Fighting Educational Inequity : Shaheen Mistri

As an 18-year-old, Shaheen Mistri walked into a slum in Mumbai and began teaching. She then went on to set up Akanksha Foundation, an NGO that works primarily in the field of education. Now she is the Chief Executive Officer of Teach For India, a nationwide movement that aims to end education inequity in India. In this interview, she tells me about her personal journey with Akanksha and Teach For India, her views on the Indian education system and the relevance of social entrepreneurship in today’s world. Excerpts.

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Categories: Interviews

I Don’t Believe in Writing Fearfully!

Mridula Koshy is the author of ‘If It Is Sweet’, a collection of short stories released in May 2009 by Tranquebar Press. The book won the Shakti Bhatt First Book Prize for 2009 and was shortlisted for the 2009 Vodafone Crossword Book Prize. In an interesting interview, she gets talking about writing, her book, and exploring relationships through writing.

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Categories: Interviews

Entertainment, Enlightenment

All the world’s a stage, said Shakespeare! How true that is! It’s just that we are so caught up in our fast-paced lives, that we hardly realize the simple truth behind that profound line! Quite ironically, it’s these guys on stage, the theatre folks, who more often than not, remind us of our absurdities and foibles, making us laugh at our own gaps and sometimes tell us what we could have been. Entertainment, Enlightenment and much more. My interview with Srikrishna Sridhar Murthy, Director of Version One Dot Oh, a Bangalore-based theatre group, as part of a special cover feature that I did for the first anniversary issue of my magazine, Spark.

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Categories: Interviews

Food Delight

Bhojan! The name itself is so inviting. When I close my eyes and think of it, all I can imagine is a sumptuous meal, very Indian and tastefully and cleanly prepared! And if you are an Indian living in the U.S., close your eyes and think of this name, doesn’t it sound all the more mouth-watering? My interview with Sweta Parthasarathy and Tarandeep Narula on their love for food and cooking as well as their venture Bhojan, as part of a special cover feature that I did for the first anniversary issue of my magazine, Spark.

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Categories: Interviews

For the Woman by a Woman

If you thought creativity was all about music, dance, writing, theatre and painting, then think again! Here’s a woman who has gone an extra mile to pursue her passion for designing jewelry. My interview with Benaazir Muhammdunni, an entrepreneur into jewelry design, as part of a special cover feature that I did for the first anniversary issue of my magazine, Spark.

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Categories: Interviews

Agam – Musically Yours…

Music. How often we run to it like a child does to his mother! For many of us, music fills the creepy void that sometimes gobbles up our insides. And to be able to create that music, which more often than not, remains a soothing balm, is indeed a God-sent gift. Agam is one effort in this direction. My interview with Swaminathan Seetharaman, Agam’s band manager, as part of a special cover feature that I did for the first anniversary issue of my magazine, Spark.

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Categories: Interviews

Pride

It’s such joy and pride to see your little one grow up, taking one step at a time. Trust me, the pride you feel at every stage of progress is priceless. There’s nothing more beautiful in this world than the experience of being with your child. I wrote this when my son turned three and was kind of settling down into school. He had the typical separation anxiety and did throw tantrums but he overcame that and did me proud in ways more than one!

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Categories: Essays
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