Project Kayakalp In The City of Dreams

Mumbai- A city unbound by time, a city where everybody is always on the move, indeed a city that never sleeps. More importantly, Mumbai was the next big step in our march towards sustainability of Project Kayakalp. It gave us the platform to present our project to a host of investors and budding entrepreneurs.  

 We stood at the New Delhi Railway Station along with our 4 puppeteers and the 18 bags, suitcases and tote-bags that we had to load onto the train. Most of these were brimming with the face masks, the “Kathputli’s”- the Jadugar, the Behrupiya and the Magician, the rest held the folding stage and other necessities required for our Puppet Show at ‘The Barclays Social Impact Investment Forum’ at the Taj Hotel, Mumbai.

 

 

We gathered courage and set off for a 16 hour long train journey to Mumbai- The City of Dreams. We shared jokes & food, played cards and other nail-biting games, and stood at the train doors as the wind brushed through our hair and faces.

We reached Mumbai CST at 7 pm. From there on, we were always on our toes. We split ourselves into three teams. The first team took a taxi to a prestigious institute in Mumbai for research work; the second took the luggage to our place of stay while the third accompanied the puppeteers to their accommodation. All of us finally met at Café Montegard and had a gala dinner which was followed by a mesmerizing walk along the Marine Drive.

Day 2 in Mumbai was an important day for all of us. We, along with the puppeteers assembled at the Ball Room of the Taj Hotel in Colaba. The stage was set for the Puppet Show and we crossed our fingers, showered good luck wishes upon our extremely talented artists and hoped for the best.

The thunder of claps and the kind and generous   words of appraisal made us realize that the audience was indeed captivated by the performance of our puppeteers. We had done it! Our puppeteers had done it! The enthralled audience had witnessed a show with a strong message that they would never forget. The conference was followed by a scrumptious dinner at the hotel. We met some passionate entrepreneurs who took us through the journey of their lives. This gave us an insight into how we could take our projects further.

After the conference came to an end, we could finally relax a little. We headed straight to our favourite place in the city: The Marine Drive and later took a cab to Carter Road. Through the cab windows the puppeteers gazed at the Bandra-Worli Sea Link and admired its beauty. Home to over 100 million people, Mumbai buzzed its usual, with fast moving local trains, kids dreaming of becoming movie stars, beggars planning their next strategy and every other kind of human being one could think of! The puppeteers too agreed that Darwin’s theory of “Survival of the Fittest” applied aptly to this city.

On Day 3, we met some of our alumni members. Over a cup of coffee, we discussed life and Enactus with Krishnanunni and Tuhina. Our approach towards Enactus changed after the conversation. Earlier, Enactus for us was just an organisation that helped the ones in need. We then realised how it’s a lot more. Enactus is a way of living life. It is a commitment to empower people through the positive power of entrepreneurship. It is the happiness that one acquires by bringing a smile on others’ faces.

It was now time to bid farewell to the city that helped us achieve the next major milestone in our journey. We rushed to Mumbai Central to catch our train & left ‘Bombay’ with bags and totes full of resplendent memories and significant learning.  

The Mumbai Journey for us is one of the MOST cherished experiences that we have had in Enactus till date. A feeling of achievement and pride rushed through us as we headed back. Enactus SRCC had taken Project Kayakalp to the next level.

A City of Hope, A City of Dreams;

Mumbai always feels like it is about to burst at the seams.

From the Coolies to the Seths, from the Slums to the High Rise Buildings;

This City has given us the ‘Never Say Die’ attitude!


- Written by Ria Golecha & Jay Suneja