Stories have the power to shape young minds, especially when they are rooted in the lives of ordinary people creating extraordinary change. Continuing its mission of introducing children to real-life heroes, through The Free Press Journal's Angels of Mumbai initiative, an engaging storytelling and interactive session was recently held at Ganpatrao Kadam Marg BMC School in Lower Parel.
The audience comprised 40 enthusiastic students from Bhavishya Yaan, a 17-year-old student enrichment programme run by the Rotary Club of Bombay. The programme, which operates across six municipal schools, has nurtured more than 5,000 alumni, empowering students to build better lives with dignity and confidence.
Dharmesh Barai, Founder, Environment Life Foundation |
The session featured readings from the Angels of Mumbai children's book series by author Pooja Patel. The brightly illustrated books are inspired by the lives of changemakers featured in the series by the same, are designed to encourage empathy, social responsibility and the belief that everyone can make a difference. The stories captivated the young audience, sparking curiosity and thoughtful conversations.
Adding a real-life dimension to the experience was Dharmesh Barai, founder of Environment Life Foundation and one of the changemakers featured in the series. Barai shared his journey of dedicating 309 consecutive Sundays to cleaning Maharashtra's mangroves and spoke about his Plastic-Free Sahyadris initiative, through which he leads clean-up drives at forts across the Sahyadri mountain range.
Author Pooja Patel reads stories inspired by real-life changemakers featured in The Free Press Journal's Angels of Mumbai initiative |
"I must commend The Free Press Journal and Pooja Patel for bringing the wonderful Angels of Mumbai programme into the minds and hearts of young students in schools. These Angels are true heroes and their efforts would no doubt be an inspiration to students," shared Ramesh Narayan, Director Strategy Asian Federation of Advertising Associations.
The interaction soon turned into an animated question-and-answer session, with students eager to learn more about mangroves and their role in protecting Mumbai from monsoon flooding. Barai also taught them simple, yet practical ways to adopt sustainable habits in their daily lives and how even small acts of care and compassion can contribute to meaningful change. Inspired by his commitment to the environment, all 40 students pledged to participate in one of his future clean-up drives.
The interaction turned into a question-and-answer session, with students eager to learn more about mangroves and their role in protecting Mumbai from monsoon flooding |
Reflecting on the session, Barai said he was encouraged by the students' curiosity and awareness of environmental issues. "I was delighted to see how enthusiastically the Bhavishya Yaan students participated and the thoughtful questions they asked. I was equally impressed by how aware they already are about environmental issues. The session was filled with energy, and the students interacted with great confidence. As a former BMC school student myself, being with them brought back many fond memories of my own school days. I have also committed to organising a beach clean-up for these students so they can witness firsthand the condition of our beaches and understand how responsible waste disposal and management can help bring about positive behavioural change," he concluded.
