The rear of the Ananda Day Care
At the back of the building there are swings, a skip, a slide and a sandbox. There are no other playing grounds in the neighborhood, so everyone really enjoys these playing devices.
Guna is very good at yoga
Yoga classes at Ananda Day Care
Twice a week a yoga teacher comes to the Ananda Day Care. Everyone is surprisingly good at it.
Dancing at Ananda Day Care
Once a while the cd player is taken out and everyone starts dancing. Most of them love dancing and loose themselves completely.
The girlfriends Ranjeetha and Saranya
Ranjeetha (14 years) is a very serious and inquisitive girl. She loves learning and will keep questioning you during homework period. She loves learning English and reading English books. She has a friendly character and is very adult for her age. She is conscious of the fact that if she studies hard, she has better chances at a stable job later on. Therefore she studies very hard and is very disciplined. She also loves to draw and together with Gnahimathy she plays the violin. Sometimes Ranjeetha can feel lonesome, because both her parents have died and nobody ever comes to visit her at the orphanage. Luckily she says she feels at home with us and is good friends with Gandhimathy, Saranya, Raji and Naveena.
Saranya (14 years) is almost the opposite of Ranjeetha, but the girls like each other’s company. Saranya likes being the centre of attention, she is very extroverted. She has a very social character and easily makes contact with other people. When Saranya is there, it is always nice and there is always something happening. She can draw all the attention to herself and therefore can be a bit dominant. She loves dancing and talking with her friends. She isn’t very serious and would rather take her time doing the fun things in life rather than learning at school.
Govindsamy in the sea
In the summer the children enjoy going to the beach. Pondicherry is on the coast, so the beach isn’t far away. In this picture you can see Govindasamy (13 years), and together with his two sisters Gayathri and Pauli they live with us. Govindsamy is a very social boy, he easily makes friends and always creates a good ambiance quickly. He bonds quickly to people whom he cares for. Sometimes this can make him emotional when these people get angry at him or disappoint him. But he always gets a grip on himself quickly and then again he is the pleasant, social Govindsamy. Besides social he is also disciplined and talented. He is good at drawing and dancing and not too long ago he has started playing the violin. His parents are divorced and his father is not around any more. The mother was often ill, so there was nobody to take good care of the children. Contrary to his sisters Govindsamy seemed to have no problem moving to Isai Ma(i)yam and from the beginning he was very active and happy. Meanwhile his sisters have adjusted to the new situation too and have flourished completely.
Playing in between dancing lessons
Lastly two skips were made. In the background the swings can be seen. At this moment the girls are having a break during their dancing class.
Music lessons in the Gayatri Art School
All the children attend music or dancing classes in the weekend. We have a lot of instruments (guitar, flute, keyboard, violin, tabla, drumpad, drum and mridangan) and the children can make their own choice which one they would prefer to play. Here Hari is being taught on the drumpad, Mani is sitting beside him practicing on the keyboard. She is being taught by Alice, who used to live in the children’s home himself. Now he is studying in Chennai, but comes to the Gayatri Art School every weekend to teach music to the children.
Ananda Day Care for children and young adults
At this moment 24 children and young adults having different handicaps and levels are given shelter. From Monday through Friday they spend their day exercising, singing, dancing, eating, drinking, resting and playing.
The children’s home in Pondicherry
This is where our children live. The left building is for the boys and the right building is for the girls. They sleep separately, but they eat together. This happens in the central hall in the girl’s building.
Dancing lessons in the Gayatri Art School
There are two dance teachers. In this photo you can see Sathya’s group practicing. The children are learning the Bharatanatyum dance, a classical type of dance specific to Tamil Nadu. This dance form originated more than 2000 years ago and was strongly connected to Hinduism.
The second dance teacher is Anbu. Anbu lives with her husband and daughter in the vicinity of the Gayatri Art School. She once lived with us, and afterwards she did a dance education and now works as a teacher. In the weekend she teaches at the Gayatri Art School, but during the week she teaches elsewhere.
Jayaguru
Jayaguru (7 years) hasn’t been living with us for very long, but everyone immediately adored him. Jayaguru has an innocent and friendly character. School is still difficult for him, because he hasn’t gone to school for a while and he is behind in his learning.
Ashok
As the photo shows, Ashok loves playing and his favorite game is playing with marbles. Life was not easy for Ashok before he came here. Nothing is known about his parents, and Ashok and his little brother Satish were roaming the streets. We were notified about this and so gave them shelter. At first it was a bit strange for the brothers and they were somewhat withdrawn, but now they have made many friends and are becoming more and more forthcoming.
Karthika
Karthika (12 years) is a real dear, she wouldn’t even hurt a fly. She lives with us and her elder and younger sister. The sisters take good care of each other, at night they like to sleep close to each other. Karthika is a quiet girl, but always happy. She gets along well with the other girls who live with us.
Akash
This is Akash (11 years). There is hardly anything Akash can’t do, he has many talents. He is good at school and is musical, but he loves dancing most of all. Together with his friends Mani and Hari he sometimes dances at performances. Akash’s father left the family a couple of years ago. Akash’s mother lives and works at a hostel, but this hostel is only for women, so Akash cannot sleep there. His mother came to Isai Ma(i)yam to ask whether he could live with us. Akash sometimes misses his mother and two sisters, but luckily they still have good contact with each other.
Brother Jayaraman and sister Jerolin
Jayaraman (17 years) and Jerolin (6 years) are two hands on one belly. Jayaraman is very caring for his little sister and Jerolin loves to be with her big brother. In 2011 Jayaraman and Jerolin’s mother committed suicide. The father was away working a lot and didn’t have much time to take care of the young Jerolin. Jayaraman took it upon himself to take care of his sister, but soon his grades started dropping. In Isai Ma(i)yam Jayaraman is also taking good care of Jerolin, he is a helpful boy who also takes on other tasks. But now he has much more time to concentrate on school. Lately Jerolin has started going to school and she is very intelligent for her age. She understands things quickly, she is very inquisitive, and loves learning new things. At her young age she already has many talents, and can dance and sing well. And just like other six year old children she loves playing. She fantasizes a lot and can keep herself busy, but she also loves to involve other girls in her playing. Brother and sister still have good contact with their father who comes to visit his children regularly.
Gayathri
Gayathri (11 years) has now been living with us for a year together with her brother and sister. She really loves dancing and is very talented. The children sometimes dance at weddings when Isai Ma(i)yam’s music band is hired. Before they have reached the level of performance, they often need many lessons. Yet Gayathri is so talented that she could go along to performances already after a couple of months. She really enjoys dancing and when she’s not in class, she likes practicing dance steps together with the other girls. Gayathri has had a difficult youth, her father wasn’t there and her mother was often ill. When she came to live with us, she behaved in a very strange way, always looking for negative attention. Her younger sister did exactly the same. After three months things started to improve; the structure and regularity in the chlidren’s home seemed to do her very good. She has become much more stable and now seeks attention in a positive way. To new people she can be very closed, but when she starts trusting you, she becomes more open. She has a very friendly character and is always prepared to do chores.
Music break at Gyatri art school
Music band from Alankupam and vicinity
Foundation Isai Ma(i)yam Children in India
Doing our homework – Foundation Isai Ma(i)yam
Vela in the restroom, Children in India
Ananda Day Care: handicapped children in India
Summer camp
In the summer of 2012 we organized a two-week summer camp for the children from Auroville’s neighboring villages. About 100 children came daily. We taught them music and dancing and ended by organizing a performance in which they could show their talents. We also took the children on a day trip to Pogoland where they could swim and play bingo. Here you can watch a film we made:
Report from a volunteer
Rosaline de Vetten: ‘Every time those happy faces make me warm inside’
“Beginning of September 2012 – the time had finally arrived. Just having finished my college at 19 years I stepped into the airplane to Pondicherry. Ready to have a fantastic time as volunteer in the Isai Ma(i)yam children’s home. And those were really three fantastic months! Through people I became familiar with this foundation and I will honestly admit: India was not on the top of my list of enjoying my three months off. But after a couple of phone calls, to India too, it quickly became pretty clear to me: I wanted to go there. The enthusiasm of the team and the children in India, no doubt convinced me directly. From that moment on the ball started rolling very quickly.
When I arrived, I was received by everyone with open arms. That immediately felt good. It is a totally different life and different culture, but that too was part of my new experience. After getting accustomed for nearly a week I didn’t want anything else and, by the way, I still don’t. The children’s happy faces, the hospitality of the Indian people and especially the variety of work that Isai Ma(i)yam offered me, is something I miss very much now that I am back home. Every day was different. Sometimes very quiet, sometimes very busy, but never boring. There was always enough work to be done. Whether it was with a group of fantastic children and supervisors at the Handicap School (Ananda Day Care), at the office, or with the children from the children’s home, I was never bored. Time really flew.
Every day from early morning till the evening you are intensely busy with the children. It was only quiet when they were at school, but then I would mostly be with the handicapped children. Playing games, making drawings, learning English, playing with blocks, always keeping myself busy with them. And each and every time those happy faces made me really warm inside. The gratitude in their eyes for every little bit of personal attention they received… that was my reward. It is really fantastic that Isai Ma(i)yam offers this day care for the children, you really can’t imagine them being at home the whole day because they can’t go to a regular school. The children really flourish and they are so happy to be there every day.
The children from the children’s home also enjoy themselves. Especially when they are in the Gaya House and the Art School near Auroville in the weekends. Just being a child, playing around, having dancing and music lessons, and especially enjoying each other. This is what the children want and especially what the children need. During my short stay in India I have learned a lot, about a totally different culture, about people’s gratitude, about the fantastic opportunities Isai Ma(i)yam offers the children, and lots of other things which will always be a part of me. I am tremendously happy and grateful that I have been able to experience this. Yes, I will absolutely return some time to this foundation that does tremendously good work for children and youngsters!”
The Gaya House is finished
In 2010 we started building the Gaya House with the financial help of our founder Ivar Jenten. Except for some sanitary modifications the house is finished. Since last summer our children stay at the Gaya House every weekend. This residence is across from the Gayatri Art House where the children are taught dancing and music. The Gaya House has twelve rooms. Our children prefer sleeping with many together in one room, so we can give shelter to plenty.
Playroom
We have also arranged a playroom. It is good for the development of the children to have a separate room with games, toys… and drawing stuff. We made a blackboard on a wall with blackboard paint. The children visibly enjoy this. We will be making a wall painting with a typical Indian motive together with the children. On the other walls we put a big mirror so the children can practice their dancing steps. In India it isn’t common to have a playroom, because the emphasis is on studying and not playing. But we notice that the children appreciate it. Children from neighboring poor villages (who also go to music classes) come here to play as well.
Isai Ma(i)yam children are doing well
In the last quarter of 2011 until the Covid period in 2020 we admitted seven new children: three sisters and three brothers from two separate families and one boy from another family. These children also have had troubled lives at a young age. But all is well now. They hardly have any trouble integrating into the group. They really enjoy themselves and are doing well at school.
Music lessons for children in the village school
Several young adults who were given shelter by us in the past, teach music and dance to village children. Usha and Nandini passed for their study of the violin at the Music College. Three times a week they teach singing to the children (from eight to twelve years) of the Isai Ambalam School, a local village school that was founded by Ivar Jenten in 1982. The village school is near Alankupam, the village where children can stay in the weekend. Sathya teaches dancing at the village school. Usah and Nandini also teach playing the violin to the children from the village.
We have already collected eighteen violins. Most of them have been donated by people after a request made on a local Dutch radio network. The other violins were purchased on a Dutch site, like eBay.
Isai Ma(i)yam Music band makes a big hit
Recently a beautiful male and female singer joined our music band. The band is frequently being asked to play at (temple) festivals and marriages. On 28 and 29 January the music band gave two wonderful performances at a festival in Chitambaram, three hours drive from Pondicherry. On average the band gives a performance in the region four times a month.
Twenty musical talents
The band consists of twenty musical talents from Alankupam and surroundings, including a few who have stayed at Isa Ma(i)yam. Soon we will be having a keyboard with a whole arsenal of sounds that are used in Tamil music. The music band earns 10.000 rupees for each performance. That equals 150 euro. The musicians all receive a part and the remainder is used to pay transport costs and sound crew.
Ananda Day Care, handicapped children come again
Until the beginning of 2011 Isai Ma(i)yam received a group of handicapped children for day care a few days a week. Because the organization (who had taken them on) had sold the school they were going to, the children didn’t come any more. Therefore, we dedicated ourselves to founding our own shelter for the disabled in Koot Road: Ananda Day Care. There seem to be many more handicapped children who stay at home under terrible circumstances and hardly come outside. We have searched for these children in the villages. Now we offer good day care to fourteen handicapped children and youngsters five days a week.
Our building is located in Koot Road, a village near Alankupam
Hammock
We have made special modifications to the building to be able to receive these children. So we made a wheelchair ramp and there is a resting room. One of our volunteers made a beach painting on the walls of the resting room. A hammock is hanging between two palm trees which were drawn.
Former ‘shelter child’ teaches
Punitha, a young woman who stayed with us as a child and has now finished the Music College, was an intern and worked with handicapped children in Pondicherry during her education. Together with teaching at our Art School, she would love to teach music to our new group of handicapped children. We are very happy about this and the children too. They really thrive since they came here. They also love the drive by car to us! In the morning they play music with us. In the afternoon we offer several activities, like claying, drawing and weaving. We also teach Tamil – and for the children who are up to it, English lessons.
The young adults Sri-Devi and John Bosco (once given shelter by Isai Ma(i)yam) will be assisting Punitha with the shelter and lessons, also assisted by two Indian volunteers who have a lot of experience with handicapped children and the Dutch students who are doing their internship with us.
Massage and physiotherapy
Near our school for the handicapped is a community hospital that is willing to give these children massage and physiotherapy for 25 rupees per person per month (only 40 eurocents!). With pleasure some handicapped children have already been using this facility for five months.