By Ajay Pratap Singh, Co-Founder of Adhigam India
I come from a B.Tech background, and like many engineering students, I initially imagined my future in a technical profession. However, during my college years, I began interacting with children and young people from underserved communities. What started as volunteering gradually became a purpose that changed the way I viewed education, leadership, and social impact. Through these experiences, I realized that meaningful change happens when people are empowered to believe in themselves and take ownership of their future.
Over the past few years, I have worked closely with children and youth from underprivileged communities through education, leadership development, and community engagement initiatives. My goal has always been to help young people become more confident, self-reliant, and active participants in shaping their own futures.
One experience that has had a profound impact on me is facilitating theatre with children and youth. Initially, many participants were hesitant to speak in front of others. Some struggled with self-confidence, while others rarely had opportunities to express their thoughts openly. Through theatre exercises, storytelling, role-play, and performances, I saw remarkable transformations. Children who once avoided speaking in groups gradually began sharing their ideas with confidence. Young people who doubted themselves started taking leadership roles during rehearsals and performances. I remember working with a group of children who were nervous even during simple introductions. Over time, theatre became much more than a creative activity—it became a tool for self-expression, confidence-building, and empowerment. Watching these children perform in front of audiences, tell stories from their own lives, and support one another remains one of the most meaningful experiences of my journey. It reinforced my belief that change often begins when people are given the opportunity to discover their voice.
A significant part of my work focuses on empowering youth and teenagers to identify challenges within their communities and take action to address them. Rather than providing solutions for them, we encourage them to analyze problems, develop ideas, and lead initiatives themselves.
My role is to guide and support them through the process while helping them build leadership, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills. The goal is to develop sustainable leaders who continue taking action even in my absence, creating long-term impact within their communities. Seeing young people realize that they have the ability to create change is one of the most rewarding parts of my work.
Alongside this, we also work towards developing community leaders. We mentor and train local youth in facilitation, leadership, and educational practices so they can support younger children from underserved backgrounds within their own communities. By building local leadership, we create a self-sustaining cycle where community members continue educating, mentoring, and supporting one another. This approach reduces dependence on external support and strengthens the community’s ability to drive its own growth and development.
What motivates me most is the resilience, creativity, and potential I see in young people every day. My engineering education has taught me structured problem-solving, while my work with communities has taught me empathy, patience, and the importance of human connection. Together, these experiences have shaped my vision of leadership and social change. I believe that empowering young people is one of the most effective ways to create lasting impact. My goal is to continue building spaces where children and youth can learn, lead, and thrive, enabling them to become confident changemakers who contribute positively to their communities and society.