The Indian School of Business (ISB) celebrated the 60th Independence Day, with a note of selflessness and social responsibility. Its social initiative, the Net Impact Club, for the fourth consecutive year, successfully executed Bandhan, a student-led initiative, bringing together local underprivileged children to spend a day on the campus.

The day began with 270 children, aged 4 to 17, from local NGOs like Naandi Foundation, Devnar School for the Blind, the Byrraju Foundation, etc. being welcomed by student volunteers, into the sprawling campus. Children participated in a variety of events from sports activities to art and creativity. Sack hopping and the lemon race drew large crowds. At the same time, it was inspiring to see these children rise to the occasion, when given more complicated tasks like performing impromptu short plays.

The day came to a close with a cultural show organised at the School’s Auditorium. The visiting children performed a medley of group dances, songs, skits, etc. Each performance, from the rendition of a song by the hearing impaired students to a dramatised version of Vande Mataram, drew huge applause. This was followed by a hilarious skit by the Theatre Club at the ISB. The visually impaired children of Devnar School moved the audience with their outstanding dance performance. Everyone was talking about their impeccable coordination. Phani, a visually impaired student from Devnar School said, “This is my fourth visit to the ISB. The students took very good care of us. And yes, one day I would like to join the ISB.”

The event saw great enthusiasm on the part of the students who volunteered in large numbers. Mansi Kedia, one of the event coordinators, said, “The entire event from planning to execution has been educative. We had been working tirelessly for the past two weeks on the logistics and aesthetics of the event and today I am glad at the huge success and the fact that these children had a great time here.” Shikha Khandelwal, another enthusiastic coordinator said, “The success of the event was in its execution - and it doesn’t help when you are dealing with children as young as 5 years to 15 year old adolescents. It just makes it more exciting!”

The Net Impact Club at the ISB believes that events like Bandhan go a long way in sensitising future business leaders towards the realities and problems faced by the underprivileged. The objective is to instil in them a sense of responsibility towards this segment of society when they are in positions to direct policies. The other social clubs at ISB, namely the Sports Club, the Arts & Creativity Club, the Music Club, the Photography Club and the Theatre Club also joined hands to make the event memorable.