Weeks ago, a college friend introduced me to Project Mumbai, a not-for-profit organization engaged on a mission to make Mumbai a better place to live.
She mentioned Jallosh, their beach-cleaning drive. I got so excited that I raced home and registered on their website without a single breath. This could be the moment I’d been craving in my life.
Project Mumbai’s Jallosh is a clean-up drive aimed at a cleaner, more beautiful Mumbai, a Mumbai that is free of waste and where cleanliness is close to Godliness! It targets beaches, mangrove spots, and many waterbodies, all scarred by piles of plastic trash. Somebody has got to clean that up!
Why am I hyping this up? It is because during my graduation years, I was disappointed by the accumulation of plastic just minutes from campus. And here’s the bummer: no awareness, and no trash cans! Swachh Bharat? More like Aswachh Bharat (I’m sorry).
Nobody else was stepping up, so I made it my mission: Be a good citizen, or at least try.
When the clock struck 8 at night, stealing a pair of gloves and some plastic bags (don’t tell Mom), I hopped on my trusty bicycle and hit the plastic hotspots, wastelands filled with empty cups and straws, bottles, and candy wrappers, and started picking up. Sure, there were those annoying stares from folks with nothing better to do (If you see me, lend me a hand sometime).
Gradually, this turned into a daytime habit, done secretly so as to dodge the wandering eyes of passersby. Cleaning was, at times, particularly fun and interesting. I even made friends with a few furry strays who promised to keep my secret.
Back to Jallosh, this hit home for this spick-and-span fanatic. Their website listed options for famous beaches. I chose Juhu Pagli, the name derived from the fashion store of the same name. Well, the beach was close to my heart, and of course, conveniently close. November 15, 2025, at 7:30 AM. The date that rejuvenated my young adult years in me, buried under all this “maturity.”
I showed up on time and made a new friend right away! Thanks to late arrivals, we started late. Putting on our dark-blue gloves and carrying garbage bags, we dove into the cleaning spree. Plastic bits and remnants strewn everywhere. We unearthed treasures like a Sensodyne toothpaste tube (Can’t afford a toothpaste?) and a bottle of nail polish (It’s free!). First time? It could’ve been smoother with better management. But next time? Count me in.
Volunteering has been one of the most energising moments of my life. Even as a dedicated housecat, I’ve participated in ways that left me wondering: Does that count as extra-curriculars? Real volunteering?
Especially, from 11th standard through graduation, I befriended and tutored 2-3 students in Psychology and English. One worked as a delivery boy for another college; the other two were visually impaired. Bonds formed fast, and I had to get creative with teaching, or learning about teaching.
For my delivery boy buddy, I did one-on-one sessions in his room, helping him understand the complexities of English and Psychology. For my visually impaired friends (yep, full-on friends now), it was video conferencing packed with conversation, humor, and encouragement to simplify tough concepts.
Unbeknowst to my readers, I even volunteered to help my visually impaired pals set up a game stall, with assistance from our Psychology teacher. It was a roaring success, boosting our confidence like crazy. Feedback poured in from students across steams, and even teachers loved us, but we forgot to create the Feedback Form! That was our turning point, our first taste of real leadership and more to come.
Key Takeaways
What can you take from this? Volunteering can improve your life. According to research conducted by The Corporation for National & Community Service, volunteering and health go hand in hand. When one volunteers, one has lower mortality rates, greater functional ability, and less likelihood to suffer depression later in life than those who do not volunteer. Introduce volunteering into your life, whether by running donation drives or teaching kids.
For me, the cleanups and tutoring sharpened my communication and leadership skills, lifted my mood, and, learned the value of empathy and contributed support and understanding to those around me. Of course, I’m still a work in progress, but remember to lend a hand to those in need.
As the waves crashed on Juhu (or sailing through the rough sands of shells and plastic) that morning, I realized volunteering gets you out of your comfort zone and into the zone of everlasting change both in the world and your mindset.
In the words of Mahatma Gandhi, “the best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.”
Happy Volunteering!
References:
- Grimm, Robert, et al. 2007 The Health Benefits of Volunteering: A Review of Recent Research. Zotero.