Stories from the grassroots | Thoughts on development | Lessons on leadership
Some time ago, Nitesh Batra the founder of the Mindful Initiative reached out to me through a common friend asking if he could interview me for a podcast that he runs. Having been interviewed several times in the past for newspapers and television, I was expecting this also to be similar to the ones that I had participated in.… Continue reading
Swami Vivekananda’s thoughts and ideas on education have been studied, often quoted and has inspired several Institutions to start schools and colleges. From the conceptual understanding of what education needs to be, to making it both pragmatic at the individual and community level, Swami Vivekananda’s ideas are both relevant and necessary.… Continue reading
Over time, I have given several interviews and have spoken at several forums. Each one has been different and taught me several lessons. They have also given me the time and space to reflect on the questions that had been asked and my own life too.… Continue reading
The current NGO situation seems to be finding a lot of newspaper space the last few days. While there are several challenges that NGOs around the world are facing, the current COVID crisis only seems to have worsened this. What NGOs need now is to rediscover their relevance to society as much as Societies and Governments need to recognize the work & contribution of good and credible NGOs.… Continue reading
Hearing the passing away of S P Balasubramaniam yesterday left me with a feeling of emptiness. For me, he was not just a musical legend who sang a world record of more than 40000 songs in 15 languages. … Continue reading
One question that people keep asking me is what prompted me to start the Swami Vivekananda Youth Movement when I was just 19 years of age.… Continue reading
Oct 2, 2019…the Nation celebrates the 150th birth anniversary of a person, difficult to describe in terms reserved for ordinary mortals. An extraordinary person – a politician, saint, philosopher, nationalist, humanist, thinker, strategic visionary and a humble humanist…all this and much more.… Continue reading
Living amidst nature is something that many of us desire today. While most of us love to enjoy and experience the greenery, we seldom realise that it takes a lot of mindful effort not to lose what we already have.… Continue reading
It was nearly 6 years ago that I had first written about Rathnamma, a street vendor who made her living by selling greens and vegetables in Mysuru. One of the actions that emerged from this experience of having spent some time with her was the project of working with street vendors.… Continue reading
SVYM’s founding was based on the inspirational message of ‘Tyaga’ (Sacrifice) and ‘Seva’ (Service) propounded by Swami Vivekananda. All the work of our last 34 years is based on these foundational principles and our activities are driven by the undercurrent philosophy of ‘Seeing God in man’.… Continue reading
Social media and online news today makes it real time for us to get to know what happens in different parts of the world. Whether it is real news or fake, good or bad, all it takes is a moment before the notification on one’s phone tells us what is happening.… Continue reading
Laying down office seems so easy when one writes about it without the subjective pressures of emotion and memories. After more than 30 years at the helm, I felt that I had done what needed to be done over the last 30 months to future-proof SVYM.… Continue reading
There are those who give with joy, and that joy is their reward.
– Kahlil Gibran
Running a Non-profit anywhere in the world is not as easy as it sounds and is a difficult proposition. Apart from the image that the sector generates, the constant uncertainties of funding and resource mobilization, the lack of high quality talent, the changing demands of accountability & prevailing statutory laws, and most importantly the evolving nature of the world of social development itself, all pose great survival challenges.… Continue reading
Something wonderful happened today as I was interacting with 3 students from the University of Iowa – Ashley, Isha and Sarah who were here for a program at our Vivekananda Institute of Indian Studies. Sarah wanted to know what was the most fulfilling achievement in the last 33 years since I founded SVYM. … Continue reading
Many of us use the phrase ‘being moved’…. It could be by a event or a person or a book that we read or a movie that we see…The impact of this phrase hit me fully a few days ago when I was in Hosahalli to attend the 27th Annual School day of Viveka Tribal Center for Learning (VTCL). … Continue reading