Mumbai, November 13, 2019: Teach For India, a non-profit organisation aiming to provide excellent education opportunities for all children, conceptualised a play performed by the students of Teach For India and Umang Theatre Group on Tuesday evening at the Royal Opera House in the city. This was followed by the launch of Grey Sunshine – a book about Teach For India’s 10 Year Journey, written by Sandeep Rai – Chief of City Operations – Teach For India.
‘The Greatest Show on Earth’ engrossed the audiences as it unravelled the truth of the Indian Education System, creatively capturing the stories of Teach For India’s children, who suffer the reality of a broken education system, and the brave and hardworking Fellows and Alumni of the movement, who work relentlessly to fix it. The performances dug deep and unearthed harsh realities. The hour-long theatrical piece showcased how our education system fails to deliver on the promise of unleashing the potential of every child through the metaphor of a circus; the set for which was hand painted by 150 children from the Akanksha Foundation. Through song, dance and acrobatics, the talented children told real stories from their lives, reminding all those that were present that the truth of what these children experience needs to change.
A perfect end to the evening, the book – ‘Grey Sunshine’ – was re-launched, which has already received many accolades. It is an ode to teaching as a manifestation of true leadership; stirring up some intense conversations amongst the audiences.
Commenting on the occasion Shaheen Mistri, CEO, Teach For India said, “Education is a human-centred business and we need to be infusing talent at all levels of the system. We know that education will determine India’s future, and we must focus on bringing in our most thoughtful, most skilled, most driven people. These children who performed today have infinite dreams in their eyes, and we see it grow every day. The show was ultimately an appeal and an invitation to walk in the footsteps of these children and work to create a better world for them. Teach For India believes that our greatest impact on the children of India lies within the countless seeds we plant, the people we inspire, the lives we change, and the mindsets, attitudes, and behaviours we ultimately change as a result.“
Speaking about the book, Sandeep Rai, Chief of City Operations, Teach For India, said, “This book is an exploration into the greyness, through which more than 100 million lives are treading endlessly. Our teams at Teach For India have spent the past 10 years trying to search for the sunshine, and within our search, we have been obsessing over one big question: ‘how do we get the sun to shine for all of India’s children?’ And while we cannot say we have found the answer, we can see that there are glimmers, and those glimmers are real.”
“The Greatest Show on Earth allows you to immerse yourself in the moving stories of the children of Teach For India, who live the harsh realities of poverty and a broken education system and the brave and hardworking Staff, Fellows and Alumni of Teach For India who work relentlessly to make a change,” said Meher Pudumjee, Trustee, Teach For India.
“This show brilliantly shifts popular perceptions of what is possible for our nation’s children, and the endless potential that lies within each one of them. A truly spectacular effort,” said Neel Shahani, Founder Trustee, Teach For India.
The audiences lauded the efforts and performance of the children, taking back something to ponder upon and act on it.