Dhakad Foundation

We operate out of house number 34 in Jagdish Vihar, which is part of the Jagatpura area here in Jaipur. The Dhakad Foundation is a pretty small setup. We basically just use a couple of rooms in the house to keep our records and meet with people. It’s a typical Jaipur neighborhood, so you’ll hear kids playing outside and the occasional street vendor passing by while we’re trying to get things done. We started this because we wanted to help out the local youth with some basic skills and guidance. There wasn't much of a plan at first, just a few of us sitting on the porch talking about how we could help. Now we have a bit more of a routine, but it’s still very informal. We don't have a secretary, so the phone just rings until one of us can get to it. The printer jams at least once a day, and we usually have to jiggle the handle on the front door to get it to lock right. It’s those little things that remind us we’re just a local group, not some big entity. People from around Jagatpura know they can just walk up and talk to us. We don't require appointments or anything like that. If we're here, we’re open. We try to keep our overhead low so we can put whatever money we have back into the community programs. It’s a simple way of doing things, but it works for us.