in lieu of the normal English afternoon class.The first step was to go and purchase the fruits from the local market. The idea was to buy at least one of...
to be a woman
The shocking, repulsive, abhorrent incident that happened in Patna recently has left me speechless and numb. I do not know whether to be angry, sad or bewildered. A woman is lured away from her home with the promise of a job. When she discovers that she has been duped...
I’m explaining a few things
...it has not been considered as eligible due mainly to the fact it can be assimilated to a guest house were the words chosen by an MNC to convey their inability to fund our sustainability project a.k.a planet why. We had approached this particular organisation...
handle with care
Remember little Radha, the elf with brittle bone disease, the one who even appeared on national TV and who twirls like a dervish? The one we love so much and fear for? Well thanks to a kind supporter and friend Radha was examined yesterday by a top orthopedic surgeon...
Education for all cont…
During the course of the debate on education that brought Hillary Clinton and actor Amir Khan on a platform a young volunteer stated that she had been trying to teach five children under a tree, but that the kids' parents would rather they begged or sold trinkets on...
Education for all
There were two back to back discussions on education on national TV yesterday evening. One was a recording of the Hillary Clinton Aamir Khan event at St Xavier's Mumbai, and the other was a live debate with the new education minister and a handful of educationists,...
partaking in parkours
Parkour is a discipline that appeared first in France, more similar to a martial art than to a sport, focused on moving from one point to another as smoothly, efficiently and as quickly as possible using the abilities of the human body. It is built on the...
with you, for you, always
With you, for you, always is the motto of the police of our city. Each time I see these words slapped on the side of a vehicle or on a larger than life poster I instinctively recoil. Nothing could be more untrue and the last encounter you would want to have is with...
surviving on promises
It must seem as though you are surviving on promises wrote a friend I had sought support from. It seems like another message from up there. There seem to have been quite a few in the past days. Propitious or ominous only time will tell. I would rather believe the...
but because no one will let anything happen
Don't despair! Something will come along, and not just because it has to but because no one will let anything happen to the Project wrote a friend in a mail that dropped my way this morning. Did she sense that I was terribly troubled, or was this a message from the...
Project Why Rocks
I am quite Frequent Reader of your blog. Seriously I want to appreciate the efforts you are making to change the world around us. Good Job! Project Why Rocks! These were the words that greeted me this morning as I sat down to begin another day. I must confess they...
a very special wish
I often like browsing through my pictures library and looking at snapshots again. They each tell a story that one somehow misses when one first glances at a new download. This picture was taken who days back, when our fantastic five where dropped back to boarding...
Munna’s phone call
You must watch this clip. It is our dear little Munna talking on a cell phone. It is all make belief and what is touching is that Munna is probably one of our most mentally challenged kids. And yet as you watch the clip you will see him not only talking, but making...
we brought back a bag of rice
Munna is back. His mom brought him to class this morning and all his pals were thrilled to see him. She also wanted us to admit her younger daughter to the creche. Her older daughterstudies in our primary centre and goes to government school. Vicky her other son is...