People of Manzil
People of Manzil
The people at Manzil come from all walks of life, age groups and perspectives. They are singers, dancers, philosophers, filmmakers and researchers. But most importantly they are all on a quest for learning more about themselves and others.
Most of our learners are school students and are from a diverse range of family backgrounds. The majority come to us from the nearby Sujan Singh Park, a hard-working community of migrants who have made their way to Delhi in recent decades. Since many of these students are first-time school-goers, Manzil provides a haven for them to learn and explore their capacities outside of a formal structure.
In order to give all the learners a well managed program and administration structure, Manzil also has a dedicated team of Core team and Support team members.
Core Team Members
Our Core team directs and leads our programs and classes at Manzil. These constitute of members who have been old students at Manzil and have grown to imbibe and impart its culture to the new learners. In selecting our core team, we look for people with positive attitudes, empathy and curiosity — much more important than the qualifications and degrees they receive on paper! Here’s an in-depth look at their growth and contribution to Manzil over the years.
Uma Rawat
Team Lead at Manzil
“What attracted me to Manzil was how a wide range of students, from different age groups, gender and ideologies came together to learn what interested them. All of us learnt from each other, there was no demarcation as to who can teach, we were all students in this ocean of learning.”
Know Her Journey
Uma Rawat is a known name at Manzil for over 17 years now. But it has only been recently that she joined the Manzil family full time by stepping into the role of a Team Lead. Her time at Manzil started in 2004 when she joined the English program after completing 12th class at a government school. From there, she began volunteering at various Manzil events before starting to head the initiatives team in 2010. Through Manzil, Uma was nominated for the International Visitor Leadership Program sponsored by the U.S Embassy, where she went to the US to explore civic participation. Uma credits Manzil for inspiring her love for traveling, Kathak dancing, and helping her develop skills as an organizer and team manager. Uma has the Leadership skills to lead an organization. She has seen Manzil from different perspectives as a student, teacher, and core team member. And carries the motivation for other Manzil students to grow like her. Her 15+ years’ of experience in the corporate and social sector can bring positive growth for Manzil. From the time she joined us as an English student, to today when she is a Team Lead, Manzil has been a large part of her life’s journey, just as she has been for us.
Vandana Arya
Senior Coordinator and English Classes Lead
“Manzil has been a life changing opportunity for me – it has changed the introverted Vandana to become the kind of person who is friendly, confident and approached by students knowing that I am there to listen and help them without any judgements.”
Know Her Journey
Vandana is one of our Senior Coordinators here at Manzil. She recently graduated from Delhi University’s School of Open Learning, where she learned educational tools that she’s brought with her here to Manzil. She’s been a student at Manzil for the last nine years, taking both English and Math classes during her time here. She credits Manzil for the being the most influential part of her academic life, as well as teaching her a variety of other skills that she uses on a daily basis.
Tulsi Kohli
Senior Coordinator of Projects
“At Manzil, I learn something new everyday. Right from the way I talk, the way I plan or make decisions – I have learnt to do better at Manzil. And I hope to contribute by teaching our learners as well, so that they too can explore and grow as a new person every day.”
Know His Journey
Tulsi is one of our Senior Coordinators here at Manzil. Over the last nine years she has served a variety of roles here, including student, teacher, volunteer, and, finally, Core Team member. She left her job as a computer operator to come work here at Manzil full-time because she found her other job unfulfilling, whereas here at Manzil she feels like she’s learning something new every day and is working among people she truly loves. She is thrilled to be able to explore and grow as a person every day. She graduated from Delhi University with a Bachelor of Arts. Tulsi’s favorite part of Manzil has been teaching our learners, and she still teaches computers on top of serving as a Core Member.
Anil Kumar
Accountant and Computer Coordinator
“Manzil has helped me evolve into the person I am today. It is here that I learnt so much more, from everyone I teach and every class I attend. It is here that I became Anil bhaiya to all Manzilions. To me, Manzil is like a ‘mandir’. It is here that I feel relaxed and calm too.”
Know His Journey
Anil is our Accountant and Computer Coordinator here at Manzil, along with running our facilities. He has received his Bachelor of Computers from Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU), and is current working on his Masters of Computers at IGNOU as well. Anil has been here at Manzil for 17 years, starting as a volunteer in charge of training the computer teachers, along with teaching before joining the Core Team at its inception 10 years ago. Anil has spent so much of his life dedicated to the learners at Manzil, and his daughter, Tusharika, is currently a student here as well.
Shrikant Patel
Art Team Lead and Founder of Dramebaz
“Manzil has taught me how to live life, through theatre. And I look forward to sharing this thought process and knowledge to as many kids as possible.”
Know His Journey
Shrikant has been a part of the Manzil family for almost a decade now. And credits upto 75% of impact on his life to Manzil. Destiny brought him to Manzil via an application form that was intended for his brother. But once in, he was in a completely new world that got him interested in different classes. He discovered his true passion for theatre at a Manzil Utsav. And has not looked back since. As someone who was remotely interested in studies, to now a founder of an organization ‘Dramebaz’ which focuses on learning through theatre, Shrikant’s journey has been phenomenal. He has become more self-aware, focused, and able to learn better – through art. At Manzil, he is a member of the core team, helping to manage and coordinate for all Art classes like dance, music, theatre, guitar, art and craft, art and imagination, storytelling and vocal music. He loves what he does. And wants to introduce this medium of learning to several other kids at Manzil and beyond. Currently he is working with 250+ students all over Delhi via his organization Dramebaz. And has been able to achieve some great results via ‘Learning through Theatre’.
Krupali Jataniya
Maths & Science Classes Coordinator
“I have several mentors at Manzil who support me not just in my professional but also my personal challenges. And it is because of Manzil that I have seen myself grow on fronts that I was not so comfortable in before.”
Know Her Journey
Krupali had joined Manzil with an aspiration to learn something different from her field of engineering. But what she didn’t know at the time was that this step will lead her to discover her true strengths and passion towards the social sector. Her first stint at Manzil was as a student in a Reasoning class in 2020. But she soon started to take initiatives and became a teacher in the class. From then, she went on to volunteer for other programs, and was selected in the Manzil Internship batch of 2021. With the guidance of her mentor Tulsi, she was able to explore the work in social sector via Manzil’s programs like Hello Zindagi, Sikho Sikhao and Admissions. She even got to learn a lot on her soft skills like communication, building connections, working in teams, team alignment as well solving challenges in personal/professional scenarios. In the past 2 years, Manzil has seen her grow into this mature individual ready to take on the responsibilities of a Team Lead since Oct 2021. We look forward to the growth she brings on for team Manzil.
Support Team Members
Our support team constitutes of members who have assisted our core team members in various Manzil initiatives through the course of their 6-month Manzil Internships. As a result of their enthusiasm and growth during this time, they have been added in the Manzil team in various roles to support Manzil programs and management.
Purnima Sarkar
“Coming to Manzil has been a life changing moment for me. It is like my second home. Here I feel free and true towards doing what I want, without anyone pressuring me for it.”
Sushma Rana
“Manzil has given me a space to explore myself. If I was not here, I might not have been aware of my skills of have the clarity about what I want from life.”
Rajan Basnet
“Manzil has played an important role in my life by making me a different person. I have become aware of myself, my mistakes, what I need to work on, and am on the path towards more learning and development.”
Hema Singh
“My life has changed quite a lot ever since I joined Manzil. I enjoy learning while working on Manzil programs with my mentor as well as in one of Manzil incubated startups – Dramebaz.”
Chandani Kumari
“Manzil has helped me a lot in my progress. Particularly the one-on-one meetings with my mentor has helped me solve my personal/professional challenges. My confidence has improved and so have my soft skills to enable me to do my work better.”
Volunteers
Apart from full-time support by our core and support team members, Manzil is also fortunate to have a huge list of contributors who are willing to contribute their time and efforts to run our classes and programs smoothly. We are grateful to each and every one of them.
If you are also someone who believes in learning for all, we invite you to join our family and find your space here. There are a variety of opportunities requiring roles that range widely from teaching forms of art to curriculum education. But they are not limited to skill training. You can also volunteer in assisting with many technical aspects or share your vision with us too.