How I Came To Believe In The Wonders Of A Smile

How I Came To Believe In The Wonders Of A Smile

I frequently discover myself being mesmerized by happy faces. 7,000 different languages are spoken throughout the world. But there is one thing we can use to connect with everybody, regardless of a language - a smile! In fact, it is one of the first expressions we...

Going Back To, Through Sundays

Going Back To, Through Sundays

After two years of not knowing what day is what, Sunday now has some significance. I say ‘two years’ without mentioning the C word because I do not want to read it in the beginning of yet another narrative. It’s inescapable because of how passive we have had to be in...

My Small Win With Chai Shots

My Small Win With Chai Shots

At MANAVLOK, the organization I am a part of as an India Fellow, the entire team comes together for a weekly meeting every Monday at 10 AM sharp. Members from all the sub-centers, teachers from our social work college, karyakartas from Manavlok’s women's wing...

Viel, No Viel: Why Hate?

Viel, No Viel: Why Hate?

A Malayalee growing up in Gujarat has certain perks. Locals do not understand your name, culture, or slang and you can get out of awkward situations - mostly by lying yes. Then the unthinkable (for me definitely) happened, and I shifted back to the place that is...

Exploring Relationship With Religion

Exploring Relationship With Religion

I am not a religious person. However, by virtue of growing up in a religious society, I've always practiced Christianity as a way of life. Church and community have played a major role in shaping my mental models, beliefs, and aspirations. All throughout childhood, I...

What’s On Your Mind? [A Poem]

What’s On Your Mind? [A Poem]

They show me the bulging veins,On your forehead and across your abdomen,Striking like lightning bolts against a dark sky.They tell me it shows,The pain you are taking in.Yet not a word. Sweat and blood running down,But not a drop of tear.Swallowing the pain,You sit on...

That Feeling Of Liberation : In Kalahandi

That Feeling Of Liberation : In Kalahandi

When was the last time you felt most liberated? This question that was thrown at us during a virtual learning session has stayed with me for days. At first, it seemed simple enough. But after spending some time pondering on it, I know the guise of simplicity is only a...

Privilege Check: From Mirrors To Education

Privilege Check: From Mirrors To Education

An integral part of being an India Fellow is learning to lead a modest life by living and working along with communities without much luxury. However, the fellowship can be called an ‘elite’ program as most of us fellows come from positions of great privilege - urban,...

How A Night At The Hospital Made Me Realize My Privilege

It was 3AM; cold and chilly. I was sitting in a government hospital. After a rushed couple of hours, the area around me was unnervingly calm. It is precisely at that point that I got my periods. Nothing unusual – a pretty normal occurrence but for me it was immediate...

“झरने सी मेरी पहचान”

“झरने सी मेरी पहचान”

वेग हूँ, मैं झरना हूँ, गति पे सवार हूँ|रुकती नहीं मैं वादियों में न रुकी कभी चट्टानों में|न रुक सकी पैमानों में, न रुक पायी देवालयों में|मैं बस झरती हूँ, हर बाधा से कुछ और छनती हूँ|देखा सभी जो प्रत्यक्ष है, जहाँ तहां न रमती हूँ|तुम्हे शायद बस मेरा आना सुनाई दे,पर उसकी...

Friendly Spiders Of Agragamee

Imagine you have just woken up. You get up and open the door to step out, and the first thing you see is a spider hanging in front of your door, spreading its web. Thinking it might have gone, I took my first step to go out but the web stuck to my entire face. I...

Who Is A Karyakarta?

Who Is A Karyakarta?

The word 'Karyakarta' literally means worker in English. I've been trying to understand it better. Who is a Karyakarta? Is it you and me? Is it a CEO of an organization? How often do we introduce ourselves as a Karyakarta? I have never had. In fact, I had always taken...

Working In Grassroots : Perspectives Versus Realities

Working In Grassroots : Perspectives Versus Realities

Shakshi with the girls and women she is working with My dream of bringing a change into the existing system of our society and to adding value to it in an impactful manner was taking shape when my journey as an India Fellow started with my host organization, KMVS...

The Bus Ride To Empowerment

The Bus Ride To Empowerment

As a fellow, a part of my work at WISE is to build the entrepreneurial collective of women weavers. Among other things, this entails investing my efforts in a network that can be leveraged for market generation. One of the ways of achieving this is to facilitate...