Bhukkad – hungry to learn

The film tells the inspiring story of Bhukkad – a young boy growing up in the red-light district at the heart of old Delhi. He sleeps wherever he can, eats whatever he’s handed out, but never lets go of a handful of books and his unbound curiosity. Clutching his books and chasing whoever is willing to teach him something new, Bhukkad navigates the seedy lanes of his neighborhood while picking up Wordsworth and mathematics. His mother, like most other women on that street, is doing whatever she can to survive and a school is a distant dream locked away from their reaches. You can’t help but see Bhukkad, on his quest to learn, converting his mother’s clients into his teachers, and wonder what would happen if this child could be in a classroom instead.

School’s Out – growing up without education

90 million children don’t have access to good education in a country where public schools lack even the most basic facilities. The children that are hit the hardest are those like Bhukkad who are growing up in some of the most marginalized sections of the society. Children of commercial sex workers are particularly disadvantaged as they find themselves growing up under some of the most adverse circumstances. The fact that prostitution is illegal but continues to operate in an underbelly of criminal exploitation and poverty, means these children are the hardest hit and need a helping hand in getting them out of the streets and into a classroom.

Two Indias – the masters and the rest

India has historically had a deep-rooted class system woven into the very fabric of society with little or no mobility across the classes. It’s almost as if there’s a master class that has historically enjoyed all the privileges, ruling over the serving classes. Since independence, the government has been committed to making a new India where education serves as a ticket to social mobility. However, lack of quality education infrastructure and badly equipped public schools means that only those privileged enough to afford private education can take full advantage of the system. There are about 350,000 private schools with good infrastructure that lie idle every day when the classes get over in the afternoon. This inspired the campaign that opens doors for underprivileged children by getting them access to good quality education.