A CALL TO ARMS

Excerpts from an interview with Honorary member Deepak Parekh, published in A Living Legacy

Rotary everywhere
“I am sure almost every country in the world has a Rotary Club and the movement has withstood the test of time.”

One earth-shattering movement
Deepak wishes that all Rotary Clubs in India would come together for some “massive projects”. If the projects are to
do with Mumbai, then all the Rotary Clubs across Mumbai should come together for an “earth shattering movement befitting of a hundred years” he suggests.

The Mumbai network
And what would one such project be? “If it is to be Mumbai then there are a host of issues: eradicating slums, traffic, housing and education in general”, is the quick answer. Since Mumbai has many clubs, the network is larger than any other Indian city and the efforts to achieve something unique and together would be very rewarding, he says adding, “The seriousness and commitment of the Club members is simply incredible.”

Rotarian Qualities
“It is incredible that they take the time and are so seriously involved that they attend the weekly meetings and listen to the speaker. The Club’s weekly speakers are always educative to listen to, they hail from areas of expertise like medicine, economics and other socioeconomic areas. In a span of 30 minutes, the listener finds his/her knowledge enhanced manifold,” he says.

All for one
There is also the matter of networking, he points out. Networking can be seen as a positive activity or a negative one but with Rotary, networking is definitely positive, because it leads to building wider and bigger circles and that feeds into the third aspect, he stresses. That is, activities to help in doing good for the larger society. The Club’s activities to help the marginalised and poor children are exemplary.

‘A LIVING LEGACY’ PHOTO CREDIT
STUDIO ANUGRAHA