The Idea is Born
The idea of Van Mahotsav was not born out of the blue. It was there for long buried somewhere deep inside me before it finally came to fruition. It all starts with a cherished childhood memory. When in school, we had celebrated Van Mahotsav day by planting cute little shrubs. The occasion was the one when I discovered a day that signifies a nationwide forestation festival. As a 7-year-old kid that I was then, the event had a significant impact on me. Whether it was the joy of contributing to nature or the pride of knowing something that most of the world is unaware of till day, the episode got strongly etched in my memory.
Since then, it kept coming back to me time and again, especially when I came across episodes of environmental abuse. This, combined with my strong desire to contribute to a positive change, provoked me to execute the idea in 2017!
The Journey from Initiation to Execution
Fast forward to more than a decade and enter Spacebar.
Spacebar, unlike other workplaces, is fun to be at. A cool, supportive boss and an amusing team, makes Spacebar a great place to be at. No wonder, it was here I executed the idea. It was on a sunny, May afternoon while travelling for a client meeting when I shared this idea of celebrating Van Mahotsav with Alpana (the boss). She, being as cooperative as always, immediately accepted it! Now, that the idea was out it was time for some serious work.
Following a few days after this conversation, we had a small discussion of how to go about it. After all, it is something that we looked at as a corporate social responsibility. The Van Mahotsav week fell in the first week of July i.e. 1st to 7th of July, 2017. Since I had an entire month before the actual event, I was a bit relaxed about it. But, I had forgotten that there is no success without some struggles. I was unaware of the hindrances that would show up. It was not late before I came across my first challenge. Unfortunately, within a day or two of the discussion, I was faced with an emergency event. If this was not all, the next week I was loaded with client work that left me with no time to even think of Van Mahotsav! The result – I was left with only two weeks for planning and execution.
Of course, I could not leave behind my regular work, but I also did not want to let the idea die. So, with the help of my other two colleagues, Clinton and Rukkaiya, I started working on social media plan and event week celebration ideas. 3rd July was decided as the event date when we would be going to a public space and planting saplings. The entire event week celebration ideas and social media plan were ready within a day or two. We had also decided to gift clients a small plant along with an invitation to the event. Immediately after, I got into the task of creating social media posts, client invitees, gift cards, and coordinating with Alpana, Clinton, and Rukkaiya to make all this happen. But, I had still not anticipated the biggest challenge – Finding the Place! This haunted me in the coming days.
The Gift to Clients
Finding a place is not as easy as randomly putting your finger on a map. One has to visit the place, check it out, speak to the authorities, and get permission. Luckily, we had an intern working with us. Since I had many other tasks to handle, Alpana asked him to help me in finding a place. Maybe I wasn’t meant to be stress-free yet – the intern left just 5 days before the event date. We still had no place to conduct the event. It was Alpana’s quick thinking that helped us. We soon visited and finalized a place called Chota Kashmir in Aarey Colony at Goregaon. However, the event date was shifted to 5th!
My Colleague Aastha Putting Up a Quote for the Green Day
At last, the Van Mahotsav week arrived. Since the 1st and 2nd of July was a weekend, we started celebrations from 3rd of July. Right from wearing green to the office and conserving electricity by not using the AC to using recyclable paper cups, we contributed to the environment in different ways the entire week. And the plantation event – that was the most wonderful part! In a fun evening at Aarey Colony we planted small saplings in pairs of two. Oh! That feeling when you plant a sapling – it is astounding I tell you. With Tristan using different tools including a stone to dig the earth and Guneet and Natasha ending their session with boat peddling, the event was fun. Oh, and of course we had photography sessions too. Well, this is not all. We just couldn’t end it like that. To celebrate the success we partied to our heart’s content that evening.
Tristan experimenting with digging tools!
Alpana and Clinton cherishing the moment after planting
The giggly pair – Guneet and Anushka Planting
The Sorted Ones – Natasha and Upen taking their work seriously!
Aastha and Tristan posing with their little plant
Rukkaiya and me posing while preparing to plant
Had it not been for the team’s support, this wonderful event would have never happened. Sowing seeds of an ecological future is a soul-satisfying experience. We, at Spacebar, have understood that, it’s time you do too!
