For young people in Bhiwandi, life is tough, employment opportunities are few, and the rates of substance abuse and suicide are high. Fit for the Future uses sport to improve livelihoods and employment opportunities for young people in one of the most challenging parts of India. We caught up with a coach and his trainee.
“I don’t get into trouble, I do my work, come to the meetings and the best bit is it’s through my favourite sport, Kabaddi”
Nineteen years old Azad*, currently works long hours making furniture in Bhiwandi, Mumbai. From a minority group, he was forced to leave school at fourteen years of age. Since then he’s worked in casual, unsafe employment in warehouses or construction. Last December, after stumbling across a community sports match, Azad discovered it had been organised by a youth group from ‘Fit for the Future’ - a project to build life skills, wellbeing and social cohesion, implemented by a small local charity, Saahasee.
Fit for the Future employs a sport, community campaigns and life skills curriculum that combines wellbeing and livelihoods training. Participants learn skills for resilience, confidence and self-esteem as well as communication, goal-setting and financial management. Inspirational stories of young people who have overcome hardship are shared and discussed. It was the ‘life skills’ aspect that peaked Azad’s interest… and the opportunity to play kabaddi, a contact sport popular in South Asia.
Two months later, Azad became captain of his own kabaddi team and was halfway through his training as a Fit for the Future mentor. After weekly sessions led by coach Shilpa, Azad trained his own team members in these life skills during their matches.
Recent changes in the political and economic climate have spread tension between minority groups and local populations. But together with the other mentors trained by Saahasee, Azad uses WhatsApp to organise sports matches to build community harmony.
In just a few weeks Fit for the Future staff noticed very positive changes in Azad. Coach Shilpa explained:
“His desire to learn and engage was tremendous. The first time he came he was shy, in unclean clothes and chewed tobacco, but now he’s much more confident, looking smart and has given up nicotine. One week when there was local transport disruption he walked for three whole hours to get to and from the meeting – that just shows how determined he is. Azad is always the first to arrive and he turns up excited and happy!”
Reflecting on the transformation, he added,
“It takes time to tease out positive life experiences here, partly because of the loneliness and isolation young people face and partly because the pressure on young boys to provide, and on young girls to get married, is so high. Azad is no exception – while his carpentry skills gave him a financial advantage, he was missing the emotional skills and resilience he needs to achieve more out of life and achieve quality of life.”
Azad proudly described how he felt he had benefited:
“Before Fit for the Future I was not in a good place. I found it hard to get along with people and I struggled with my life. But now I’m captain of a Kabaddi team and I’ve made new friends.
I’m creating a road map for my future and learning the skills to get me where I want to be. I’m sharing everything I learn with my team mates and I’m seeing good things from them too.
Through sports, I’ve learnt how important it is to work together as a team to help each other progress. I’m much more focused on my life and future now.”
*Name has been changed
Fit for the Future is implemented by Saahasee – a small local charity supported by United Purpose and Pentland, in Bhiwandi, Mumbai. Read about other United Purpose Sport for Peace and Development initiatives here