Thane resident Dr Chinu Kwatra’s long-standing dream has been to see India as a developed nation, where all people enjoy basic necessities such as food, shelter, education, employment and happiness. “Since childhood, I have been hearing that India is a developing nation and I think that with the young population we have, we have the capability to shed this tag and become developed. That's the only goal of the foundation, right now,” shares the founder of Khushiyaan Foundation.
A few years ago, Kwatra lost a close friend and was struggling with depression when his mother encouraged him to serve others and help society. In 2018, he officially started Khushiyaan Foundation with an array of initiatives, turning his life around. The NGO’s projects are spread across various fields—education, food, animals, employment skill development, beach clean-ups and senior citizens.
“On a friend’s suggestion, seven years ago, I, along with a few people, cleaned Dadar beach after Ganesh Visarjan and it was heartbreaking. The condition of the idols along with the litter strewn across the coast was sad,” he shares. As per his mentor Professor Indu Mehta’s suggestion, he conducted a cleaning drive the following week too, and was joined by 25 students of a nearby college, even without him asking for their help.
“I realised then that if strangers can trust me and join the clean-up, this can be a movement; since then, there has been no looking back,” says Kwatra, who named the initiative Beach Warriors. Along with volunteers, he has been cleaning the city’s beaches for the last seven years, removing approximately 40,000 tonnes of garbage.
Three months after the Beach Warriors initiative was started, Kwatra started Roti Ghar, a project to feed children residing in the slums, in order to eradicate malnourishment.
“On my birthday, I distributed dal chawal, because I love the dish, to 150 children in the slums. The simple dish has a good level of nutrition and can help kids who are semi-malnourished. So I decided to start this initiative, where we feed kids daily and have been doing it for seven years,” explains the 34-year-old, who has served around 2,100 kids.
Kwatra identifies slum pockets in the city where children need meals, and these neighbourhoods are supported for three years. “Every three years, we change the neighbourhoods,” he says. Right now, these meals are being served in six slums of Airoli and Thane.
Kwatra’s work has reached Thane, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Odisha, Hyderabad, Delhi, Assam, Chennai and Pune.
Actress Raveena Tandon, who has known of Kwatra’s work since the pandemic, shares, “I’ve been deeply impressed by his enduring dedication to serving communities in a hands-on, grassroots manner. Chinu consistently leads by example, working alongside his volunteers to effect meaningful change. His contributions are invaluable, and individuals like him—silent yet impactful champions of the community—deserve far greater recognition.”