A new play arena for school children from underprivileged families was inaugurated recently in Dharavi.
The initiative, a joint effort by ESPN, love.futbol and Magic Bus, is part of their Safe Spaces initiative, which aims to provide a safe environment for children to showcase their skills in sports and learn in the process.
The arena, the second such initiative in India and the ninth globally, was thrown open by ESPN Vice President Ramesh Kumar, with Magic Bus founder Matthew Spacie, ESPN Corporate Citizenship Vice President Kevin Martinez and former cricketers Ajit Agarkar, Murali Kartik and Daren Ganga in attendance. The first such arena was inaugurated in Bengaluru.
Made from recycled rubber, the 33x50 m arena showcases four basketball hoops and two football nets. It is located in the Dharavi Transit camp and is aimed at students of the local school aged between 12 and 18 years.
Speaking about the attempt to tackle social issues through sports, Mr. Spacie said the initiation of the conversation is the most difficult part. “It is not easy trying to convince children and parents who have spent their entire lives in poverty that education is beneficial for them. As sports brings people together and unites them, it becomes easy to start the conversation, thus overcoming the first barrier,” Mr. Spacie said.
One of the major issues anticipated by the creators of the initiative is that of school dropouts. As the age group between 12 and 18 years is the most vulnerable to dropouts as also one where a majority of girl students drop out, the focus is on this age bracket.
‘Sports as a metaphor’
The idea, Mr. Spacie said, is to use sports as a metaphor to teach the students valuable life lessons. Citing examples, Mr. Spacie said the cones used in football would represent obstacles in life and the coaching would teach the children the joy of overcoming them.
“These lessons will be delivered by people who have gone through extreme poverty but eventually managed to get out of it. These people would become the children’s heroes, and they would be much more willing to follow what they are being told,” Mr. Spacie said.
The programme also aims to ensure participation of the children’s parents, with one-third of the activities being designed for them. The initiative has been launched in the hope that it will be replicated by the government as well as other organisations.
“The cost of the programme is ₹1,500 per year per child, hence it is a good working example. When such an idea is being propagated by someone who has been in their situation, it becomes much easier to follow. That is why this idea has been successful in the past and we’re hoping for a great amount of success here too,” Mr. Spacie said.