Training teachers is very close to my heart
Raygalla interaction with students || Neo Science Hub
Changing the world begins with introspection. It’s only when we look for the light within that we find the light above, and around. Every so often, we are estranged from our own individual selves, and it gets hard, finding our way back to who we are. Raygalla’s Mantra, a Hyderabad based start up, has tapped on this very impediment, with a mission statement so proudly humanistic, reflecting their cause and purpose in the rawest light- to better acquaint one, with their own self, to make the world a better place, one smile at a time.
Started by Kalyan Srinivas Raygalla in 2018, Raygalla’s Mantra throws light on holistic wellness through
some intriguing practices, which in retrospect, are much needed given the era we’re living in.
Recreational therapy, he calls it. Recently registered as a firm, Raygalla’s Mantra, more of an initiative
than an establishment, has left the entrepreneur behind it awed and looking back at the bigger picture
with innate fondness, as he gets candid with us.
“The idea behind Raygalla’s Mantra is to touch lives at various levels in helping them see what they always miss or ignore. Life today has become very mechanical and lost humanness. We always believe that polishing the being within is the only way to see a better tomorrow. At Raygalla’s Mantra, we help people in various aspects such as education, career and life on the whole. Recreational Therapy is something which is designed in-house and it booming in Hyderabad. We stand as the only organization delivering services of all kind at a rather minimal monetary fee,” says Kalyan Raygalla, when asked about his endeavour prioritising the humankind as its very core.
This however, brings about one inevitable question. What is it that leads to soul seeking becoming a herculean task, in the given day that it has to be undertaken as an exclusive task, in a rather socially aware and better educated society?
Mr Raygalla, an journalist, and also an academician by sheer interest and effort, has delved into this question, and having mulled over it from every aspect, drew down the most evident of his observations, which laid the very basic foundation, for him to establish Raygalla’s Mantra. But to continue teaching, which is his core, he has joined the Department of Journalism and Mass Communication at Manav Rachna International Institute of Research and Studies, Faridabad, in the capacity of an Assistant Professor teaching Media, Digital Marketing, Media Culture among others. His teaching methods are celebrated by his students across the country. He was also the National Trainer and Coordinator for the National Environment Youth Parliament 2022 under the patronship of Shri Dr N C Wadhwa, red IAS, Director-General, MREI, the youth parliament is hosted by Manav Rachna under the aegis of Paryavaran Sanrakshan Gathividhi at the Parliament House, New Delhi.
“In terms of education, I have trained numerous academicians comprising of teachers, principals and managerial staff. One thing I found common in every individual so far is, after a point of time in life, we tend to stop learning, which in-deed makes us stubborn and lethargic towards life. We often worry about future and forget to live the present. I see this isn’t changing for long now, thus, I also talk to people about life in various dynamics and try to cover different aspects of life,” he quipped.
All of these feathers in his cap, and a lot many more, Mr Raygalla is all of only 28 years, but with a very keen inclination into the field of academia. Elaborating on the same, he shared “Training teachers is something very close to my heart. I have been in the field of education all my life, at least most of my life. I know the odds of this profession. The problem is not with the system, nor with curriculum, the problem with people who get into this profession. Facilitation needs passion and a heart which is equipped to nurture souls. So, when I interact with teachers and principals, I often talk to them about the kind of problems they face in class. By taking their problems into play, I deconstruct their problem and help them identify the root cause for their problem. Most problems root cause was teacher itself.”
In an increasingly digital age, where the art of conversation is lost behind the façade of virtual keypads and electronic voice-notes, and a generation statistically haunted the most by the growing monster of mental health aggravations, and individuals becoming increasingly inept at problem solving, there lies one basic worrisome cause- lack of communication. We choose to escape a confrontation than engage headlong in it, assuming it is you vs me, rather than us vs the problem. “I believe in conversations as a medicine. We live in a world where we do not get people to talk to. We are so technology driven that we forgot the value and importance of human significance and touch. Soul grooming is the need of the hour and that is exactly what we focus upon. In any project we take up, we look at the soul as a being and help people in drawing a new perspective towards life. So far, we have trained about 8000 teachers and countless students,” shares Kalyan Raygalla.
The walk down memory lane also includes few figments of deeply heartfelt admiration, mutual respect, and profound good words. “Kalyan Raygalla is all into re-building the art of human interaction in the world of today that has lost the practice of empathy and compassion. As we all put our to-dos above presence, connection, and communication with each other, we don’t realize that the day-today meaningful conversations have already disappeared drastically. Under the tag ‘The Lost Art of Human Interaction’-monetization is wide-spread but Ray believes in putting zeal into the deal to give a feel”, says Ms Reena Singh, Career Counsellor at Hyderabad Public School, Begumpet.
“Raygalla is a man who centres his attention towards identifying the root cause of the problem, and genuinely dedicating himself to resolving it, albeit with the utmost empathy and understanding. He is a gem of a person, a fiercely loyal friend, and abeautifully stubborn, free spirited individual, a rather rare species, an obscure specimen, known as the empowered and empowering individual,” says M Anuradha, a parent of one of Raygalla’s interning students.
The golden figments adorning the walls of memory lane extend beyond just memoires left behind by satisfied clients and associates. Raygalla also has to his credit the Axaya Media Award by CHAI, International ICON Award by NAHF, TED talk at Aga Khan Academy, and TED MRCE, Best Book of Poetry by Author Pages (National Award) for his book titled ’Story Between The Truth and Lie’, Best English Language Professor of the Year at TPL Shiksha Awards (National Award), New Delhi, World Record in Training most number of tribal youth in Telangana, Model UN at Telangana Social Welfare Residential School, and being nominated for Padma Shri in the year 2021 all of which make him a stand apart.
In nostalgic retrospect of where it all began, Raygalla has to say, “My journey as a learned being started during my undergraduate days. I started to write and work as a Journalist during my undergraduate days. I was very much passionate towards Journalism. But as time went by, I realised the purpose of my life is not just to write, but to talk and educate people with what I have learned or acquired over a period of time. That is when I started teaching, or rather facilitating learning. Spent a few years in understanding the nuances of the field. I wanted to make more and a bigger impact of my being in this world. I started to train teacher’s in-order to help them become good facilitators. This started to work out well, in-order to stream line teacher training, I started Raygalla’s Mantra by incorporating training and development as a wing in the company, along with counselling and soul grooming. In the company there are no departments, I strongly believe that everything is interconnected when we deal with a being.”
