So after practice, Spacie got 30 street kids into the Gymkhana to teach them rugby. Before long, Spacie found himself becoming more a mentor to the boys than a coach. The boys picked up a few things themselves—not just about rugby, but also about teamwork and discipline.
Spacie soon tied up with NGO Akanksha to give underprivileged children a weekend break. Once a month, he would hire a coach and take Akanksha’s children to a hill station or the beach. When he saw how the recreation was working, Spacie quit his job in ’01 and founded Magic Bus. He contacted other NGOs to reach out to more kids—from slums, construction sites and red light districts. "The NGOs were handling so many pressing needs, recreation was at the bottom of their list," says Shirin Juwaley, communications manager, Magic Bus. "That’s where we came in."
Magic Bus divides the children into three groups: Explorers (age 7-9); Challengers (10-14 years); and Voyagers (15 and up). While the younger kids play games, the older ones play football. Why football? "At any one point in cricket, you have nine people who aren’t involved in the game," says Spacie. "Football is more engaging. And it doesn’t have as much of a legacy around gender and race." In fact, the organisation tries to ensure that at least half the children enrolled are girls.
Besides a sports session each week, Magic Bus kids also get a weekend a year at the NGO’s residential centre at Karjat, on Mumbai’s outskirts. "Sport is incredibly powerful as a developmental medium," says Spacie. "It’s too late to send these kids back to school, but if we can make them emotionally and socially competent, they will do well."
Spacie’s kids are certainly going places. His first team of 30 rugby players even played against the Bombay Gymkhana. When some of them were invited to join the club team, it was, for Spacie, ‘the ultimate compliment’. It hasn’t been easy. Public spaces are often inaccessible, funds too.... Revenue-raising efforts include training programs, where the kids and white-collar workers spend an interactive weekend. Magic Bus is also setting up a training centre to be rented out for workshops.
Contact No 3, Victory Mansion, 2nd Flr, Sitla Devi Temple Rd, Mahim, Mumbai—400016, Tel: (022) 2444-8691. E-mail: shirin@magicbusindia.org
