While all of us are fighting the invisible enemy in our way, we must realise and acknowledge that it is disruptive for children, especially for those that depend on corporate initiatives and programmes for their growth and development. I’ve known about the Nestlé Healthy Kids Programme for some time now, it is a partnership between Nestlé India and seven universities. Nestlé’s #HealthyKids initiative has been committed to care, for a decade and in these times, they have kept up this commitment. 

The Healthy Kids Programme was launched in 2009 with a focus on raising awareness, among adolescents aged 10-17, about health, hygiene and nutrition. In 2014, Nestlé partnered with Magic Bus India Foundation to scale up the program with the same objective through the sports for development approach.

The approach focuses on using sports as a tool to educate the adolescents and encourages the idea of eating nutritious food and adopting a healthy and active lifestyle. However, with the nationwide lockdown for COVID-19, the programme has been tweaked to continue working on their mission and wade through the situation.

The ‘Each 1 Teach 10’campaign was carried out with the idea that one person records a video of the proper hand washing technique and sends it to ten others. What happens next is that, each of those ten community sent it to another ten, and the chain of messaging continued. It was a smart use of technology; wouldn’t you agree? 

It doesn’t end there! Visual messaging through posters, boards, books and videos were shared with children and community members, with an aim to curtail community outbreak. Nestlé’s team continued to purse their goals and mission. The team made special efforts to encourage their staff to continue the programme, virtually. Nestlé Healthy Kids Modules on health, nutrition and hygiene were uploaded on the ‘Magic Bus Academy’ a mobile based educational app. In addition, units on COVID preventive measures and safety guidelines were now a part of these sessions. 

In areas where lockdown was lifted, face-to-face sessions were conducted. Whereas, in containment and red zones, the programme ran virtually. Digital media like WhatsApp and tele calling was used extensively to send out messages regarding the subjects. Nehru Yuva Kendra Sangathan training was given to the staff to educate them on the preventive measures. 

What’s inspiring is their effort to draw markings in these communities and ensuring that everyone maintained social distancing. Results? Social distancing was practiced efficiently everywhere. Messages were sent on WhatsApp and phone calls were made to remind people of the importance of following the practice. 

The staff and volunteers offered support to assist in the application of online ration cards and also walked families through the process of downloading, registering and using the Arogya Setu app. The team also sent out messages on WhatsApp on the benefits of this app.

Personally, I loved the idea of the Door to Door Campaign that was carried out to demonstrate the hand washing and sanitization technique. What’s more interesting is that, the team followed community mapping and made sure none of the households were left out of the process. Every year, adults and the young come together and take part in various activities on this day. This year, however, it was celebrated virtually and proved to be a great success!

Assignments were given to the children on health, nutrition and waste management subjects with the intent of keeping them engaged and encourage learning despite their schools being shut. While doing so, they also emphasized the importance of physical and mental wellbeing. The efforts of the staff, volunteers and the entire team is highly commendable, where each of them is putting ‘another person’s interest above their own’. 

No one knows how long this pandemic is going to last or how soon we will find a vaccine or even when everything will go back to normal. But I believe it isn’t going to take forever for things to get better. That being said, I am certain that we as individuals of the community can and will do what's best for all of us. So just like the Nestlé Healthy Kids Programme, let's plan for the future, work on it and not feel stuck in the present. 

Until next time,

~ Heena

With over a 120-year lineage, Godrej Group began its journey as a part of India's Swadeshi movement - the original 'Make in India' revolution. After a few unsuccessful ventures, Founder Ardeshir Godrej, set up the first Godrej company manufacturing locks, to secure everything that is of value for the consumers. Over the years, the company diversified into various areas including Aerospace. The Group set up Godrej Aerospace, the hi-tech aerospace manufacturing facility in a humble way in the late 1900s to develop into critical, high precision spacecraft components and beyond.


Early this week the company handed over it’s 100th set of airframe assemblies to BrahMos Aerospace for use in its missile systems while bagging an additional order of 100 more sets. The BrahMos missile, a stealth universal supersonic cruise missile can be launched from ships, submarines, aircraft and land-based platforms and can be used for a precision strike to destroy targets on land and sea. 

During the announcement, Jamshyd N. Godrej, CMD, Godrej & Boyce said, "Godrej and BrahMos have been partners for 17 momentous years. Over that time, we have taken great pride in doing our bit for nation-building through our contribution to bolstering India's defence capabilities.Therefore, it gives me great pleasure to hand over the completion document for the 100th set of airframe assemblies to Dr. Sudhir Mishra. This is a proud moment for Godrej, Brahmos and India, and an assertion of our commitment to serve our country through technologically driven solutions and indigenous manufacturing."

Dr. Sudhir Mishra, Director General, CEO & MD, BrahMos Aerospace DS said, "Godrej over the years has made an immense contribution to BrahMos and Indian defence sector. The delivery of the 100th set of combat worthy missile airframes marks another milestone in our long relationship. Going forward, I am confident our partnership will continue to set new benchmarks and serve as inspirational role model for indigenous development and production of sophisticated weapon systems."


It was an absolute pleasure being part of the narrative of this spectacular journey and witness how Godrej assists in #SecuringTheNation. 

Until next time,
- Heena

The Kala Ghoda Arts Festival needs no introduction, especially to a Mumbaikar. It is a cultural extravaganza showcasing a fabulous mix of visual, performing and culinary arts, all coming together right in the heart of Mumbai City. Since its first edition in 1999, the #KalaGhoda festival has gotten bigger and better every year, with more and more elements clubbed into the annual event. With over a week of activities and workshops around various themes including but not limited to Visual Art, Urban Design and Architecture, Heritage and Vintage, Dance and Music, Theatre and Cinema, etc the festival is awaited by all enthusiastically.


The 2017 edition of the Kala Ghoda festival scheduled for the 4-12th February, promises to be a game changer for its line up of activities and workshops; especially the ones aimed for our little munchkins. The CSMVS Museum Garden has come alive as the hub of all Children’s Workshops; making it a wondrous little world of amazing art, drama and puppetry, life and wildlife, stories and dreams, craft, colour and magic for ALL the little enthusiasts, with curious eyes and sponge-like minds.

The unveiling of the Kala Ghoda statue the year has translated into the Children’s Workshops; with the theme ‘If Wishes were Horses…’ 

The Doodles on Denims workshop with Jaideep Mehrotra saw some amazing creativity from kids were given a free hand to paint their hearts out. Children were provided with the raw material for the Workshop including a Denim Canvas by Pepe Jeans Junior and the end result was a sight to behold.


The #MakingFaces Denim installation workshop with Arzan Khambatta saw a huge turnaround of kids unleashing their creativity in carving faces off Pepe Denims. Children let their imagination run wild making human to dinosaur faces, owl faces to scarecrows and much more.


In a fitting finale, the brand has also organised a Fun Bus ride on the 11th. Answer the questions on the FB page and win a spot for you and your little munchkin in the Kalaghoda Kids Bus Ride of Mumbai's Heritage places with #PepeKidsHTKG17.


I'm going to hop on the bus, will you? 
~ Heena

Dreams I believe have no limitations, dreams are not constraint by the status of an individual. Dreams are those little feathers that we keep blowing high into the sky wishing they never fall to the ground. I truly realised what dreams are when I first held my #PrincessHeer in my arms. In that single moment, I promised to give her the world, the best of everything. Isn’t this what all parents promise? Absolutely. That's what parenthood is all about.

However not every parent is blessed with the means to provide for their kids, and it breaks my heart to know that children who ought to be in school studying, be out in the playground running around, are forced to drop out of school. Girl kids are pushed into marriage at an early age while boys are packed off to work and contribute to the family income. Is this what we visualise for them? Is this what society visualises for them? NO!



Thankfully, many brands are now participating in impactful programmes that cater to the overall development of children. One such effective initiative is the Nestlé Healthy Kids Programme; that aims to raise nutrition and health knowledge among communities and promote physical activity among school-age children. The impressive aspect of the #HealthyKids initiative remains that Nestle India has adopted a multi-partnership approach and roped in expert partners who develop relevant material and curricula to meet the specific needs of local communities.



Nestle has partnered with Magic Bus in India for the #HealthyKids programme, which works on the Sports for Development approach; making learning fun and interesting. Sport acts as a magnet for children, making recruiting them within the programme much easier and long term. It serves as a drawcard that focuses on delivering the right messages to participants via involvement, participation and finally connecting the actions with daily activities. Sports is vital to the holistic development of children, fostering physical, social and emotional health and that's what is the vision of this programme.



Not only does Nestlé spearhead the programme but also follow an inclusive approach with staff volunteers participating in the activities with the NGO partners. Steadily the programme is making headway into the system with over 500 staff members impacting the lives of over 10 thousands children in Mumbai and over 75 thousand across the country. Through the programme Nestlé is actively working with close to 300 partners in 80 countries, to improve the nutrition, health and wellness of children.



Early this week, Nestlé invited iCynosure to be part of one of their interactive session in Mankhurd, Mumbai and the experience has been breath-taking. I was removed from my fantasy world and given a whiff of reality, where children brighten up any environment through their innocence and zeal, and above all their willingness to learn. After a couple of hours just being around them I realised that the broad smiles and birth of confidence comes with inclusiveness and we must all get together to build a nation where all children are #HealthyKids.

Until next time,
- Heena

Motherhood, I’ve realised is not a stage of life it’s a way of life. As a parent I know I will pass more than just my genes to my kid. I will, over the years be passing on my habits to my little one, nearly all of them... good, bad and ugly. One thing I’ve learned from my mother is showing my child instead of teaching her what needs to be done and that has helped me in ensuring that I convey the right things to my little one in a timely manner.

Just like I make healthy eating a visually appealing treat, I make maintaining hygiene an exciting fun game for us to compete against each other. Every day, we score each other on various parameters of hygiene; ranging from brushing teeth to washing hands to keeping our surroundings clean and much more in a bid to make the simple tasks a lifelong habit.

The other day, when her friends were over for some downtime; they ran around the garden doing everything 5-year olds are good at. After a good two hours of strenuous physical activity they got home to a large spread of snacks, juice and milk. With most of the kids just plonking themselves on the dining table, I saw my little one stride towards the washbasin scrub and wash her hands diligently and declare to her friends, ‘Hygiene is two thirds of health.’ No one could have been a prouder mother, when I saw a dozen 5-year olds scampering towards the washbasin to emulate my princess. 

Yes, hygiene is all about behavioural changes that encourage ‘Healthier Kids and in turn a Stronger India’. And the need has been recognised not only in urban but more so ever in rural India. This unmet need has been identified by Savlon, ITC’s leading hygiene brand and the team has got together to design a great CSR programme to cultivate a habit of washing hands among children through various engaging and entertaining educational initiatives in schools through the Savlon Swasth India Mission.

The brand has launched the Healthy Hands Chalk Sticks, a set of unique chalk sticks infused with soap to emphasise the importance of washing hands before eating. The idea stemmed from the observations made at municipal schools of children using chalk and slate with bare hands and then having their meals without cleaning; leading to numerous health complications. The Savlon Healthy Hands Chalk Sticks is made in a manner that the chalk powder on the children's hands lathers into a foamy cleanser when in contact with water, creating a fun experience for children and educating them about the importance of hygiene and washing hands before meals.

The unique product is a first of its kind initiative undertaken by #SavlonSwasthIndia Mission and as a mother, I believe it is a great move to combat all the ills associated with unclean hands. What do you think about this amazing initiative by Savlon? Leave me your thoughts in a comment below. 
- Heena