by Anuradha Bakshi | Jun 21, 2005 | Uncategorized
when i asked some kids what made them laugh most, they all refereed to the famous chocolate ad where big B leaps of joy at ‘pappu’ passing his XIIth..
well yesterday when rani brought her class X result, my joy was not for the camera, it was genuine .. and that for many reasons..
the first is maybe because i simply love this young spirited woman.. but more than that because from the time i set eyes on her exactly five years ago to the day… she has never let me down.. from accepting to work without salary as a health and nutrition volunteer, to taking on small responsibilities to becoming my right arm and steering the day-to-day activities of project why..
rani was a shy withdrawn girl, who had dropped out of class IX as she had been severely beaten for not having brought her fees in time, and her mom had decided to stop her schooling..
well this year she decided to sit for her Xth Boards, did not even take a day of leave to study – god knows when she did – and came beaming yesterday with her results..
rani today steers a project which has 400 kids, a staff of 40 many of whom i have seen her grow..
but what makes this woman special is that she takes on any challenge with a smile and a determination no one can compete with… somehow she vindicates project why’s stand of empowering people..
by Anuradha Bakshi | Jun 16, 2005 | Uncategorized
funding is the one constant source of anguish to anyone engaged in work like ours.. there are many sources but we decided to take the long way home..
this is primarily because our commitment to empowerment only makes sense if its has a duration in time and remains rooted in a people steered approach..
we could have taken one of the oh so tempting short cuts, but they all end in mirages or dead ends: a big donor leaves town and bye bye children… india tests a nuclear device and some countries stop all aid so bye bye children… suddenely education is no more the flavour of the day so bye bye children again… the list is endless
and the poor unsuspecting beneficiary is the ultimate victim: the child loses its support system, women lose a job that had brought dignity and respect…
so we chose a the long road home, where home is the day the local community would steer such efforts by emulating the model we set.. a model based on large numbers and small sums of money.. the famous one rupee idea!
what is a rupee a day, or 365 rupee a year in today’s reality: a large pizza at the fast food joint, a movie for two, something each one could give up without even realising it..
then why is the long way home such a difficult one…
all you need is to look at the smile of this child who suffered third degree burns and who was left for dead.. he smiles because of those who walked the long way with us..
don’t you think it is worth it….
by Anuradha Bakshi | Jun 16, 2005 | Uncategorized
main hoon na! or here I am is what each tiny project why tot proudly says every morning at roll call!
these three little words are overflowing with meaning… they are not simply an affirmation or act of presence, they hold all their still unformulated dreams.. dreams that can only be fulfilled if people find their hearts and reach out to help..
and when they fold their hands in prayer and look up, it is the same three words they say to the invisible one!
to help us fulfill their dreams we need caring souls to part with a rupee a day! easier said than done particularly in this city where people seem to have lost their heart somewhere…
everyone wants to know what they would get in return.. and you stoically retort in a soft voice: the satisfaction of helping educate children – but it does not cut the ice… you get a curt – all NGOs are crooks– and you want to scream – but come and see our work.. – but who has the time..
many friends say – go find a celebrity – but where does one find one who would be willing to associate with a down to earth effort like ours…
never mind if we get children new hearts, or give employment to destitute mothers, or even arrest drop out rates in school.. we cannot get you a place in page 3.. we never learnt how… and the question is – do we really want to…
i think you know the answer..
by Anuradha Bakshi | Jun 16, 2005 | Uncategorized
meet sophiya and pushpa.. one is a tribal from ranchi the other a dalit..
sophiya and pushpa run our okhla primary extension programme..
it was about a year ago that we decided to start this centre, and these two ladies were the chosen ones to go and set it up from scratch and they did, to our utter amazement: found a dump, cleared it and cleaned it, set up a shack, negotiated with the cops and local politicos, handled the local goons, found the children and today teach over 100 kids, in conditions that would scare off many…
and they do it with a smile, without a word of complaint..
to me these two women of substance epitomise the spirit of project why, which only makes sense if community members can learn the skills and gain the ability to set up extension centres in different places learning to deal with local problems and find support within.
Women are like stars…only one can make your dreams come true!
by Anuradha Bakshi | Jun 12, 2005 | Uncategorized
one heart has been mended, one kid is back on course…
a bunch of sparkling eyed kids are busy studying…
another lot are busy learning the rules of living in our world..
little stars shine as they learn their numbers and letters..
a planet continues its charted course…
but there is another side of WHY
the one that never ceases to question and look for answers
if you look closely at aditya, the little fellow on the picture you will see a little face filled with questions that seem not to have any answers: here are some
why did my father die ?
why is everyone so nasty to my mother?
why did no one give me medicine when my face was hurting so much?
why do i hear my mama weep at night?
and the list is endless
aditya’s mama is 19, aditya is not even 2. the father died of brain fever last year. his family threw aditya and his mother out. aditya lives with his maternal grandmother who can barely make both ends meet.
we cannot spend time wondering why (!) we need to do something… and we did.
after getting aditya the medical help he needed (injectable antibiotics) we decided to help Neha find a tomorrow and thanks to friends today Neha attends a beautician course at the Shanaz Hussain School and will one day get a job and maybe her own parlour… though we are still looking for a kind heart to sponsor the course material which is quite expensive (4K!) and the monthly bus fare.
And every morning , as Neha sets out on the road of her new life, little aditya sits in our creche working out all the little unworded questions that crowd his tender mind.
And the one question I know bothers him the most is: when will mama smile again!
by Anuradha Bakshi | Jun 8, 2005 | Uncategorized
Arun’s operation is over and God willing he will get better by quantum leaps: children have an uncanny way of making up for lost time!
But for us at project why the task is not over. It never is.
We do not believe in full stops. Everything that happens, every incident that comes our way, every moment carries in it the seed of something new: that is what I like calling the WHY ruse.
Be it an award received, a task completed, a child healed, an exam success: they are all made to be touched by this ruse
So if a new support group saw the light with arun’s operation it now becomes a moot point for much more. Sometimes the ruse is only relevant within project why, but the litmus test is when one can draw in unlikely and unsuspecting candidates!
If those who generously adorned one with unsollicited awards agreed to walk that one extra step, one could do so much more.
And what makes it more interesting is that the ruse works both ways: does it not make us at project why also responsible of being worthy of what was received?
Think about it
