MODI: A ROLE MODEL FOR YOUTH

“Modiji takes pride in success of daughters!”
PM Modi - The man who rebuilt Kutch after it was razed to dust!

The narrator recalls how PM Modi’s Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao Abhiyan turned a gamechanger for her when she got to meet PM Modi in a school event as young girl and his words of inspiration with a gift of Rs 250/- changed her outlook towards life. Inspired, she began to participate more and more in singing events and competitions and today she is a folk singer of international repute, bringing our very own Gujarati music to the forefront for the world to appreciate.

I hail from a small village near Anjan in Kutch. It is called Tappar. Well, we belong to the Maldhari tribe and never exactly ventured out to the village. My grandparents and parents were in the business of animal husbandry and we lived in the jungle. My parents are illiterate. When Modi Saheb ji was CM of Gujarat, he sent a letter to every household in the village asking the elders to send their daughters to school under the Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao Abhiyan. This letter was received by our neighbours as our house was shut. My father requested our neighbour to read out the letter to him. On listening to the content of the letter, my father was touched by the CM’s appeal and he felt that if our CM cared about the daughters of the state, he too must care about the future of his only daughter, that is me. It has always been difficult for girls in India, as either they were killed as infants or were married off very early in life. To get me an education, my father decided to shift to the village. He was illiterate and did not want me to go without receiving an education. So he planned to do some odd business in the village for livelihood and that’s how I started my schooling with the Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao Abhiyan.

My first opportunity as a singer came to me a young girl in school when I got to sing in the morning assembly prayer. Initially I would sing from the crowd but gradually I gained the confidence, and our music sir gave me the opportunity to come forward and sing as part of the choir.

The biggest game changer event that happened in my life was during the Rann Utsav. Huge crowds of people started pouring in Kutch. So our school team was asked to prepare for an event which Narendra Modi ji was also attending. All of us young students were sitting and having fun when Modi ji started interacting with us and asked each of us to recite something of our choice – such as a joke, or poetry – one after another, to him. We all had heard a lot about the CM of Gujarat but we did not know it was him! When it was my turn to go up to him, I was totally nervous. He asked me “Daughter, what would you like to recite?” I said, “I only know how to sing!” So he asked me to go ahead. Now I knew songs only in my local tongue, which is the Kutchi language. I sung those couple of folk songs to him and I remember the smile on his face while listening to me! He praised me once I was done and appreciated my talent. I could see my father in him when he gave me Rs 250 and said that I must keep singing and continue my studies. He called for my teacher and told him to ensure that I completed my studies and also hone my talent through opportunities.

So this came as a turning point in my life. I got the opportunity to participate in Rann Utsav and in a lot of village events such as devotional gatherings, marriages etc. I liked to sing hymns and devotional songs and all in my mother tongue.

Well, I am only one example but there are hundreds of other daughters of the country coming from poor and unknown families who are serving as officers and are occupying high positions today and it is the Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao Abhiyan that made it possible for them. For all these girls, Modiji is like their father and all credit for their success goes to him. He has taken care of his daughters, he has supported us, encouraged us and given us education and opportunities to live our dreams.

He is the PM and he is bound to have millions of tasks to accomplish and worry about. But he still found time for me for a meeting and remembered me from my childhood day, for this I cannot be more grateful. He said “Geeta hails from a tribe that belongs to the jungle. They do not even venture out in the village. They are very far away from any education. But this girl made it this far in life, so I would like to meet her.” And this is how I was summoned. The fun of the meeting was in the fact that I found him to be just as animated to see me as I was excited. I had met him as a plump kid in school and now I was meeting him after several years as an international artist. He remarked “You have grown so big! Did you complete your studies?” I confessed that I could not as I got busy with a career in music. He said “I am proud of you Geeta that you remained true to your culture and have brought your folk language to the world stage. Now next time when you see me, you should have resumed and completed your education from where you left it.” He suddenly asked me “So what are you singing for me today?” And what I sung for him in my language that day meant “Modiji, we all are really contended under your governance. We agree with every single thing you say, dream and do for the progress of the country!” He blessed me with a big smile on his face and it was indeed a memorable meeting of a daughter with her father!

What Modiji did for Kutch after the earthquake is unbelievable. He built Kutch, that had been razed to dust, from scratch. He got projects, companies, infrastructure and Rann Utsav to Kutch. My own village, like all others, had been completely destroyed. It was rebuilt by Modiji. Now when we visit Kutch, it is a green, happy and developed Kutch we witness. Everyone has some business, some work of their own and people are smiling. All I can say is that rebuilding Kutch was no mean task and none other than Modiji could have done this for our people! TO BE CONTINUED...

COMPILED AND EDITED BY SHASHIKANT SHARMA AND SHWETA SHARMA

‘BIGGEST GAMECHANGER EVENT IN MY LIFE WAS WHEN I MET MODIJI’ - Geeta Rabari, Gujarati Singer
The biggest game changer event that happened in my life was during the Rann Utsav. Our school team was asked to prepare for an event which Modi ji was also attending. He asked me “Daughter, what would you like to recite?” I said, “I only know how to sing!” So he asked me to go ahead. He praised me once I was done and appreciated my talent. I could see my father in him when he gave me Rs 250 and said that I must keep singing and continue my studies. He called for my teacher and told him to ensure that I completed my studies and also hone my talent through opportunities.

‘FOR DAUGHTERS OF COUNTRY MODI JI IS LIKE FATHER FIGURE’
Well, I am only one example but there are hundreds of other daughters of the country coming from poor and unknown families who are serving as offi cers and are occupying high positions today and it is the Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao Abhiyan that made it possible for them. For all these girls, Modiji is like their father and all credit for their success goes to him. He has taken care of his daughters, he has supported us, encouraged us and given us education and opportunities to live our dreams.