Life is an unpredictable journey. While most people give up in the face of struggles and trials, a few defy all odds and turn their life’s challenges into opportunities. The life of Manasi Joshi is a heart-warming story worth emulating. She waged an incredible war against her fate to carve out a path that would probably be remembered for generations to come.

Manasi was born on 11 June 1989, in Rajkot, Gujarat, and was raised in Mumbai. Her father, Girishchandra Joshi, was a scientist at Bhabha Atomic Research Centre. She was six when she started playing badminton with her father. She was a skilled player and participated in district and inter-school tournaments. After initial schooling, she completed her electronics engineering degree at the K.J. Somaiya College of Engineering, Mumbai. A software engineer by profession, she worked for ATOS India.

In 2011, Manasi’s life changed forever when she met with a road accident on her way home from work. She sustained severe injuries and had six surgeries during the 45 days that she spent in the hospital.

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The International Kite Festival is a long-standing festival that takes place every year on the 14 January in Gujarat. The season signifies the start of spring and the entry of the Sun into the Makara Rashi. Makar Sankranti is a joyful and delightful occasion. According to the Indian calendar, it marks the day when winter starts giving way to summer, and for the farmers, it signals the return of the Sun and the beginning of the harvest season.

Western India celebrates Uttarayan at this time which symbolizes the awakening of the Gods from their deep sleep. One of the most important festivals observed during this season is the International Kite Festival. People from countries such as Japan, Italy, USA, UK, Canada, Indonesia, Singapore, Brazil, Australia, Malaysia, China, France and others travel to India to take part in the festival. It is an opportunity for people from different parts of the world to showcase their creative and unique innovative kites.

It is believed that the Muslims from Persia brought the concept of kite flying to India. The kings and Nawabs of that era used it to showcase their skills and prowess. What started as a pastime for royalty soon trickled down to the general public. Over time, kite flying became one of Gujarat’s most popular sports. In India, it has now become a two-day public holiday.

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The Rann (‘Rann’ in Hindi means ‘desert’) of Kutch is located in the Thar Desert in Gujarat, with some parts in the Pakistani province of Sindh. Kutch is the name of the district in Gujarat where this region is situated. It is the largest district in India and draws travellers from all over the world.

The landscape

The region is divided into two distinct areas — the Great Rann and the Little Rann — each offering different experiences. The Great Rann of Kutch is a unique landscape. You see nothing but white plains (the salt pans) as far as the eye can see. The climate is harsh, hot in the day and cold at night.

It is best to visit the Great Rann of Kutch during sunrise and sunset, as it is the time that you can experience the impact of the vastness and experience the endless white expanse of the Rann. The sun rises as if from the ground and it is the only thing you can focus on. No picture or video can do it justice. Watching this scene alone will make the trip worth it.

The Kutch culture

Most of the places you will stay in are run by locals and they will make sure you have an authentic experience. You get to live in Bhungas, circular houses made of mud, with thatched roofs. They are supposed to be structurally stable during earthquakes and climate responsive. The pure vegetarian food is what the locals eat. Kutchi cuisine consists of roti, curd, butter milk, dal, curry, vegetables, papad, and kachumbar.

The handicrafts

The Kutch region is a hotbed of handmade products like jewellery, home furnishing, kurtas, etc. Their handicrafts are known all over the world and are a big part of the tourist experience. The best part is that you can go to the village where they are made and shop for the products. It’s a different experience to buy from the artisans directly. The villagers are hospitable and many of them will come to meet you and offer you tea while you shop.

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Khushi Patel, a 14-year-old Std IX student of Mount Carmel High School, Ahmedabad, (Gujarat) will represent India at the World Roller Skating Championship to be held in France, this month. Khushi is the youngest and the only skater from India to participate in the Under-20 category in the above Championship. Presently (at the time of filing this report), Khushi is participating in the 18th Asian Roller Skating Championship being held in South Korea. In 2016, she created history, doing her school and India proud, by winning three gold medals, in the 17th Asian Roller Skating Championship held in China, in spite of the fact that it was her first international event.

Khushi started skating at the age of three, 10 years ago, along with another girl of her age. She recalls, “Soon enough I fell in love with skating, and I now practice extensively, every day, from 5.45 to 7.30 am, and from 4.00 to 8.00 pm.” This is in addition to the other exercises she does at home.

No wonder Khushi has won, over the past seven years, medal after medal in all the state and national level championships that she has participated in: 18 gold medals in state championships and six gold medals at national-level events. To crown it all, she also won three gold medals at the last Asian Roller Skating Championships (2016), held every second year. She humbly states, “I didn’t expect to win three gold medals at the Asian Championships in China, but the fact that there was no pressure on me helped.”

It is not easy for a young girl of 14 like Khushi, to balance her studies and tight practice and competition schedules, all the more as she is in Std IX this year, and Board (Std X) exams are not far away. But Khushi manages it pretty well by keeping aside some time daily (when she is not travelling for competitions) for her studies and going back to school very promptly once she returns home after the events. Khushi adds, “Moreover, my school has been very supportive of me all these years, and I am confident of doing well in my studies as well, at least till I pass out of school after Class XII.”

What surprises all who know her is that in spite of such a busy schedule, Khushi finds time to devote to healthy past-times like reading and writing; “I love to pen down my thoughts, and I do write poems and essays on different subjects. If I am having a bad time, I right about it, and that makes me feel better!”

Great sportspersons like M.S. Dhoni and P.V. Sindhu are her role models and inspiration. “Dhoni’s calmness inspires me; so does the never say die spirit of Sindhu! I see in Sindhu, an epitome of girl power,” says Khushi. With such great role models before her, surely Khushi has glorious days ahead.

THE TEENAGER TODAY looks forward to publishing, in the near future, some of Khushi’s poems and articles in the magazine, and also hopes to have her presence in one of the many events we plan to hold in the near future. We wish her all success in the World Championships in Paris, this month.

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“The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.”
― Mahatma Gandhi

He can be termed, without doubt, as Gujarat’s best ambassador of tourism. Donning a Gandhi topi, a khadi kurta and carrying the Mahatma’s message: “Be the change” on his autorickshaw, Udaysinh Ramanlal Jadav believes in the principle of ‘atithi devo bhav’ and goes that extra mile to treat his customers as God. Born and brought up in Ahmedabad, with a family of 10: parents, three kids, wife, brother, sister and her son, Udaybhai comes from a very middle class family with a load of responsibilities. It takes a lot of guts to jump into something like this for a person with this kind of a family background. But his conviction of belief, determination to add love to his work, and pleasant experiences when customers hear about his idea, drives him to accomplish his mission.

Udaybhai, as he is known, was like any other rickshaw driver for 10 years. But one day, on one of his regular trips to the Gandhi Ashram, he saw volunteers of the NGO Manav Sadhna rendering selfless service to the needy. Inspired by them, he decided to follow the principles of the Father of the Nation in word and deed. Udaybhai started “Ahmedabad no Rickshawalo” on 21 October 2010, the auspicious day of Dassera, with the concept of gift-economy in mind. The idea behind gift-economy is that someone before you has paid for your travel; now you have to pay-it-forward for subsequent passengers. However, the most impressive thing about Udaybhai is that he doesn’t charge his customers according to the meter, because the meter always reads ZERO! After every trip, he provides the passenger with a self-written greeting card-cum-envelope, which reads ‘Pay from your heart’, in which the passenger places the amount of his/her choice.

When asked if it doesn’t pinch him, he says, “I have no complaints. Whatever I earn at the end of the day, I use it to run my household. I will continue to treat my guests with respect and make them feel at home.”

To make his customers’ journey comfortable, Udaybhai has a mini library in the auto with books on heritage, tourist places and pilgrimage sites to visit in the city, besides English and Gujarati newspapers. An MP3 player provides his passengers with a choice of songs to listen to and there’s a small fan for the summer months. Hungry? There are two boxes containing snacks and drinking water! A dustbin to throw the remains has also been provided. If the journey at night is long, he has installed a portable light for your reading pleasure.

The exterior of the auto also attracts attention. On the front is painted, ‘Love all’, while the mudguard displays the religious symbols of Hindu, Muslim, Sikh and Christian communities, which Udaybhai says “is to convey the message of secularism”. On the side he has hung a board that says in Hindi and English, “Namaste and welcome to Ahmedabad. I am Uday, at your service. I will take you on a journey of Ahmedabad’s streets and across its bustling bridges to experience Gandhi’s legacy and architectural masterpieces…” The message ends with his mobile number and the website www.movedbylove.org.

When asked why he does this, his response is always, “I just want to help people and give them a good experience. If people don’t help each other, then who will?”

The Good Samaritan has a donation box, Akshay Patra, in his auto in which passengers can deposit money; he puts a number of coins daily in the box which he uses to help needy people. He refuses money from disabled, poor, and elderly people.

To improve his service, Udaybhai has a suggestion book for his passengers. Here’s what some passengers wrote in the book:

“This day I have found something new, which I have never seen before. An auto that has newspapers, magazines, MP3 player, reading light and other impressive facilities. The driver is well-mannered and polite, in contrast to the other auto drivers in our city.” —Pravin Jhankat, Rajkot

“The slogans were really inspiring. The driver was very polite. Udaybhai, you are a real Indian! Let every Indian keep an akshay patra like you.” —Dr Girish Panchal, Ahmedabad

Quoting a pleasant and memorable experience, Udaybhai said: “Once, while I was returning after dropping off a passenger, I saw a blind man trying to cross the road. But he wasn’t able to do so due to heavy traffic. So I went to him and asked to hop into the auto. After taking him to the other side of the street, I asked him where he wanted to go. He said, “No thanks, I will reach on my own.”

He was probably hesitant since he thought that I would charge him. After insisting, he said that he wanted to reach his blind men’s hostel. He told me his entire life story and I shared mine with him. Talking about all this, we reached his hostel. The hostel warden came out running, worried since it was unusual for students to come in a private auto till the hostel gates. However, he was pleasantly surprised once he came to know about the concept and invited me for a cup of tea.” These are the kind of experiences that keep Udaybhai’s spirits alive in spite of all the financial hiccups.

Udaybhai’s beliefs and principles are contagious. His wife now prepares dhoklas and lassi for passengers. Other auto drivers, motivated by him, have transformed their autos for a friendlier experience.

His compassion and generosity have seen him make it into the news several times and he has received awards such as Red FM’s Bade Dilwale, the Rotary Club of Ahmedabad Award, and Baroda Management Award. Celebrities like Amitabh Bachchan and Chetan Bhagat have flown to Ahmedabad just to meet him. He gets invited to schools and to entrepreneur meets to talk about his efforts and motivate them.

Udaybhai now has a van to address the growing needs of “comfort travel”, calling it ‘Sabarmati no Saarthi’. This too is run on the concept of gift economy, and has the same facilities as his auto, including clothes for people who need them.

Udaybhai believes that, at the end of the day, it is the absolute peace of mind and not money that will bring him a good night’s sleep.

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India has a ‘jellyfish lake’ located in the town of Armabada in Gujarat. The bottom portion of the lake, which is spread over 5-6 hectares, is covered in ‘upside down jellyfish’ (members of the family Cassiopeidae). They are so named because they lie in this position on the sea bed to receive maximum sunlight as they harbour photosynthetic algae called Zooxanthellae which have a symbiotic relationship with the jellyfish. The jellyfish population is continuous throughout the year and not seasonal unlike in other spots.

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