This month we introduce you to three new team mates and why they chose to work with Rang De. Our Rang De Box Office campaign gains momentum with screenings in Bangalore and Mumbai and our chapter members also take up borrower evaluation with a vengeance. We applaud them for working all this into their already busy lives. And for all those who prefer the audio-visual medium, we have a short video that will rid the confirmed sceptic of all his inhibitions and become a social investor with us.

	Beating Scepticism Many of Rang De's social investors started with small amounts and graduated to bigger sums once they gained confidence and felt secure with our systems. Shantanu Bhagwat was no different. Hear him speak of his first encounter with Rang De and how he tested the waters. Watch Video

	Fresh Blood, Renewed Passion. Aditi, Anju and Trilok – three new team members have joined us and are already infusing it with fresh energy and renewing our passion for Rang De. Although their motivating factors are different, all three share the same underlying need to help the underprivileged. more

Fresh Blood, Renewed Passion. Aditi, Anju and Trilok – three new team members have joined us and are already infusing it with fresh energy and renewing our passion for Rang De. Although their motivating factors are different, all three share the same underlying need to help the underprivileged.

Anju

Anju, with her rich background of working in aid projects in Africa was clear on where she would work in India. Her employers had to be involved at the grass root level and be completely transparent. Rang De not only fit the bill, but in her own words "It impacts lives of dozens of people from low-income backgrounds in a visible yet professional way and it makes you feel part of the revolution to rid India of poverty." Who better to take care of our partnerships and social audits?

Trilok

Trilok believes that a lot of things in India can be made better - much better and Rang De's goals are in sync with that. He sees Rang De as a very dynamic, revolutionary, 'to date' and technology oriented organization which has clear goals and is ambitious. As head of the technology team it is no surprise that he calls Rang De "NGO 2.0."

Aditi

Aditi is not new to Rang De. She has been our supporter for some time now and having moved to Bangalore seemed like the perfect time for her to join us. Her passion for Rang De, coupled with her zeal and focus to get things done make her the ideal candidate to organise our campaigns and events. Bubbling with ideas to spread the colours of joy further, her leisure time is spent playing the guitar, reading or chalk modelling. Lazing around is certainly not Aditi's cup of tea. Close

	Box Office News. A rain drenched day – a few people gather at Jaaga- Bangalore on the seventh of August for the screening of "Children of the Pyre"- as part of the on-going Rang De Box Office campaign. As with any thing that "tells it as it is", the film had the group squirming in their seats, as the harsh realities of 7 boys working at the holy cremation Ghats of Varanasi unfolded on celluloid. more

Box Office News. A rain drenched day – a few people gather at Jaaga- Bangalore on the seventh of August for the screening of "Children of the Pyre"- as part of the on-going Rang De Box Office campaign. As with any thing that "tells it as it is", the film had the group squirming in their seats, as the harsh realities of 7 boys working at the holy cremation Ghats of Varanasi unfolded on celluloid.

Naveen and Sreekanth from the Bangalore Chapter who organised the event!

After the movie, Naveen gave a brief introduction about Rang De which then progressed into a thought provoking discussion on the plight of the boys and the circumstances that threw them into it. What would it take to free them from their "bondage" of working with corpses? How many others in our country are trapped in different situations to eke out a living? The discussion went on longer than expected, leaving the group with plenty to think about precisely the objective of the Rang De box Office. The silver lining to the event was learning that 4 of the 7 boys have been rehabilitated and sent to a boarding school - thanks to the filmmaker and an NGO called Plan International. For more pictures of the event, click here. Close

	Visiting Neighbours. The Mumbai and Nashik chapters got together for a field trip to the neighbouring state Gujarat. Surendranagar was the first field trip for many from the Nashik chapter. Several emails and telephone calls flew between the three cities and the Rang De office, coordinating the travel plans. Finally a group of ten volunteers (four from Mumbai and six from Nashik) arrived in the early hours of a Friday morning at Surendranagar. more

Visiting Neighbours. The Mumbai and Nashik chapters got together for a field trip to the neighbouring state Gujarat. Surendranagar was the first field trip for many from the Nashik chapter. Several emails and telephone calls flew between the three cities and the Rang De office, coordinating the travel plans. Finally a group of ten volunteers (four from Mumbai and six from Nashik) arrived in the early hours of a Friday morning at Surendranagar.

Outside the Prayas Office.Evaluations in full swing.

A detailed briefing and discussion with Prayas, our field partner and the team set off to visit and evaluate some of the borrowers. The occupations varied from tailoring and rearing buffaloes to selling decorative diyas. They were even treated to snacks made by a borrower and were amazed at the quality and standards that she maintained for her products. Day two and the group split into two teams, to cover as many borrowers as possible. While the tie-and dye work, the home-grown vegetables for sale and the decorative pieces they made, fascinated everyone, what left an indelible mark was their enthusiasm and positive energy. They were left in no doubt that, small loans do make a big impact on the lives of the borrowers - and as Nandkishor from Nashik said "Good enough reason to continue our efforts in supporting Rang De in its mission of knocking out poverty from India!!" Close