A Day With Nipun Bhai – Learning The Importance Of What Lies Beneath The Surface!
It was the year 2015 when we first met Nipun Mehta at the India Inclusion Summit. We got an opportunity to exclusively interview him in a closed conference room, and those 30 minutes turned out to be so pivotal for the direction KnowYourStar would take! Since then, Nipun Bhai’s words of wisdom and the ServiceSpace ecosystem have guided us and shaped our value systems at KYS.
Luckily for us, we have managed to meet him once every year since then in person during his annual visit to India. This time around, we didn’t just get to meet him, but we got to host him in Namma Bengaluru, thanks to Jaideep’s hard work and planning!
Starting The Day At Valley School, Bangalore
Anjali and I were up super early in the morning and headed towards Valley School to join the rest of the kindness brigade. Nipun Bhai was to give a talk to the students of this amazing school during their assembly at 8 am.
“Are human beings fundamentally selfish or kind?” Nipun Bhai asked the students, before launching into his talk. We were blessed to hear some of his most moving experiences and stories that revolved around what it is to shift from consumption to contribution, transaction to trust, isolation to community, and scarcity to abundance!
From a little boy moving from the mindset of taking to giving (150 handmade smile stones to strangers in the airport on his birthday – by giving you receive!), and the transformational story of a food thief breaking down in a Karma Kitchen after being moved by the dignity he was treated with, to the most powerful story of Pancho who managed to give even in a filthy prison cell – the stories were being received beautifully by the students, teachers and volunteers alike!
By the end of the talk, the students of Valley School were all pumped up and excited to practice kindness. The smile cards, T-shirts, and kindness diaries from the Kindness Table disappeared within minutes, and we could see kind acts being performed even before we left! We were truly overwhelmed by the response, but not surprised, after all, we have all been bitten by the Nipun bug too! 😉
Experiencing The Vindhyan Warmth And Love
Our next stop was one of the most positive spaces we have ever been to – Vindhya. Founded by Pavithra YS, this company hires people with various disabilities and disadvantages exclusively. The workspace is a must-visit for anyone who wants to see what a happy IT company looks like, and how even a corporate entity can be built around love as the central value.
Love was the overwhelming emotion we felt from the moment we set foot on their campus. From name tags in braille to our footwear arranged in the shape of a heart, the beautiful rangoli in the centre of the circle to meaningful value boards hanging from the ceiling – the ambience was so lovingly done. The only thing that could have had matched this, was the sharing from Nipun Bhai, who spoke about how anybody can give.
He told us beautiful stories about differently abled people who just wanted to give, to serve! And sure enough, we soon witnessed his words in action, when we were served a sumptuous meal that was cooked by the employees of Vindhya. Now, what can top this kind of hospitality? This was no little potluck, but a full-fledged meal for everyone who attended the event!
Before we left, we received more kindness, such as the beautiful colourful hearts that magically appeared before our eyes while we sat in silence and the beautiful leaf cutouts that were placed in front of us. Thanks to the invisible hands! Before we left, Nipun Bhai asked us to join the Failure Club by writing on the leaf that one thing we really want to do, but are afraid we will fail at it. We each signed it and deposited it in the centre of the circle. The idea was that even if we fail, we are trying, and we help each other – even in failure – we’re all in this together! Who knows, one of the ideas might just fly!
The Powerful Evening At Head Held High!
Our last stop for the day was at Head Held High, the company which supports groups that suffer from poverty or enable those who are trying to make a meaningful impact on the lives of the poor. They believe that everyone deserves to live with their head held high, and are working towards building a world that is truly abundant. They empower changemakers to support their community and transform illiterate villagers into capable workers with the right training and guidance.
The final circle of the day was held here, and what a circle it was. Nipun Bhai talked about deepening social change. The theme seemed to revolve around – “Smaller the thing, the greater the love, and the deeper the relationship!” From discussing the shifts from financial capital to multiple forms of capital, extrinsic to intrinsic motivation, transaction to transformation, and leadership to laddership to lending ears to some of the most powerful stories we’ve ever heard, the evening was packed with inspiration and wisdom.
The crux of the talk was that while all of us concentrate on the tip of the iceberg in the context of our work, it’s equally important (if not more!) to focus on the part of the iceberg under water. The roots last longer than the fruit!
As we bid goodbye to Nipun Bhai, and all the wonderful people we got a chance to meet throughout the day, we couldn’t help but take a moment to be grateful to the universe for giving us an opportunity to be in the presence of such inspiring souls. They give us so much to think about! It was a day very well spent, and we left to our respective homes with big smiles and grateful hearts!
Liked reading this? Then you might also like to read All Fun & Play – An Excursion For The Brindavan Tent School Students!.
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