Diwashi Trip – An Encounter with reality

Mahatma Gandhi once said, “To a poor man, god cannot appear except in the form of bread.” The truth in this cannot be completely comprehended unless one has a face off with poverty. That is exactly what this trip was for us, Enactus – Somaiya Social Cell members – a face-off with poverty.

130 kms from Mumbai is Dahanu, a small taluka in coastal Maharashtra. As we trudged along on a Sunday morning to Nareshwadi Learning centre on 23^rd Feb 2014, we never imagined it would take us so long to reach our destination which was still at an hour’s journey from there. Diwashi is a small village further from Nareshwadi, where the farmers, the main beneficiaries of Project Mogra reside.

As we interacted with Mr. Walvi, who represents the Girivanvasi Educational Trust (GVET) and handles the project there, we got a general idea of the farmers. The farmers have families of 5-6 members, lands of less than an acre and a monthly income of around Rs. 500-600 from their meager agricultural produce. Due to their low incomes, the males of the family work as laborers in nearby areas such as Vasai. The women of the family take care of the farms. Children of these families mainly study at the School in Nareshwadi Training Centre.

While we educated the farmers on Financial Literacy, we were faced with just one question. How do we save from our already insufficient income? There is no answer to that question.

The root cause of poverty lies somewhere deeper. And the root cause of most social issues in our country today lies in poverty. There is much work to be done, many people to be educated and many families to be uplifted. Let us all endeavor together to not rest till we empower each and every poor household. It is by each small step that we can fight poverty.

We left from Diwashi praying to the rain gods that the farmers be blessed with a bumper Mogra crop this season. And here’s hoping that our efforts would help them rise out of their current conditions.

Aarohi 2014 : Different...not less!

“You're not disabled by the disabilities you have, you are abled by the abilities you have” --Oscar Pistorius.

A little 5 year old, with unimaginable energy and enthusiasm, sprints like an athlete to win the race. He has cancer, is hyperactive, mentally disabled, and is one of the cutest kids you will ever meet. His mother’s eyes shine with tears as her little son waves his trophy in the air with a gurgling laugh. Wondering what event is this? Welcome to Aarohi 2014!

Aarohi 2014, was a “special” event organized by the Lions Club and assisting them in this endeavour was the Enactus Somaiya Social Cell. The two daylong event began with a song and dance competition for the special kids. From the heart-warming silent anthem by hearing impaired children to an awe inspiring dance performance by a mentally disabled child, the event packed a punch. By the end of this program, everyone present could not help but agree that there is this wonderful talent in every child!

If on the first day, we appreciated these little angels as audience, the second day gave us a little peek into their beautiful minds. Competing in games such as lemon in spoon, match the cards and relay races, these children displayed unbounded enthusiasm and zest for life. The event ended with an award ceremony, with the Enactus volunteers cheering loudest for the kids they had grown so attached to. At the end of these two fun filled, emotional and enjoyable days, we were surely physically tired, but mentally no one could have felt fresher.

Sometimes living in an intensely competitive environment and under huge stress, we forget to count our blessings. The hope, enthusiasm and infectious smiles of these little wonders made us appreciate life as it is, simple and pure.

Nareshwadi Field Trip – An Incredible Experience

Eleven of us from Enactus Somaiya Social Cell set out on a field trip early morning on 31^st Jan 2014. Nareshwadi Learning Centre, Dahanu is an 11-acre campus which boasts of a primary school, a high school and a vocational training institute. The campus is surrounded by a hospital, an organic farm and a goshala which provide better opportunities to the tribals in this area.

The Project Warli of Enactus Somaiya Social Cell was started as an initiative to empower the Warli tribe. The vocational training institute of Nareshwadi today not only trains the tribals to create world class Warli products but also assists in selling those. The Warli Products sold at Enactus Kiosk’s are sourced from here.

The visit to the vocational training institute was a required dose for us new Enactus Members. While working for our projects at the retail end has been enjoyable, we truly got insights into actual production of these artifacts when we saw them made. The tribal art of Warli is a combination artistry and storytelling and it signifies the bountiful culture and art of our country.

Team Warli aims to add a few new products to its catalogue this year. Samples of the new products were created and along with the Warli painters the team members took to brushes to learn the finer nuances of the art. Team Kruti also took initiatives to spread its wings in Nareshwadi. While all current Kruti products come from Sameerwadi, Karnataka, it seems a good idea to expand the project to empower the women of Nareshwadi.

The Enactus Team also interacted with a few kids studying at the Kokilaben Kotak Primary School at Nareshwadi. It was fun revisiting childhood rhymes through these children. The team further took a round of the farm which produces mainly fruits and the goshala which has around 40 cows. At the end of the day, none of us wanted to return to our busy and adulterated metro lives after a day spent in small indian village glory.

 

Leading Media Inc. meets Leading NGO

Leading Media Inc. meets Leading NGO

Indian media: 

• One good thing : Freedom to correspondents
• One bad thing   : Poor transparency  said Mr. Peter Horrocks,Global Head BBC

this extract if from a BBC-ENACTUS interaction held on 10th of January 2014 at Mayfair Banquets, Worli.

BBC, a market leader in Media industry had been toying with the idea of extending their Corporate social activities in rural India. Recently, they decided to come and have a real-time idea of the prevailing situations in some of the most backward areas in Bihar. 

Now, India is way too different than UK,US in many factors, so before starting out something big BBC decided to analyse the already operating NGOs in India and understand their Modus Operandi. Enactus India is a leading NGO that operates through many of their associates from various colleges and institutions.

Around 70 members from various branches of ENACTUS participated in the interaction with BBC top-notches. Also, present was Ms Preet Dhupar, COO,BBC India who also is associated with ENACTUS from a long time.

Event started with the presentations of two of the best ENACTUS teams from Mumbai. First team was from K J Somaiya institute and they presented their projects Kruti and Mogra to the audience followed by team from H.R. College presented on their project Aasha. Mr. Peter was curious enough to listen to both presentations very carefully and generous enough to come on the stage and appreciate us in an openhearted manner. From his experience in media he shared some of the story-telling techniques which were amazing.

This was followed by many questions from the ENACTUS members regarding diverse issues such as Indian media, Cultural differences, best way to reach people etc. 

After answering all the doubts and winding up his talk he discussed a very important thing about CSR.

He said : 

'We are dreaming a long time if we are doing CSR just to earn some media brownie points and think that we are morally correct!'

After Mr. Peter, Ms Preet commented on reforms in Indian media and improvements in governance of media which revived hope in the ambiance.
Now the learning from this session is just that: If we really want to 'help' someone we have to do away with the habit of materializing every thing and sometimes think from the heart.
The meet ended with delicious snacks and coffee.

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Corporate Social Responsibility- Need or Burden?

What is the business of business? Should businesses attempt to solve societal ills? Or should businesses merely maximize shareholder wealth? The debate on the Corporate Social Responsibility rages on! Today, CSR is entering a new era in India as companies comply with new legislations and respond to the expectations of society.

To give students an enlightened perspective on this hot topic, Enactus Somaiya Social Cell organized a panel discussion on “Impact of CSR in Economic Downturn” in the recently concluded Samavesh, 2013.

Today, in these tough economic times, will companies continue to act in a socially responsible manner? Or will the CSR activities be the first one to face the axe? Can the companies turn CSR expenses into strategic opportunities? These were some of the important questions discussed by the eminent panellists who were Mr. Pradeep Talpade- Ex CEO, L&T charitable trust, Mr. Murali G – CIO of Star Union Dai-ichi Life Insurance and Mr. Kaushal Mehta- Director, Protoninfosolutions Ltd.

The discussion opened on a lively note with the panellists defining CSR in a radical manner, drawing from their own professional experiences. The students were exposed to a whole new perspective as the panellists discussed CSR from the point of view of corporates. They were refreshingly upfront in saying the companies will always want to gain a strategic advantage through their social investments. This justifies the expenditure of the company and encourages them to take up more initiatives.

The panellists significantly emphasized on CSR simply being a profitable and responsible way of doing business. When looked at from this perspective, then the CSR activities would simply be unaffected by the economic upheavals. The highly debated new Companies bill which makes CSR mandatory for corporates was also discussed with fervour. The panellists were of the opinion that the bill can be an advantage to both the company and the society, if taken in the right spirit.

One of the points that the students lapped up with pleasure was regarding the growing plethora of opportunities in the field of CSR. The idea being that corporate social responsibility will soon be a job market in itself! The enlightening panel discussion ended with the panellists urging all the young and budding managers to be socially responsible entrepreneurs by making social responsibility a part of their daily life and everyday decisions.

Enactus Leadership Training – A day spent well!

In 1962, on the thirtieth anniversary of the first flight of Air India, JRD Tata re-enacted the original Bombay – Karachi flight in a vintage Airplane. He had taken this flight, he said, “… to remind his employees that the great airline we serve today was built from the smallest of beginnings, with little more to sustain it than the Love, the Sweat and the Devotion of those who worked for it.”

Tata’s have always been known in our country for their strong morals and humility. These values are still instilled in the current leadership of this global conglomerate. At the Enactus Leadership Training, we had the fortune to meet Mr. Mukund Rajan, who is in every way an embodiment of the values that Tata’s stand for. He is the Brand Custodian, Group Spokesperson and Chief Ethics officer of Tata Sons Ltd. He is also a great orator and listening to him has empowered us in many ways.

 

Later we did a case study discussion on a visual impairment case, moderated by Ms. Shruti Sharma, GM – Enactus India. She explained the Enactus model and Ideology with the help of this case with admirable ease. The case was in fact a real project implemented by Technical University of Munich, Germany, who were Enactus World Cup 2013 winners. Just a glimpse of the world winners gave us great insights into entrepreneurial possibilities and motivated us to work harder for our own projects. More details of their extraordinary project can be found here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hiD42NFXBUQ

Following this was Charulata R K, who enlightened us on Branding and Leadership. It was fun when she handed out books to people who answered her questions on analogies of Brands and Celebrities. Like elsewhere, SIMSR was on the forefront in winning books.

The session ended with an impromptu talk by Dr. Arup Basu who is the president – New Businesses and Innovation at Tata Chemicals Limited. It was interesting to know some facts about products such as Tata Salt which are ingrained in our daily lives in ways that we don’t even realize their existence.

All in all this training was an amazing experience that each of us Enactus members would treasure for life!

Warli Painting Workshop at Founders Day

A Learning Experience and a Social initiative to save the dying Tribal Art of Warli!

On 29^th Nov 2013 was Ekatva 2013 – The Founder’s Day Celebration at Somaiya Vidyavihar. Enactus Somaiya Social Cell as a part of their Project Warli arranged a Warli Workshop and Demonstration to spread awareness about the traditional art of Warli. Painters from the coastal village of Dahanu were invited specially for training at the workshop. While the painters guided the 17 novices on the intricacies of warli paintings, which depict scenes from daily life in a loose rhythmic pattern, it helped generate curiosity among a larger audience at the Founders Day Celebration.

At a very nominal registration fee, the 17 attendees were provided with all the painting material at the workshop. Some people also bought in their cups and shirts to get Warli designs made on them. It was heart-warming to see the young Warli Painters create the magical world of Warlis on mere chart sheets. Here’s hoping more such enriching events could come our way!

Christmas Kiosk

They say "Christmas isn't a season. It's a feeling". Its a season of love, celebrations, festivities and most importantly, a season of gifts. 

This Christmas, ENACTUS SSC gifted everyone the opportunity to play Santa to someone, to gift someone a smile, a hope,a better life. ENACTUS SSC arranged a Christmas Kiosk at SIMSR campus on the 19th and 20th of November'13.

On exhibit were the beautiful Kruti and Warli products, ranging from the colorful bags,wallets and kurtis to pen stands, coasters and key rings painted with Warli art form.

The kiosk got a very warm response from both the students and the faculty.While the Kruti kurtis were a hit with the girls, the guys loved the T-shirts with Warli chest prints. The spirit of Christmas was in the air and a lot of the customers seemed to have finally found the perfect gifts for Christmas for their friends and family.

It is indeed very heartening to find an unconditional and never ending support from the SIMSR fraternity for every small and large initiative of ENACTUS SSC. Their support not only inspires us and makes us stronger, it has helped us make this Christmas merrier,it has helped us bring a smile to a lot of faces.

MYNTRA - Another feather in Warli’s cap

Warli---the flag ship project of Somaiya Social Cell has taken yet another step forward in helping out the artists who practice this art form.

Myntra.com a website that offers customers a variety of goods online is our new partner for marketing Warli products. Myntra offers a variety of products like personalized T-shirts, mugs, pens, wallets etc. It attracts a lot of people especially youngsters who like to make their statement. It is through this website myntra.com that we at Somaiya Social Cell are trying to bring more business and exposure to the Warli painters.

In response to the application sent in by our Warli team, the team at myntra.com, did their own research and found our products feasible, following which the deal to allow us set up an account in myntra.com was finalized in September 2009 and the Warli account in myntra.com became operational in October 2009.The shop on myntra.com called SIFE somaiya now offers T-shirts with warli designs on them.

The Warli team is now the design partner for myntra.com and through its account on the website, T-shirts with Warli paintings are sold . For every T-shirt each costing RS 350/- sold we receive commission which will go to the Warli painters.

The dedicated efforts of our Warli team has enabled us grab this opportunity and has opened a new avenue to showcase the forgotten art form. This platform will not only bring in more business for Warli products but more importantly it will give the art form and its painters much neededexposure and well deserved attention.

It is a number of small but firm steps like this thatcontribute towards the success of our projects and give us the boost to take forward our motto….Touching Hearts…Challenging Destinies.

Warli Painting Workshop Held at Kalaghoda

Kalaghoda mini festival scheduled from 30th October to 2nd November is a smaller version of the actual event that takes place in the month of February every year.

Presented by the Kala Ghoda Association (KGA), the cultural had close to 80 stalls for arts and crafts, performances by renowned artists like Jagjit Singh, Gary Lawyer, Shilpa Rao and Niladri Kumar.


Conducting Workshop



Warli Team

The festival also had a children's section. From magic workshops to Origami workshops (CRY) and Puppet making to Witchcraft, several activities have been incorporated for the little ones. Once again Kala Ghoda spread art and culture with full enthusiasm.

Keeping in mind the popularity of the festival among mumbaikars it was great news indeed that SOMAIYA SOCIAL CELL had successfully organised a Warli workshop at the Kala Ghoda mini festival on 1st November '09.

The warli team had with the assistance of Mrs. Brinda Miller set up a warli painting workshop for children. Social cell members present there were Ritica Bhardwaj, Gunjan Bhutani, Rishabh, Gauraav Singh Pardhi and Sumit Loya. They arranged for all the art works and supplies and also arranged for the painters to come from warli.

Ritica bharadwaj who was there at the festival shares her experience:

“Painters handled the kids very well making the workshop a success.The response we got there was really great. There were only 25 seats, but the children as well as their parents were very enthusiastic about the workshop, that we had no other option but to accomodate more students ( around 35-40).The kids were really happy and content with the workshop and many of them even enquired about the enrollment in regular Warli classes !! Holding a workshop in the midst of other workshops being held by big names like CRY really gave us a boost. We were really lucky to get this opportunity. The happy faces and the eagerness of the children gave us all a very satisfying experience.”