“My window into social entrepreneurship”
In the vast landscape of social entrepreneurship, finding a home – where one’s values align, where growth is nurtured, and where impact is generated – is next to heaven. For Srilaya, a Gandhi-King Scholarship Recipient, her journey into social entrepreneurship found its anchor in Rubaroo, an organisation dedicated to youth development and empowerment. Srilaya sat down with Rubaroo to reflect on her experience with the organisation as it completes a decade.
Finding Home in Rubaroo
Having engaged in youth development and facilitation while working at Pravah, Srilaya’s journey with Rubaroo began during the turbulent times of 2020. She applied for the Emerging Leaders Fellowship 2020 and ran a 24-hour program with sessions on gender. The camaraderie of the community, coupled with the organisation’s dedication to nurturing experiential learning, proved pivotal in exploring her passion for social entrepreneurship.
“After my stint with Pravah, I sought spaces to engage in social work. Hence, I applied to ELP during the pandemic, which was the best thing. I got into facilitating and conducting sessions and contributed in various capacities. To be honest, Rubaroo has been a prominent pillar for me in developing my niche in social entrepreneurship.”
Putting Thought into Action
Reminiscing the days gone by, Srilaya credits Rubaroo for showing her a path into social work. Confused, Srilaya didn’t know what to do after working for Pravah. And there was Rubaroo, who allowed her to learn more about herself and put thought into action.
“As someone on the fence about things, the programs made me think about my stance and made me introspect a lot; it gave me a lot of patience in my personal and professional life and came in handy as I was studying psychology. I started to look at things from all dimensions and stopped giving tags to things.”
After graduating from ELP, Srilaya participated in the Lead India initiative with a cohort of 100 participants. Not just that, she’s been instrumental in shedding light on the shadow pandemic through her Adi Shakti Social Action Project, which focuses on domestic violence in India.
Something that Stayed
The pandemic jolted us as a human society and pushed us to the extreme limits. Amid this, Srilaya set out to reach young girls from government schools to educate them on gender and menstrual hygiene. Acknowledging the difficulty in connecting with the participants, she found the young girls genuinely interested in learning.
“One thing that stayed with me was the question – What would you do without gender in your life? And to my surprise, the girls responded that they aspire to become leaders and seek positions. It impacted me and motivated me to keep going.”
Society and Beyond
“While working with 20 people, you’re indirectly impacting the lives of another 40 people. People spread the word about going to a place of worship, not their own, and become open to accepting and celebrating diversity. It does look small, but it has an amplifying effect.”
Srilaya underscores the importance of making inroads to solving issues through dialogue and letting people judge for themselves. However, she believes that there are other issues that Rubaroo can work towards tackling and, perhaps, initiate conversations.
“I don’t think Rubaroo’s programs have solved the issues, but I want them to include more thematics to address the broader community. I also want alumni to participate in facilitating or mentoring young people in different programs.”
Social Change and the Way Forward
Srilaya’s narrative epitomises the transformative potential of community-driven initiatives in driving social entrepreneurship. As she charts her course forward, fueled by a zeal for social change and guided by Rubaroo’s ethos—joy, agency, compassion, integrity, and courage—her voyage inspires young changemakers.
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