Learn.Choose.Live

The world over, for a while now, there has been an unusual fervour about the youth. For years now, the world awaits, with bated breath, for the youth to step up and take charge. Coming from a country where the youth played an important role in its freedom movement, my generation too is no stranger to the so-called 'Y' factor and like any other youth in my country (I'd like to assume everyone thinks like me, more or less). So here I was, equipped with some decent education and work experience, ready to change the world...

But, yesterday something changed, rather threw this entire notion out of the window. I visited a friends' NGO called LEARN (short for Labour Education and Research Network). Without going into an promotional writing for this organisation, I'd rather mull over the fact that the workers left me awestruck.

Led and operated by the women in the area it is based in (Dharavi, Mumbai), the women that form the network are from less than modest backgrounds. They had absolutely no qualms in talking to an unknown, "high-fi", to quote one of them, girl.

As we shared a simple meal, I could not help but notice that like the food, each of these women had vibrant, diverse personalities. Had it been yet another run-of-the-mill profit-making non-profit, it would have not surprised me in the least.

The ladies sat me there and spoke to me about their work, which is why and where they differ from the rest of us. While few of them had brought a sleazy man to task for harassing his domestic help, others had brought doctors to women, at more than subsidised rates, for regular health check-ups. Yet another woman had, needless to say, bravely faced a policeman who would demand bribes from the women hawkers at the locality (her story, complete with the threat to the cop that "if she as much as saw him around the area, she would..."!)

After listening to each of their intriguing stories, I could not help but wonder how little I had done - for anyone. I also could not stop myself from thinking that, for these formidable women, the buck really does stop here, the shots really do get called by them. It is a freedom and empowerment few women can think of, let alone possess.

To these women for whom freedom, security, prosperity is a right-turned-to-reality, I enviously salute!

PS: thanks, in a big way, goes out to Abhishek, Akilesh, Amar for allowing me to be a part of this wonderful movement and organisation!

(http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Learn-Labour-Education-and-Research-Network/140057182779106)