It all stared in March 2018 when I was fully engrossed with one my projects, But life, as we all know, loves to throw curve balls and this one had hit me hard. As a result of a sleepless night of howling and shrieking with back pain, I found myself at the hospital next morning. The look on the General Physician's face had got me little worried, but it was the orthopaedic surgeon's office where the news finally dropped. After multiple X-Ray tests and an MRI, I was diagnosed with scoliosis. The pain and agony I felt at that very moment was nothing compared to what I felt on about hearing my probable cure options. Either I could choose to wear a back-brace for 16 hours a day, for 2-4 years, that would prevent me from normal activities like playing table tennis, or I could choose to undergo a surgery where a metallic rod would be nailed to my spine to keep it in position, which in-turn would protect my appearance but cause immense pain & prevent me from any physical activity thereafter. I won't be able to do something as simple as bending down to pick up an item, if I went through this procedure. While the doctor was explaining all these options, all I could think was, "Why Me?". This fear pushed me into a frenzy of intense googling on webmd.com after I came out of the doctor's chamber & sat on a bench when I met Mr. Satyapal Singh Baghel. Little did I knew then, that an hour long candid conversation with an ex-convict turned theatre artist on a casual note in one Delhi hospital bench on a chilly winter morning was about to have a major impact on my perspective in life.

"Has the mind-set of people changed regarding ex-convicts?" I asked, as we kept walking towards the exit door drawing an end to our hour long conversation, it was interesting trying to understand human behaviour from a different perspective altogether, something which I had never thought about previously.

"There was a time when people would be wary about accepting or workings with ex-convicts, but now things are gradually changing" continued Satyapal, with hope in his eyes that someday even he would be able to make himself a contributing but whole-heartedly-accepted part of this society, once again. "Even if it didn't, it doesn't matter to me anymore, as long as I know I am doing the right thing. Many of the ex-convicts now run their own business and are settled in life. Acceptance comes with time. It doesn't happen in a day. There are many who still introduce me as, 'Here's someone who served a nine-year sentence', and ask me if I felt bad about the opening line! I tell them that's the reality. But then it's been more than a decade since I came out of the correctional home and one has to see what I did in these 10 years. To me, these years and the coming many years are more important than the nine years I left behind. That is not to say I will forget those nine years because I believe if you forget your mistakes, you tend to do them again" Satyapal stopped and shook hands before we parted our ways.

Pondering about the past & current scenario of ex-convicts who are still struggling to find a place in our society, I started reading about various programs & initiatives undertaken by multiple organisations (both governmental & non-governmental) and how the gradual shift is actually taking place which Satyapal was mentioning the other day.

South Asia's largest prison, Tihar jail, houses some 12,000 inmates. Located approximately 3 km to the west of Delhi in the surrounding area of Hari Nagar, the prison is styled as a correctional institution. Its main objective is to convert its inmates into ordinary members of society by providing them with useful skills, education, and respect for the law. It aims to improve the inmates' self-esteem and strengthen their desire to improve. There is also a prison industry within the walls, manned wholly by inmates.

Among all of these, the most interesting part is The Tihar School of Art, an institution set up inside Jail Number 4 in 2016, to encourage prisoners take up art, both as a means of reformation and rehabilitation. The Tihar School of Art is affiliated to IGNOU and offers diplomas to aspirants. The school had started from a quarter inside jail no. 4 in 2016 when Superintendent Rajesh Chauhan, who had seen prisoners painting in their free time inside prison, suggested starting a school of art. Having started with only 10 students, the school has since grown stronger & has more than 150 enrolled prisoners today. Among the works displayed in the school gallery, one can find paintings ranging from modern art to scenery and portraits.

Tihar has been well-known for their stance on inmate reformation; all possible efforts are taken to ensure that prisoners leave the facility with new skills, hope and potentially a better outlook on life. This continued dedication to reform and belief that inmates deserve a second chance at life after their release bodes well for the future of India's prison system and I couldn't bear to see that our own society have always been dismissing such talents because of the social stigma associated with prison. It has always been seen as punishment rather than reformation & has triggered societal misbalances owing to feudal thoughts which for so long has been a vortex of hopelessness and despair.

Without such institution, inmates will struggle to find a purpose and will tend to reoffend - what I can describe as "going over the walls". Time spent working in the community before release significantly reduces the chance a prisoner will reoffend and Tihar Correctional Institution is paving the right way to re-inforce faith in humanity which will surely help our mankind for years to come. And therefore, a Second Chance is a must.

Around August 2019, I made my very first visit to the Tihar jail complex as a part of an experiential learning project with Yflo. This visit was very enriching & triggered memories buried deep in my subconscious that had resulted from my own past experiences. I went specifically inside the Art School and met Kamlesh Singh (25), an inmate who had managed to earn around Rs. 15 thousand in the last nine months and his colleague, Abdul Qadri (26), who made merely Rs. 9 thousand during the same time - a significant but small amount considering prisoners are paid a daily wage of Rs. 171 for skilled work and Rs. 107 for unskilled labour as per existing wage rules.

I could see the tremendous zeal & passion which these inmates were filled with, but at the same time were also surrounded by the social stigma associated with being a prisoner. It was for such attitude that these human beings were looking at life as a socially secluded zone and were aspiring to be indifferent than all of us. Wondering about the existing situations, I was back to the hospital chamber psychologically where my movement was restricted once upon a time, had I not taken different steps after consulting a London based clinic & gradually started to get better of myself via multiple exercises as well as activities.

It took me few months to study the various touch points and by April 2019, I had finalised the blueprint for my next project viz. Second Chances through which I would attempt to provide these skilled inmates a new platform & in turn raise awareness to bridge the gap of existing social stigma, for their smooth amalgamation, way back into their own society.

After consulting Mr. Rajesh Chauhan (Superintendent in Tihar Jail), I got my project approved at Kajaria Ceramics Ltd. as a part of their multiple CSR initiatives for 2019-20. Thereafter, around 50 tiles were provided by Kajaria Ceramics Ltd. to the enrolled students of the Tihar School of Art in May 2019, which they could draw according to their own free imagination. In the meantime I could garner further support from Tribal Arts Foundation New Delhi, with whom I co-seeded the idea of raising some funds via online sale of these hand painted tiles and providing the artistes a platform to showcase their skillset to the whole world.

By last week of July, the skeletal structure & coding of secondchances.in was complete and around 5th of August 2019, I went back to the Tihar School of Art upon receiving a call from Mr. Chauhan. I must confess that I was mesmerised after glancing through the 50 tiles, all of which were painted in the most beautiful manner I could ever imagine. I could not control my emotions and a drop of tear rolled down my cheek only to re-ascertain my faith & belief upon these super talented individuals. Immediately I thanked all the members of the school & came back, only to go back after 48 hours with a photographer friend and clicked pictures of all the 50 painted pieces for uploading on secondchances.in. I decided to upload them & launch the online web-sale on 15th August 2019 when India celebrates its 73rd Independence Day. Tribal Arts Foundation fully extended their support in this noble cause and by 10th September 2019, majority of these hand-painted tiles were sold raising close to Rs. 3 lakh.

The movement is set to expand with the success, which has not only encouraged the participation of inmates wanting to contribute for the project but also a huge leap towards the final goal of what we aspire to change. Though for some, wielding a paintbrush was an entirely novel experience, the results spoke for themselves. Creativity burst forth from every seam with depictions of everything from monochromatic barbed wire fences to pink butterflies serving as metaphors of their lost freedom. This project demonstrated unequivocally the benefits of having an artistic outlet.

Ram Kumar, aged 24, said he had to paint a portrait of his sister to convince his family that he was earning while staying behind bars. "I told them that I would send them a cheque for Rs. 20,000. They were worried & could not believe it in the first thought". Kumar said it was fate that brought him to the art school. Arrested when he was a student four years ago, Kumar said he was depressed during the first six months of his stay in jail. "My friends in jail forced me to join art classes. We weren't getting paid then. Perhaps it was fate that I realised my calling is in the art world. So far, I have earned Rs. 24,000 with the support of secondchances.in"

Hamid Khan, who is the senior most among the painters, helps amateurs learn the art. Apart from painting, Khan helps in cooking. Currently, one of the highest earners at the art school, Khan said he will be saving to pay his lawyer. "I will save Rs. 30,000 to pay my lawyer. We are not hard-core criminals. We have come here because of some circumstances. My elder brother is a farmer in Andhra Pradesh. He was surprised when I told him that I am earning behind bars," he said.

"Now we have decided to create an e-gallery of our own & we will keep associating with noble initiatives like secondchances.in for voluntary fund raising. Prisoners who are interested in visual arts and painting can come and study here. We will take this further, one step at a time. The core idea of engagement and to e-sell the works of art will surely help in going a long way." said Mr. Chauhan.

The real satisfaction came when I went back to the Tihar School of Arts and gave back the entire sum of Rs. 3 lakh for welfare development of the art school & its participants. I could feel a renewed confidence & unrelenting hope for the future that my small contribution had given them. They were all proud and I sincerely hope that this endeavour will be able to contribute to the wellbeing of our society, in order to gradually help us transform towards an integrated societal culture imbibed with a holistic approach, which has always been the foundation of human mankind.