I believe generosity and kindness are generative – they create new value. Helping others gives you fresh, new perspective and keeps you from focussing on your own problems. By shifting your focus to someone other than yourself, you are reminded that you are not the only one in this world with problems. Besides, meeting someone from a different socio-economic strata expands our worldview & so our perspective shifts. It is a known fact that kindness boomerangs. You show caring and values – and others are watching. You become their role model. Today we live in a world that needs role models for our youth to help reap what we keep touting as Demographic Dividends. When you share your money, time or talent with others, you may discover that the rewards are so great that you begin to share even more!
You will naturally become a more giving caring, sharing and honorable person and feel more powerful, stand taller. So among other charities that I volunteer my time & talent, I want to share the Chirag Story…a story of true alchemy.

When we started the project 14 years ago, I had a bunch of around 12 students initially who were totally dedicated to being agents of change. We would encourage students of business studies to use their knowledge to solve real
problems and bring about sustainable change. The group grew rapidly and I found that the same lessons I had learned were still applicable. Students had purpose and passion to be the change that was required. They put their minds together to plan out everything – from partners at the grass roots, to vendors, to innovative fund-raising techniques, and impeccable logistic arrangements and implementation. While some kids spent evenings and weekends clubbing and whiling away their time, these others were working towards a better India. They improved their communication skills, learnt to work better in teams and took responsibility for their decisions and actions. What I saw shine through in this effort was Intrinsic Motivation – no money, no marks, just fulfillment. It reinforced the belief that your life will be well lived when you live it for others, as it will give you a sense of purpose and self worth.

Oddly enough all these young students who devoted so much time to bringing about change also performed well in academics. To describe the process of alchemy I would like to share the example of a young boy Pawan, who hailed
from Ulhasnagar, a distant suburb of Mumbai. Pawan came from a middle class family, and was rather shy, awkward and lacked exposure. He was involved in many social projects but seemed fascinated with rural work. He was so involved in Project Chirag that when on the field he forgot he was shy and was comfortable presenting in front of an audience, be it the villagers or donors. In fact he was so passionate about the project that he chose to do his dissertation in his final year on Project Chirag!

A year later when Google came on campus like many other batchmates he too applied for the placement process. And when the recruitment team interviewed him they questioned him on his different choice of his dissertation topic, as he was a business management student. His passion and purpose shone through and he was the only student recruited that year by Google. Today he heads a team at Google Singapore, and he still hasn’t lost his humility & grounding. This process of building empathy, self confidence and a solution-orientation was a common thread in the journey of many students who were involved in social initiatives. It shifted their perspective from “me” to “we” and made them think in a more inclusive way.

When I saw the transformation in students as a result of working in the social space, we, at Project Chirag decided to start youth chapters in various schools & colleges. And that brings me to another story of alchemy…a young high school lad joined us on a visit to a village and was so moved that he set up a youth chapter in his Mumbai school. They have adopted a rural school which they visit every month and teach their rural counterparts music, sport and dance. It has sensitized the urban youth to problems in the real world and it is heartening to witness how these ambassadors of change help solve issues.

We know today that whether it is philanthropy, random acts of kindness, paying it forward or any good deeds, they are all very powerful. It’s probably why every religion & culture values and rewards performance of good deeds. There are many benefits resulting from good deeds – some pretty obvious while some of them you may not even have considered. When you do a good deed you are of course helping someone -for example the homeless person or the street child now may have some food to eat thanks to your generosity. However he has received more than just a meal or two – he has received the message that he is important and worth helping. This good deed warms his heart as it fills his stomach – and it also warms your own heart and makes you feel good. You cannot lift another without uplifting yourself. There is the pure joy that comes from any kind of hands-on service.
Social service is a process of transforming oneself by converting problems into ideas that change the world…both yours & theirs! Our job therefore, as mentors to the youth is really to guide them through the spirit of social service, fire them in the crucible of hard work, mold them into the process of continuous learning, to emerge through this process of Alchemy as Human Resources as good as gold.

Stories of change