top of page

By:

Shoumojit Banerjee

27 August 2024 at 9:57:52 am

Classroom of Courage

In drought-scarred Maharashtra, a couple’s experiment in democratic schooling is turning child beggars into model citizens In the parched stretches of Maharashtra, from Solapur to the drought-hit villages of Marathwada, a modest social experiment has quietly unfolded for nearly two decades. It is neither a grand government scheme nor a corporate-backed charity. Since 2007, the Ajit Foundation, founded by Mahesh and Vinaya Nimbalkar, has worked with children living at the sharpest edges of...

Classroom of Courage

In drought-scarred Maharashtra, a couple’s experiment in democratic schooling is turning child beggars into model citizens In the parched stretches of Maharashtra, from Solapur to the drought-hit villages of Marathwada, a modest social experiment has quietly unfolded for nearly two decades. It is neither a grand government scheme nor a corporate-backed charity. Since 2007, the Ajit Foundation, founded by Mahesh and Vinaya Nimbalkar, has worked with children living at the sharpest edges of society in Maharashtra. The foundation has become a home for out-of-school children, those who have never enrolled, the children of migrant labourers and single parents, and those who scavenge at garbage dumps or drift between odd jobs. To call their foundation an “NGO” is to miss the point. Vinaya Nimbalkar describes it as a “democratic laboratory”, where education is not merely instruction but an initiation into citizenship. The couple were once government schoolteachers with the Solapur Zilla Parishad, leading stable lives. Yet what they witnessed unsettled them: children who had never held a pencil, begging at traffic signals or sorting refuse for a living. Prompted by this reality, the Nimbalkars resigned their jobs to work full-time for the education of such children. Leap of Faith They began modestly, teaching children in migrant settlements in Solapur and using their own salaries to pay small honorariums to activists. Funds soon ran dry, and volunteers drifted away. Forced out of their home because of their commitment to the cause, they started a one-room school where Vinaya, Mahesh, their infant son Srijan and forty children aged six to fourteen lived together as an unlikely family. The experiment later moved to Barshi in the Solapur district with support from Anandvan. Rural hardship, financial uncertainty and the pandemic repeatedly tested their resolve. At one stage, they assumed educational guardianship of nearly 200 children from families that survived by collecting scrap on the village outskirts. Eventually, the foundation relocated to Talegaon Dabhade near Pune, where it now runs a residential hostel. Twenty-five children currently live and study there. The numbers may seem modest, but the ambition is not. Democracy in Practice What distinguishes the Ajit Foundation is not only who it serves but also how it operates. Within its walls, democracy is practised through a Children’s Gram Panchayat and a miniature Municipal Council elected by the children themselves. Young candidates canvass, hold meetings and present their budgets. Children maintain accounts and share decisions about chores, activities and certain disciplinary matters. In a country where democratic culture is often reduced to voting, the foundation’s approach is quietly radical. It treats children from marginalised backgrounds as citizens in formation. The right to choose — whether to focus on sport, cooking, mathematics or cultural activities — is respected. “We try never to take away what is their own,” says Vinaya Nimbalkar. Rather than forcing every child into a uniform academic mould, individual abilities are encouraged. A boy skilled in daily calculations may not be pushed into hours of bookish study; a girl who excels in cooking may lead the kitchen team. For children who have known only precarity, standing for election, managing a budget or speaking at a meeting can be transformative. On International Women’s Day, the foundation seeks visibility not just for praise but for partnership. If you are inspired by their mission, consider supporting or collaborating—your involvement can help extend opportunities to more children in need.

Coldplay’s cross-generational appeal lies in innovation

Updated: Jan 21, 2025

Coldplay

Mumbai: If we saw a 50-plus Sachin Tendulkar swinging to the music, a 40-something Shreya Ghoshal was crooning and dancing to the numbers being belted out and a 20-something Suhana Khan with Navya Naveli Nanda were grooving to the same beats as Coldplay captured Mumbai city on Sunday. Groups of teenagers were in a celebratory mood, donning bands and colourful tees as they boarded the special suburban trains that were booked by the organisers to ferry fans to the venue in Navi Mumbai. The excitement was palpable and it felt like a festive wave had swept over the entire city.


Coldplay, the British band’s star appeal and pull was such that tickets were sold out almost on day one and were being resold in black, at multiple times the original price, through WhatsApp groups. A ‘balcony ticket’ gave the owners bragging rights like nothing else. A 75-year-old advertising professional from Cuffe Parade has been parading his expensive ticket for the past 45 days, much to the envy of those who didn’t bag it in time.


Coldplay’s first concert in the Music of the Spheres series saw more than 75000 fans gather at the DY Patil stadium in Navi Mumbai. Two more concerts till January 21 will wrap up their Mumbai tour before they head to Ahmedabad where there are no tickets left.


The British rock band, led by pianist and vocalist Chris Martin, was formed in 1997, a few years before most of the fans, crowding the stadium, were even born. But the Gen Z, growing up on a heavy dose of Taylor Swift and K-pop music, jostled for space with the millennials and Gen X and even older music fans when Coldplay announced their concert.


Their cross-generational appeal is fascinating. When Bryan Adams came to India last month, the crowd was largely a 35-plus audience who were there to soak in some nostalgia of listening to his rock songs on loop on their cassettes and the Walkman. Backstreet Boys, a rage in the 1990s, is a band that’s probably relegated to an inner corner of the human memory. But Coldplay, a band that is 27 years old, continues to wow people. What’s the secret for The Scientist, Yellow and a Sky Full of Stars to be on the playlist of most?


Music lover Kabir Khaitan explains that Coldplay has innovated and moved with the times. They originated at a time when rock and roll ruled the music scene but belted out pop along the way. Along with their timeless classics, they’ve dished out chart-topping hits that have a broad appeal. Not staying confined to their original fan base, Coldplay collaborated with young heart-throbs like Beyonce, Avicii and The Chainsmokers and recently, even with K-pop bands whose appeal about the Gen Z is unrivalled. So, if a 40-year-old will get nostalgic with The Scientist, the young ones will jump and swing to Yellow.

Comments

bottom of page