They say where there’s a will, there’s a way. And a few girls from Mumbai just proved that when you put your mind to something, nothing is impossible to achieve.
Two years ago, Anu Kumavat, Nida Shaikh, Kusum Chaudhry, Shifa Qureshi and Pooja Doddi were distressed as their classmate and close friend Bushira Shaikh was planning to drop out from their school—something not uncommon at the Holy Mother School where they were all students of class VI.
Just like many other families at their school, which is located in the dense slum area in Mumbai’s Malwani suburb, Bushira’s family couldn’t afford the fees. However, her friends weren’t ready to give up. They went around the slum collecting donations and soon Bushira was back in school, The Hindu reported.
Balika (Photo: Facebook/Balika)
Project Balika
Inspired by their success, these girls decided to help other girls in their community to get back to school. They went door-to-door, explaining parents the importance of education and collecting donations for those who couldn’t afford to pay the fee.
A year later, Jasmine Bala joined their school as a new fellow from Teach for India. Impressed by the students’ dedication, she helped them reorganise their group and start project Balika.
The initial focus of the group was to convince families to send their daughters to school. However, parents often refused to listen, emphasizing that learning household chores was more important. Slowly, this mindset changed. Today, Balika is not only sponsoring girls who have dropped out from school due to financial reasons but is also helping to create awareness about menstruation and eating disorders in girls.
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The team has also partnered with the National Center for the Performing Arts (NCPA) to teach self-defence to the girls.
Cheers to them for striving to bring a positive change in the society!
