Bridging a divide

BENGALURU: Tedx speaker, footballer, vlogger and documentary film maker...that’s 17-year-old Lakshya Subodh, who has a finger in every pie. Managing multiple interests and academics can be quite a challenge, but this Bengaluru student is doing a fine balancing act. The 17-year-old is also one of the recipients of The Diana Award for his work with youngsters and women from rural parts of India. The Diana Award was established in memory of Diana, Princess of Wales, and the award is given out by the charity of the same name.

It is supported by Diana’s two sons, The Duke of Cambridge and The Duke of Sussex. Subodh has been recognised for his two projects, Igniting Dreams and Rural Covid Warriors, which have helped the rural parts of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Uttarakhand. “Igniting Dreams is a project that was started in 2017 through which my team and I helped 300 rural youngsters in connecting them to industries.

We helped them get workplace experience through micro internship opportunities and conducted industry trips in the field of marketing, consulting and design,” says Subodh, a Class 12 student of Delhi Public School, East. Meanwhile, he also initiated the project Rural Covid Warriors through which he combined animation and graphics to create awareness on Covid-appropriate behaviour. “Women, who are the backbone and influencers of a family, are our target.

So far, 250 families, including 5,000 women, have benefited. This includes Solepura region in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka border, Lakkavaram region in Andhra Pradesh and Pauri Garhwal region in Uttarakhand,” says Subodh, who feels that “too many goals” are making him unsure of what to pursue further. “I have been involved in a lot of activities since childhood. There are a lot of goals and passions that I want to continue as I grow. For now I am quite unsure about what next,” he says.