Network18, AU Small Finance Bank Celebrate Selfless Pursuits of Excellence Across India with the Finale Event of Badlaav Humse Hai – Every Change Matters

December 2022: Humanitarians serve society and win with welfare. Many of them often go unnoticed as they are silently engaged in initiatives for the betterment of others. Honouring twenty such personalities who have been spreading hope and joy in the lives of countless Indians, Network18 and Fortune India 500 company AU Small Finance Bank, organised the Badlaav Humse Hai – Every Change Matters finale event at Trident, BKC Mumbai on 16 December 2022.

The event commenced with a brilliant dance performance by wheelchair dance theatre group, Ability Unlimited, followed by the keynote address by Hon’ble Chief Minister of Maharashtra and chief guest Eknath Shinde. “We have with us multiple inspiring personalities who, with their hard work and determination, have written new narratives of change in their respective domains. I congratulate every personality who has set such national examples by braving all odds,” the CM said.

Latha Venkatesh, Executive Editor, CNBC-TV18, opened the evening with guest of honour Shri Mangalprabhat Lodha, Minister of Tourism, Skill Development & Entrepreneurship and Women & Child Development, Government of Maharashtra. “I salute those people who dreamt and executed real change from the remotest corners of the country, thereby helping the government significantly in bringing in holistic welfare. The efforts by Network18 and AU Small Finance Bank put out a strong message of transforming lives, akin to Amrit Mahotsav,” he said.

He was joined by Sanjay Agarwal, MD & CEO, AU Small Finance Bank, and Nobel Peace Laureate Kailash Satyarthi on stage. Talking about the inception of AU Small Finance Bank’s slogan- Badlaav Humse Hai, Agarwal said, “As we introduced this tagline with a campaign featuring Aamir Khan last year, our efforts in bringing a revolution in banking came forth as huge catalysts of change.”

When asked to chart his excellent journey, Satyarthi said, “I was a 5-year-old school-goer in Vidisha who was pained by the helplessness of a cobbler child standing right outside our school. The generational concept of labour from his father had a deep impact on me regarding child labour. That was the turning point of my life.”

Beginning the first round of felicitation of Healthcare Nurturers with a pre-recorded speech by superstar-director Aamir Khan, changemakers Dr Subodh Kumar Singh, Dr Manoj Pandey, Kiran Verma, Swagatika Acharya, and Harjinder Singh were felicitated for their significant contributions.

Thereafter, actor & UNEP Goodwill Ambassador Dia Mirza; Uttam Tibrewal, Executive Director, AU Small Finance Bank; and Dr Shrikant Shinde, Member of Lok Sabha graced the stage with their presence to start the second round of felicitation of environmental activists, titled ‘Heroes of Environment’. Divya Shetty & Vishnu Vardhaan; Amaresh Naresh Samanta; Prof. Chetan Singh Solanki’ DM Priyanka Niranjan; and Atul Sarin were honoured under this category.

“Covid presented first-of-its-kind challenges and we developed jumbo facilities in Mumbai. We even created a 1000-bed facility in Thane without any government funding” said Shrikant Shinde. “Banking, for me, is a service that pays back to society. Banking is such a strong platform that it touches everyone’s lives,” said Uttam Tibrewal.

Inspiring messages unfolded in the course of the evening with conversations between Latha and Sudha Murty, Founder Infosys Foundation, Educationist, Author & Philanthropist. She said, “For me, my country means people below the poverty line who must have food, shelter, clothing, education, and skill-building.” This was followed by a conversation on women reformists with Padma Shri awardee Sudha Varghese and actor-UNEP Goodwill Ambassador Dia Mirza.

“I happened to read about the impoverished conditions of the Musahar community in Bihar in Class 8 and that itself prompted me to work towards bringing positive change for tribal girls and women in Bihar,” said Sudha Varghese. “Environmental health is entirely connected to human health. We must repair our broken relationship with nature,” Dia Mirza said.

Thereafter, Dia Mirza, Sudha Varghese, and Actor & Entrepreneur Gul Panag felicitated ‘The Pathfinder’ Hasina Kharbhih, Ruma Devi, Dr Yoga S Nambiar, Sukhiya Bai, and Piyush Bardia.

Next up was another insightful chat with N.R. Narayana Murthy, Founder, Infosys. “Infosys has been participating in corporate philanthropy much before the government’s initiative’’ he said. Social worker Dr Prakash Baba Amte was invited on stage to share his insights on ‘Being a Visionary: Becoming a Changemaker’. He shared how the introduction to the tribals of Gadchiroli by his father, gave birth to the resolve of social welfare in him.

Amte’s inspirational story was followed by the last leg of felicitation of the ‘Progress Makers’, wherein Sultan Singh Palsania, Faisal Ali Dar, Dr Gayathri Vasudevan, Mahesh Jadhav, and Prateek Khandelwal were honoured for their significant efforts to improve the fabric of society.

The event concluded with vote of thanks Latha Venkatesh, Executive Editor, CNBC-TV18. She said, “From the northernmost to the southernmost tips of India, we have empowered 20 changemakers who have brought around a fair and sustainable change in their communities. It was indeed a rewarding experience for Network18 to witness such a constellation of changemakers grace our platform and inspire countless Indians.”