It has been a hectic month with new launches, initiatives and campaigns getting underway. Everyone had their hands full and although many schedules had to be broken and reset we finally managed to complete them all. In this issue we walk you through some of them. Field Mentorship The pilot run in Trichy of our field mentorship program has got off to a good start with Gayathri as our first field mentor. Gayathri was carefully chosen after weighing her abilities in several fields. She provides support to Gandhimathi, Ruth and Kala who have already established their businesses and are now ready to expand it further... more »

It has been a hectic month with new launches, initiatives and campaigns getting underway. Everyone had their hands full and although many schedules had to be broken and reset we finally managed to complete them all. In this issue we walk you through some of them. Field Mentorship The pilot run in Trichy of our field mentorship program has got off to a good start with Gayathri as our first field mentor. Gayathri was carefully chosen after weighing her abilities in several fields. She provides support to Gandhimathi, Ruth and Kala who have already established their businesses and are now ready to expand it further

Gandhimathi runs a small grocery store she hopes to stock with wider and larger quantities of stock.

Kala runs a soft drink stall She wants to capitalize on her location close to the highway and wants snacks and other eatables also to be made available to travelers.

Ruth is a door-to-door salesperson She sales saree petticoats and other small garments. She wants to now start stocking sarees as well.

Gayathri, will help them to achieve this goal by aiding them to source the materials needed most economically and quickly, helping them with marketing and sales and counseling them.

We will update you on the progress of these enthusiastic women at regular intervals.

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Gurinder’s effort to bring in six new investors through referrals totaling Rs.10, 000 more »

Gurinder’s effort to bring in six new investors through referrals totaling Rs.10, 000 in investments, won him a holiday sponsored by Himalayan Village. Congratulations Gurinder and enjoy your holiday. Close

The Dominant Men A ‘knock out poverty’ campaign done with Globus on two consecutive weekends turned out to be great stress busters for our participants and our team members. Most of the visitors to our stall were men who had accompanied their wives/girlfriends/daughters on a shopping spree and were more than delighted with the distraction. The younger men punched the bag with gusto whilst the older ones opted for the quiz. We hope to repeat the campaign with Odyssey too. Close

Chasing a Dream Rang De Education has been launched where loans are given to families solely to facilitate the education of their children. The money goes towards fees, buying books and school uniforms. The first lot of 200 students that will benefit from this initiative are from the Charminar area in Andhra Pradesh. As we scan their profiles we can’t help but notice that these children have dreams and aspirations that are similar to any other child. They range from doctors, engineers and computer geeks to teachers and beauty experts. When asked about their favourite game or hobby, it was cricket that came out trumps- but naturally. Another interesting aspect is that, for most children in the group, ‘English’ is their favourite subject. Is it the excitement of learning the language well or is it considered the measure of accomplishment? Close

Goodbye and good luck Like we mentioned in our last newsletter, the office was buzzing with activity this summer, with interns from IIM Kolkata, XIMB, NIT, ISB&M and Welingkar Institute. But all good things must come to an end and with their projects completed and, we hope with their learning process enriched, they leave us. We have had a great time with them and wish them good luck. Here Arvind Sridharan, An intern from NIT Trichy recounts his experience: It was whilst I was looking for an internship in December 2008 that I was introduced to Rang De by a fellow ‘yatri’ from the Tata Jagriti Yatra (www.jagritiyatra.org). A visit to the web site www.rangde.org had me completely hooked and thirsting for more. I immediately contacted Smita and expressed my interest. Six months later I joined Rang De as an intern and started working on “Empower Futures", a loan scheme that aids higher education. Just as I began forming my opinions of “Another office with its share of mundane activities”, I was in for a surprise. Ram and Smita called for a meeting with the entire team. What followed was a brain storming session on how to get more social investors for Rang De. That is when I realized that I was in for a huge roller coaster ride for the next month and a half. Since then, I have felt that I am a part of the Rang De team and that we’re all working towards its mission collectively. I've been actively involved in several of their initiatives such as the campaigns, both, online and offline, blogging and content development for the new web release. That is the most fulfilling part of an internship in a professionally managed start up like Rang De - you get to do a bit of everything and you learn a lot. To sum it all up, the internship was highly productive and also great fun. In fact, Rang De now has one more loyal supporter and I intend to work as a volunteer particularly by promoting them on social networks and by blogging. So, see you around. Close

Motivating Meetings Every once in a while we come across people that have been dealt a nasty hand by fate but who refuse to give up and rise above the odds. All they need is someone to believe in them and give them a helping hand Sakunthala was bogged down by the daily household chores, but decided to start her own business of selling rice to make ends meet at home. Unfortunately, destiny had other plans, and Sakunthala was widowed soon after she got the loan from Rang De. Now the sole bread winner of the family, she is faced with the daunting task of looking after her old and infirm parents-in-law and her children. When Rang De met Sakunthala for the first evaluation, what came through was her indomitable spirit. Not one to wallow in self-pity she continues to sell rice and has also taken up an additional job to help bring in an additional income. Securing the fabric to the frames of umbrellas, with a series of loops and knots may be time and labour intensive but at just Rs.5.00 per umbrella; it gives her an added income. She is confident that she will be able to tide over the rough patch and wants to ensure that her children complete their education. Way to go Sakunthala! Close

We have great news for all NRI’s who want to make a social investment. If you have a valid Indian passport and the will to share the colours of joy... more »

We have great news for all NRI’s who want to make a social investment. If you have a valid Indian passport and the will to share the colours of joy, you can now invest on Rang De using Pay Pal. A processing fee of 4% + Rs.15 will be charged. A small hitch is that you will not be able to repatriate the funds to the country of your residence if you choose to withdraw. However you may withdraw it to any Indian bank account in INR. We would also need you passport image for verification the first time you invest with us. This, of course, is a temporary solution until we get our FCRA exemption from the Ministry of Home Affairs, Govt. of India. Looking forward to the support of more socially inclined Indians who want to see progress in their homeland. Close

We believe that change is the only thing that is constant and so we have had a makeover. Visit the new www.rangde.org that is easy to navigate, and has some great new features. Stuck? Need some answers to your queries before you invest your hard earned money? Why not? Instant online support is now a click away. Searching for borrowers is now simpler and you as an investor can set your preferences in various fields. Needless to say our core beliefs and goals remain unchanged as we aim to knock out poverty in India. Close

We are happy to have Kiruba Shankar (top left) and Suranga Chandratillake join us formally on our board chaired by Prof. P. Sudarshan. The board is actively involved in the operations of Rang De and gives us invaluable guidance that steers us towards our goals. Close

Rang De is always exploring new avenues to provide help and support to the weaker sections of society. On one such due diligence trip to Pune, Praveen met a small team at Lend A Hand India that works together with Vigyan Ashram to facilitate entrepreneurship among the youth. They provide vocational training, career counseling and support to the local youth and give the micro entrepreneurs a head start. Most of these youth are school dropouts and this opportunity to set up their own enterprises gives them the much needed chance at bettering their lives. Close