Deestha Foundation is committed to improving lives through focused action. Emphasizing inclusion, diversity, and the equal treatment of others, it creates opportunities and pathways to a better quality of life. Pratidhi involves all our outreach activities and the projects we have undertaken.
The bonds between humans and animals are powerful. According to a 2015 Harris poll, 95 percent of pet owners think of their animal as a member of the family. Children, adolescents, adults, and seniors all find joy in their pets. Animals help with depression, anxiety, and stress. In addition, they provide companionship and ease loneliness. Moreover, pets bring us joy and unconditional love.
No, we don’t own a pet. But we love Dogs. Hence our destination was Ashari Foundation. An animal-shelter cum hospital and research institute, {ASHARI, in short} is run by People for Animals’ Kolkata chapter and is home to 450+ strays including dogs with cancer, paralysis, nerve issues, accidental cases and so on.
It was our delight to spend some time with these novels of the heart and contribute 25 kg rice and 18 Kg dog food, hoping to have made a little difference in the life of these “Taare Zameen Par”.
Education: the major stepping stone of our life. The purpose of education has always been to give the young the things they need in order to develop in an orderly, sequential way into members of society. According to the fundamental rights, all children have the right to go to school and learn, regardless of who they are, where they live or how much money their family has. But what happens when a country of the size of India has over 3 million children living on the streets? Or has over 150 million children working as bonded labourers? What happens when despite having a national policy for compulsory primary child education in India and a child labour policy only 50% of children have access to education?
While education is every child’s basic right, severe poverty and deprivation, population growth, war zones and natural catastrophes are depriving many children of a world of books and learning. Poverty and illiteracy are closely linked – and with the second largest population in the world, India is home to one-third of all world poverty. While 22% of Indians fall below the poverty line, it has been estimated that more than half of the nation’s population lacks even basic literacy skill.
There are many organizations who are working in this field to implement our national policy. We too, believe that we have to continually give something back to the society and do our bit to fill in the crevices. This year, along with the help of the members of Sanhati, we are taking the initiative of providing some basic educational kits to the 41 children of a rural district who are looking forward to start their schooling with the help of Kzarvani Foundation.
Being human is given. But keeping our humanity is a choice. Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them humanity cannot survive. Our third period will help us to connect with this. As members of Deestha Foundation, we hope that people will finally come to realize that there is only one ‘race’ – the human race – and that we are all members of it. This year, our theme is all about Childhood. And we know, old age is the second childhood. And therefore, this phase too needs care, love and compassion. But unfortunately, the reality is different for many. Otherwise, this world would never have seen Old Age homes.
This year, we have stood strong with Jagorani, in their venture named: Natun Ghar- a free old age home for destitute women, where they are rehabilitated with dignity and respect.
Because Old age is not a disease – it is strength and survivorship, triumph over all kinds of vicissitudes and disappointments, trials and illnesses. We thank all the members of Sanhati and Mandalam who have generously contributed for this cause.
Diwali, the festival of lights. This is one of the festivals of India which is celebrated by majority of the people, irrespective of culture or religion. This is symbolic of unity in diversity, the power of good over evil and lighting up lives.
To take this spirit forward, during Saha 2023, members of Deestha Foundation came together to light up lives of 80 souls of Voice of World who works with the education and rehabilitation of visually and/or intellectually impaired. We contributed 31 volumes of Braille books, bed sheets for residential students, walking sticks, abacus and music instruments. In turn, these braille books have been published by Blinds Persons Association, another organization managed by Visually impaired people.
While we cannot fathom their daily difficulties, but we hope that this small effort can reduce the darkness a little bit.
Little by Little, a little becomes A LOT!
Durga Puja/Navratri is a time of celebration across the country. It celebrates the victory of the goddess Durga over the demon king Mahishasura. It is a merry fest and social event where people indulge in new clothes, pandal hopping and good food. But as many are celebrating, there are a few who are still wishing and waiting for the good to prevail over the evils of the world : the major one being hunger.
In 2022, Deestha Foundation started the Project Dashabhuja “She who has ten arms” to contribute in the vast sprawling work of Devi. On the day of Mahalaya, which marks the beginning of Debipaksha, we went out on to the roads of Kolkata to feed those who are below poverty lines. And consequently the entire arrangement of cooking and packing was done by a family who is also underpriviledged.
In 2023, considering the growing rates of dengue and malaria, we came back as protectors and distributed mosquito nets to the underpriviledged people. After all, Durga Maa is the bearer of weapon against difficulties. She is Sharanya.
In 2024, following the henious event in Kolkata, we decided to distribute sarees to women residing on the streets of Kolkata. Because this war is not for an isolated event. It is about all of us; it is about our respect! This year through our Project, Dashabhuja is coming in the form of Abhaya, taking in the role of Krishna, and protecting the honour of women.
We hope through this small gesture we could become someone who made someone else look forward to tomorrow.
Every child is a miracle with each having their own ways that make this world a beautiful place for us. But, for some, the experience is not pleasant. They even lack the basic necessities like food and shelter and emotive necessities of affection and protection which is pivotal for their growth. This Children’s Day, we decided to spend some time with these group of children and visited ASSI ( Asian Sahyogi Sanstha India) which is working in 7000 villages. This rescue home houses 37 children, who had either been abandoned, or lost or rescued.
Almost all of them had been abused either mentally, physically or sexually. Some have growth retardation, malnutrition and eye sight problems too. And sadly, almost all are victims of childhood trauma. Behind the smiles you can see there is untold pain and aggression that each of them are struggling with. Looking at those eyes just made us believe again that what separates us from them is just a stroke of luck. We are grateful we could spend some quality time today with these children and will also work with them in future to help them recover from trauma. For today, we contributed groceries and 20 mosquito nets, to help them stay safe from dengue.
Happy or not, it was indeed a meaningful Children’s Day
Illuminating Diwali
Diwali is all about celebrating life with the people you love. Today while returning from work we were stopped by 2 volunteers of Magic Bus Foundation which is working in the field of educating children across the country. They are operational in 24 states and have already educated over 4 lakhs children.
Currently they were looking for mass support to continue their drive. Going by the tag line of Deestha that, It’s okay to ask for help, we could not stop ourself to leave our small mark here as well. So we sponsered the education of 4 children for a year. Padhega India tabhi to badhega India!
We just made this Diwali more rewarding and illuminating for all of us.
Every child is a miracle with each having their own ways that make this world a beautiful place for us. But, for some, the experience is not pleasant. They even lack the basic necessities like food and shelter and emotive necessities of affection and protection which is pivotal for their growth. This Children’s Day, we decided to spend some time with these group of children and visited ASSI ( Asian Sahyogi Sanstha India) which is working in 7000 villages. This rescue home houses 37 children, who had either been abandoned, or lost or rescued.
Almost all of them had been abused either mentally, physically or sexually. Some have growth retardation, malnutrition and eye sight problems too. And sadly, almost all are victims of childhood trauma. Behind the smiles you can see there is untold pain and aggression that each of them are struggling with. Looking at those eyes just made us believe again that what separates us from them is just a stroke of luck. We are grateful we could spend some quality time today with these children and will also work with them in future to help them recover from trauma. For today, we contributed groceries and 20 mosquito nets, to help them stay safe from dengue.
Happy or not, it was indeed a meaningful Children’s Day
Annual and Impromptu meets
One of the biggest events of Deestha Foundation is our Annual Meet. Every Year, around July/Aug, we conduct the grand meet which includes our clients, members of Sanhati, Mandalam, external guests and many more. Those who cannot travel remains connected through the online platform.
The event is packed with various performances, discussions, games, all curated by our members. This day celebrates their efforts in coming out with their issues and breaking the stigma around mental health. We have been featured multiple times for this event!
Apart from these we have also been meeting the members online and offline activities because healing is not a one time activity, neither is maintaining relationships!
Expressive Arts and Meditation
One of our main motto is to demystify therapy and provide healing to all, in various ways and modes. Hence we have been conducting free online workshops ranging from dance movement to art, hypnotherapy to meditation and sound healing.
We believe through this small continuous efforts, we have reached out to many people worldwide, and helped them see the light at the end of the tunnel.
Project Jeevanam
About 800,000 people die by suicide worldwide every year. 164,033 Indians committed suicide in 2021 and the national suicide rate was 12 (calculated per hundred thousand or per lakh), which is the highest rate of deaths from suicides since 1967, which is the earliest recorded year for this data. Experts say the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) might be undercounting suicides by women.
Despite so much of Help being available, the number is ever increasing. And no matter how much work is done in this field, it is still less. This is our ongoing attempt in reaching out to as many people as possible, every year and save as many lives by supporting them in their journey. This, along with Sanhati, so far had helped us in preventing 25 suicide attempts and bringing them back in the course of life.
Project Asha
One of the main reasons behind clinical depression, stress and other related mental health ailments is lack of motivation and self-love. People have been brought up either with poor self-image or due to various reasons they try to be someone else and not appreciate themselves. With so much self pity, wallow, poor choices, hatred and the societal pressure, a person feels lost with no drive to work towards their goals or even survive. The negative occurence leads to helpless thinking making them further depressed and anxious.
Project Asha is an ongoing attempt to reach out to more and more people through our social media platforms and help them think clearly and logically. Our daily dose of posts and reels is directed towards bringing the much needed love and care which will help one to broaden their perspectives and see beyond the current situation.
The above videos is just a small flavour of what goes out on our social media handles!
Project Sparsh
While we are striving towards the betterment of Mental Health of the people around us, there are many who suffer silently both mentally and/or physically, making their survival extremely difficult. It gives us great honour to launch Project Sparsh which focuses on touching someone’s life and making a positive change. This change could change emotional state, physical situation or much more. Such a positive change can be achieved through influence, or at times showing up in someone’s life when they needed the help most.
This project is led by Shrestha, one of the directors along with one of our Sanhati members, whose dream was to take part in such a venture. This involves visiting different places like hospice, orphanage, old age homes, rural areas etc. and spending quality time with them along with therapeutic activities and help reinforce the trust and power and vested in us.
In April 2023, we launched the project by visiting Premashraya which is a residential facility for needy cancer patients & families who are undergoing treatment at Tata Medical Center, Kolkata. It provides accommodation to 200 patients & their relatives, approx. 300 no undergoing long term treatment at the TMC. We conducted various music therapeutic activities with the kids in the age group of 3-10 years.
In May, we visited the old age home- Natun Ghar, a home for destitute women, where they are rehabilitated with dignity and respect.
In June, proudly we went to Amitie Trust and worked with the queer community. We took them through an introspective group activity which led to some release of emotions, group songs and witnessed some eye-catching performances.
In July, we went to Samannaya who works with the children residing in slum areas and is stirving hard to survive everyday.
In Aug, Project Sparsh took us to Labpur where we could experience all forms of art under one roof from the Tribal Kids so much so that we could not stop ourselves but be a part of it.
In September, we landed up in a renowned school. These 31 kids from the 5th and 6th standard joined us in a 45 min music therapy session where they actively participated, thoroughly enjoyed and released all their worries.
In October, we took the therapeutic values of music to Voice of the World, an NGo working with visually disabled and intellectually challenged students.
In November, we took Project Sparsh to Corporate working with the employees and helping them express their repressed emotions and give away stress through various forms of Expressive Arts Therapies.
In December, we went to a Montessori School becoming the Santa Claus for these little angels while healing them with expressive arts.
In January, we took Project Sparsh to a very special place, a caregiving institution working with Alzheimers and Dementia. Music therapy can help manage dementia symptoms. It can improve mood and cognitive functions, and may help improve memory, daily functioning, and quality of life. Music therapy can also improve social interactions between people with dementia and their caregivers.
In Feb, we went to a shelter home working for homeless women with psychological disorders. Their reaction to the session was wholesome.
The final month of Project Sparsh was interwined with Women’s Day Celebration as we worked with female influencers and helped them cherish the benefits of music therapy.
After all, our success is directly proportional to the number of lives we have touched for the better.
Project Dream Keeper
So gear up for this year as we introduce our massive people project “DreamKeeper” aka “Swopner Feriwali”.
Meet Indrani and Chandrani. Two of our loved members who shared in Sanhati that their dream is music and playback singing.
Abra ka dabra! Here’s a sneak peek of them recording their beautiful voices for our next short film.
Dream fulfilled only for two people? Nah! we did better than that.
Soma di wanted to do something for the old and deprived people. Her dream gave us the idea for running a year long project – Sparsh and currently she is living her dream by running this project along with us.
Her wish was our command!
” My Dream is to Travel”. Exactly this is the statement written by many during an activity in Sanhati. Travelling is the greatest therapy for soul. And travelling with a group bound by mental health makes it wholesome and exquisite.
This quarter, we organized the Therapeutic Dreamland Trip: 2 Destinations (Isha Yoga Centre and Pondicherry), 5 days and 12 members. The trip was highly experential, full of therapeutic activities, laughter, music, food, fun and bonding.
What more can a dreamland look like!
It is one thing to inspire, it is another to help someone fulfill their dream. It was in one of the therapy sessions, that Sumedha explored the magic of aroma and since then the inception of her dream of making sustainable aroma therapy products. With a little assistance from us, SHIKHIN was born, which manufactures handmade aroma wax cubes which can be effortlessly used in diffusers.
This journey from one side of the road to the other is indeed noteworthy and hence during our Annual Meet we officially launched her brand . We wish Sumedha and Subhadeep loads of success in their journey!
When you do good, it comes back to you in leaps and bounds. Throughout this Financial Year we had been running Project Dreamkeeper to fulfill multiple dreams. We never knew how in the multiverse, the Almighty is preparing to fulfill one of our biggest dreams . It was an honor to be invited in Isha Foundation, to celebrate Mahashivratri 2024, the biggest spiritual celebration in the country in presence of eminent guests, Sadhguru and Adiyogi. Staying in the ashram for a week was an opportunity to connect with yourself, the nature and be a part of the ‘Seva’ culture. Left with a grateful heart, until the next time! Kar bhala to ho bhala.
Project Pushpani
Deestha Foundation aims at combining mental health with various activities that can not only have a positive impact on the individual but also towards the society and Mother Earth.
Keeping this in mind, we had sent a packet of sunflower seeds as a token of appreciation to 18 Mandalam members, across the country, for their association with us
In the world of Mental Health, Sunflower symbolizes resilience, endurance, and hope. Irrespective of the harsh weather, the results were a treat to the eye!
Christmas Cheers
A note from Santa,
Remember, if Christmas isn’t found in your heart, you won’t find it under a tree.
And with this spirit in our heart, we took a very special initiative this month. Many underprivileged kids from the World Shotokan Karate Academy of India, in South 24 Parganas took part in International Karate Championship. And 25 of them won! We took this opportunity to appreciate the talent of these angels by sponsoring the Annual Award Ceremony. After all, appreciation, love and support makes what is excellent in others belong