'Truth Is So Much Simpler'

Deben Baruah, Reporter, Dhopguri
I’d never been out of Assam till I attended a Gandhian summer camp. Now I have friends from all over India who come here and understand Assam’s problems. Terrorism is the big issue here and unemployment is its root. I’ve started a youth organisation in my village, Dhopguri. Even if I’m able to convert even one or two young people, it’ll make a difference.

Aamna Mirza, Student, Delhi
I am a vegan now and an animal rights campaigner. I’ve started an environment club in my college. As a Muslim, I find my community has many reservations about Gandhi. They don’t approve of my shunning all animal products. A Brazilian reporter of a Gandhian children’s newspaper I edit says they teach Gandhian ethics to their police force. Why can’t they do it here?

Avinash Khakde, Engineer, Wardha
I had to run away from home because my parents didn’t want me to go the Gandhian way. I am experimenting with organic farming. My wife and I are growing everything we need on a four-acre farm without any groundwater. My engineering comes in useful in building houses and latrines in the villages where we work.

M. Nithyanandam, Designer, Chennai
I’ve just made a 20-minute animation film on Gandhi and twelve of his disciples. We took it to an engineering college where 3,000 students watched it and were excited by Gandhi’s ideas. It’s funny, but they had never associated Gandhi with modern technology before. Now I’m planning to turn Gandhi’s life into an animation film.

Bittoo Sondhi, Biker, Delhi
Young men are crazy about bikes so, as a bike seller, rallies for peace seemed a great idea. Last year, we did a 500-km mobike rally in Rajasthan. We distributed pamphlets against female foeticide in over 100 villages. As a Sikh whose family was affected by Partition and the ’84 riots, Gandhi’s message of peace has great relevance for me.

Nidhi Panwar, High Schooler, Solan
I’m proud to be a "freak". Now I’m trying to persuade friends to think along Gandhian lines. Gandhi is relevant because of his simplicity and patriotism. Whenever I go shopping, I ask myself: do I really need this? Usually I don’t. I’ve given up ice-cream and have started a fund for streetkids. I want to get a good job, but I owe something to society as well.

J. Kughanandam, Graduate, Chennai
I’ve started producing eco-friendly stationery. Gandhi opened a different dimension to my life. Seeing the large-scale migration from villages to Chennai’s slums I’ve started looking for solutions that will make villagers self-reliant. We’re using indigenous natural resources like silk cotton and banana tree trunks to manufacture cardboard.

Prerna Desai, Financial Analyst, Mumbai
I find Gandhi very practical...truth is so much simpler and has more weightage. I’ve stopped going to discos and drinking. People sometimes think I’m a freak but they also secretly admire me for being a responsible citizen. Like for the cycle peace yatra we went on, after the recent blasts in Mumbai.

Akshat Jain, Mgmt Student, Delhi
Friends call me a miser because I prefer to walk rather than take a scootie. But money isn’t my priority: I am looking for a job that benefits society as well as helps my self-development. I’ve started a college newsletter where we interview big corporate heads and ask them what they do to benefit society. You have to sneak Gandhi in or people are put off.