Empower Future Leaders from Mumbai Red-Light Areas

Dear Kranti Supporters,

Hi, my name is Laxmi Hosmani, I have been at Kranti for just over two years. I am the oldest Revolutionary and from now on, I will be writing updates for Global Giving. I am excited our work with you and happy that you are reading! For the past three months Kranti was on summer vacation. Here is what we have been busy with…

Do you know Shweta , Sheetal and myself we are traveling alone without our didi’s to Rajasthan for an internship?? This was Sheetal’s and my first internship. Before leaving Mumbai we were very scared, but in Kranti all my sisters gave us courage. After two days of traveling we finally reached Rajasthan. Starting two weeks we were so bored but finally we adjusted to that place, and we started to work there. We went to see a night school (balvadi) and we taught geography, we also played with them, we had lots of fun there. We also talked to the village people and we shared our story with them and they shared theirs. After 3 weeks, more interns came and we learned many things. The bhaiya’s and didi’s took us on tractors to the villages in pairs. We spent our whole night there, my topic there was livelihood, and I had to ask them what they do usually, their daily routine. In the morning we went to work in the dam. The villagers have been working on that dam for two months. They divided us into two, three groups and my group was working on mixing the cement. It was hard work!

In April we went to an internship in Himachal that was called Sambhavana, which means possibilities in Hindi. It was a very good internship.  There are many teenagers like us who came from others parts of India. That internship was about politics and environment. We had a such a good time there. There people were also kind and helpful. I saw many photos of Himachal and didn’t think it would be that beautiful, but when we arrived at Himachal it was more beautiful than the photos.  I saw many thing there like, birds and different butterflies. We jumped into the river everyday, the water was ice cold. We saw movie also. There were some construction work going on so our teacher divided us into groups and asked us to help out. We mixed cement and transported bamboo. We also made a camp fire there we sang songs. When we were singing my friend gave me a new name “google” because I knew so many songs. The program in Himachal was very different because the people we were with came from different backgrounds and had different opinions on the topics we discussed. We learned many new things.

On the 28th of June all the revolutionaries went to Thiruvanthapuram with our didi’s to visit Kanthari. Its an NGO where all blind people stay. We performed a drama but we knew that they cant see so thats why we performed like they can understand what is our message. We were  there for a few days. One day we all went to the beach,there were high waves because of the monsoon, and there was a  red flag on the beach. There was a policeman who didn’t allow us to go into the water, but we didn’t listen to the policeman  we all played in the water and Meena and Robin had such a huge fight with police. After some time we saw that there was a big crowd. we all shouted “revolutionaries came and beach is full of crowd, before there was no one.” In the water Saira and I were drowning and had to be saved. we were having such a good time in the water that we were late for dinner. Kanthari is an excellent NGO that I have ever visited. The people were so amazing and inspiring.

Thank you, Kranti supporters, for making all of these activities possible. I will be writing you again soon next month!

Links:

• Sambhaavnaa Organization
• Kanthari NGO in Kerala
• Shweta on CNN!

Dear Kranti Supporters,

I haven’t posted an update for a while because I am in a rural internship right now. But I’m writing to you to share some very important information – I have been accepted to Bard College in New York, I have my passport, and I am going to the USA in August to chase my dreams!

None of this would be possible without the most important person in my life – my mother. She was the one listened to me and was always by my side. When I was a child, I told my dad about going to America and studying there - my dad made fun of me. But my mother told me I could do it and that I had the ability to do it. She's the one who believed in me. She encouraged me to do different things like going to dance class and learn English. My dad was always angry about me going out or going to dance classes. He never allowed me to do these things. But my mother did everything she could possibly do to keep me safe, especially when people called me an “ugly dark girl.” My dad even told me that “nobody is going to marry you because you are ugly and dark; your heart is as dark as your skin colour.” I felt really bad that day and was crying but my mum was there to support me. She was the one that told me I was beautiful.

She always helped me make big decisions, and staying away from my family was my first big decision. She said “Shweta, I believe in you; whatever you'll decide, I know that it's for your own good. Don't worry, just do whatever you think is right.” In the second biggest decision of my life, taking a gap year, she wasn't convinced – she thought I was wasting a year – but she didn't prevent me from doing it. And now I'm going to be away from home for four years and she's still encouraging me and inspiring me. I have the best mother in the world!

Here is a video of me and my mother on the local news!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yf-VrJQlTcU

Thoughts from other Revolutionaries: 

Sheetal: My mum is everything for me. It's because of her I'm here – at Kranti, in the world. She always loves me a lot. In my sorrows, in my joys, in my successes, she's always there for me. If my mum is not there, there is nothing in my life. My mum is the only person who can understand me. Nobody in the world can understand us better than our mums, and even if my mum doesn't agree with my decisions, she still supports me. Here is a video of me talking about my mother!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppbCCu16Fho

Laxmi: In Hindi ma is just one character, but its meaning is immeasurable. I can't explain it. The word has no end. My mum is really loving. She has had a lot of problems and troubles in her life, but she still taught me the best ethics possible. I am very lucky to have such a wonderful mother!

Pinky: I miss my mother a lot because she lives in Kolkata, I see her for just a couple hours every six months. I try to remember happy memories of when I lived with her and I hope we will have a good future together some day. Here is a picture of me and my mother!

 So – Happy Mother’s Day to all the mothers who make sacrifices so their children can have a better future than they had. :)

Sincerely,
Shweta

Links:

• Front page of one of India's leading newspapers!