Aarti 2023
Fitting tribute to Rotarian restaurateur opens in India
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Underprivileged women and girls in a small town in India will be equipped with vital culinary skills thanks to a lasting legacy to Maidenhead Rotary Club member and restaurateur Himanshu Patel.
Himanshu, known to everyone as Harry, died from Covid-19 in February 2021, aged just 58. The long-serving Rotarian had run a number of restaurants in Maidenhead, most recently Gourmet Chicken in the town centre. 
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More than £2,500 was collected in his memory and as a fitting tribute has been used to set up Harry’s Kitchen at the Aarti Home and Women’s Centre in Kadapa, a small mining town in Andhra Pradesh, India.
The charity provides a home and education for orphaned, abandoned and abused children along with running training programmes for women in its community. A project close to Harry’s heart, Aarti is regularly supported by Maidenhead Rotary Club, and he had met representatives from the charity when they visited Maidenhead several years ago. Following delays caused by the pandemic, Harry’s Kitchen has now been formally inaugurated. A spokeswoman for the Aarti Home said: “With an aim to provide training to the women in the district, we have started training a batch of 30 women. In addition to training them in culinary skills, we are training them in various other livelihood skills like garment designing, basic computer skills, language skills, both local and English, starting a plant nursery, organic compost making, and housekeeping. “By imparting these skills, these women will be able to become micro-entrepreneurs or can seek jobs in the respective fields.” In addition, part of the half-acre site around Harry’s Kitchen has become ‘Harry’s Garden’, growing organic vegetables for the kitchen and to support nutrition and education about sustainability. |
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Aarti 2021-2022
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Throughout the difficulties of the Covid Pandemic, the staff and students at Aarti have continued to work tirelessly. Far away from any major city, with poor access to medical aid, Kadapa struggled to cope. Aarti, with its existing infrastructure and capabilities, then started an appeal to try to find oxygen to save lives in the wider local area. After intense fundraising, 108 oxygen concentrators were obtained and were put to much needed use in the local area. Two oxygen plants were ordered and constructed.
Oxygen being used to treat Covid patients
In addition to their oxygen campaign, teachers and staff supported the children in working from home while the school had to be closed. Maidenhead Rotary Club assisted financially with these projects and also sent additional funds to support the children in impoverished homes, as they were suffering from a lack of nutritious food while the school was closed.
Just when hope was rising that the local area would come through the pandemic, catastrophic floods and a cyclone hit this drought prone area of Kadapa. A dam burst and 145 people perished. Aarti reached out with flood relief to help the 800 families, who had lost everything. 
Cyclone and flood damage
Aarti giving flood relief
However, following the pandemic and the floods, Aarti continued to help their local community. 1,236 children had been orphaned! Aarti helped 470 Covid widows and their children. They received counselling and either short-term or long-term support, whichever was most appropriate. As sole parents, these mothers were given the means to earn a living and to provide for their families. It is not surprising that by rescuing both children and women, Aarti has become very highly regarded and influential in the community.
Below: Sewing machines for Covid widows 
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Covid widows received the means to support their children
The idea of a memorial to Harry was discussed with Aarti and it was agreed that the focus should be food, nutrition and culinary skills, as these were Harry’s passion as a successful restaurateur. The plan is already underway: At the Aarti Children’s Village, “Harry’s Farm” has been established, where organic vegetables are being grown to supply the new “Harry’s Kitchen”.
The Women’s Wellness Centre where “Harry’s Kitchen” will be situated
After understandable, repeated delays due to Covid and the cyclone, “Harry’s Kitchen” is currently being built in a new Women’s Wellness Centre in the town. This building is being renovated and will provide a discrimination-free zone, welcoming women from all religions, castes, backgrounds etc. It will be an area where they may come for help and where they will be free to disclose their problems and seek help and advice from experts in all areas, such as physical well-being, mental health, legal issues, financial difficulties, abuse etc.
The idea is to provide a new kitchen and cafeteria, “Harry’s Kitchen”, where training courses in nutrition and culinary skills can take place for both Aarti youngsters and local people. 
We may be somewhat disappointed that due to unprecedented circumstances, our goal to establish Harry’s memorial has not yet been fully achieved. However, despite all this, “Harry’s Farm” is up and running and the building work has now been resumed on “Harry’s Kitchen”. In addition, several Aarti students have started culinary training at a Bangalore college.
Quotes are currently being gathered for the kitchen equipment and if the disasters of Covid and the floods are not repeated, we hope to very soon see the successful culmination of our plans to commemorate our own Rotary member, Harry Patel:
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And a final word from Sandhya, Founder of Aarti:
“Food brings people together – to share, to be fed, not merely physically, but to be nourished in body, mind and soul, to form lasting bonds and to be inspired by “Harry’s Kitchen!”
“Food brings people together – to share, to be fed, not merely physically, but to be nourished in body, mind and soul, to form lasting bonds and to be inspired by “Harry’s Kitchen!”
Aarti in the Covid Pandemic
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2020/2021
Since the start of our relationship in 2012 with Aarti Home and School in Kadapa, Southern India, the Rotary Club of Maidenhead has been impressed by their tireless work in rescuing babies, girls and young women from abuse and abandonment, simply due to their gender. Aarti gives these children a home, an education and opportunities to become independent, self-supporting adults, who are now proving themselves to be valued members of society. |
107 oxygen concentrators arriving at Aarti
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As the Covid pandemic swept through India, Maidenhead Rotary Club continued to support Aarti in its endeavours to help its local community by making hygiene awareness banners, sanitation packs, Covid patient kits, and assembling food parcels for the most disadvantaged families. They also made face masks for frontline workers, whilst also adhering to home-schooling and supporting children, who live with their parents, but have little food and no means of learning at home.
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Aarti's women's co-operative was producing 1,000 masks a day for frontline workers
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Aarti's inspirational founder Sandhya Puchalapalli (centre) with girls from the home
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Aarti Children's Home and School
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September 2019
Stormwater Management - Onsite Development Update The club has supported Aarti to become self-sustainable by rainwater harvesting and grey water recycling. With rainfall at less than 750mm per annum, water is a vital and valuable resource. The water is collected in tanks, piped underground to a filtering system and then re-used eg. for the cultivation of vegetables. This farsighted conservation project should not only help to ease the huge financial burden for the Aarti community but also benefit the young people by teaching them the skills to grow their own fruits & vegetables, which will in turn enhance their diet & health for a successful future. |
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Previous history
Aarti Children's Home and School, Kadapa, Southern India
The Rotary Club of Maidenhead has been supporting projects to help Aarti since 2012. Abused, abandoned and orphaned children are given a home and an education by the charity. Aarti becomes their family for life and since the first child was rescued in 1992, these children have been flourishing, gaining qualifications, helping their younger “siblings” and moving out into the world as well informed, highly skilled young women. However, the charity does not stop there. The Aarti family has expanded its work by also supporting the local area, educating the children of impoverished families, training destitute women – often victims of gender discrimination and denied the most basic of rights, to give them work skills, enabling them to become independent and self-sufficient and therefore able to support their own children. Aarti also runs courses to raise awareness of good health, hygiene, women’s rights etc.
Prior to our first involvement in 2012, we had seen for ourselves the conditions in which the rescued children at Aarti were living. They were given love and care, but facilities were basic. Since the Rotary Club of Maidenhead decided to become involved, our fundraising efforts have provided school uniforms, furniture, equipment and toilets for the Aarti School.
Meanwhile, a new Children’s Village has been built, where the children now live in smaller family units, each with a “House Mother”. These House Mothers have all previously been girls at Aarti and provide a source of guidance and comfort for their younger “sisters”, who in turn form support networks for one another. The children no longer need to sleep on the floor, as we have also been able to provide beds and bedding.
The Rotary Club of Maidenhead has been supporting projects to help Aarti since 2012. Abused, abandoned and orphaned children are given a home and an education by the charity. Aarti becomes their family for life and since the first child was rescued in 1992, these children have been flourishing, gaining qualifications, helping their younger “siblings” and moving out into the world as well informed, highly skilled young women. However, the charity does not stop there. The Aarti family has expanded its work by also supporting the local area, educating the children of impoverished families, training destitute women – often victims of gender discrimination and denied the most basic of rights, to give them work skills, enabling them to become independent and self-sufficient and therefore able to support their own children. Aarti also runs courses to raise awareness of good health, hygiene, women’s rights etc.
Prior to our first involvement in 2012, we had seen for ourselves the conditions in which the rescued children at Aarti were living. They were given love and care, but facilities were basic. Since the Rotary Club of Maidenhead decided to become involved, our fundraising efforts have provided school uniforms, furniture, equipment and toilets for the Aarti School.
Meanwhile, a new Children’s Village has been built, where the children now live in smaller family units, each with a “House Mother”. These House Mothers have all previously been girls at Aarti and provide a source of guidance and comfort for their younger “sisters”, who in turn form support networks for one another. The children no longer need to sleep on the floor, as we have also been able to provide beds and bedding.