Tired of weekend parties, discotheques and pubs? Have aimless visits to the mall and the latest movies lost their charm?
Are you looking for something more meaningful? Something fun and challenging as well?
Then this weekend, join Harish Srinivasan and his friends at a farm near Chennai.
Like thousands of youngsters in the city, Harish has a regular job during weekdays.
But his weekends are anything but regular.
This 29-year-old is the founder of The Weekend Agriculturist, an informal group of enthusiastic youngsters, who offer free labour to small and marginal farmers on weekends.
"My plan is simple: offer free labour to the farmers, who cannot afford to hire help.
"I started a Facebook page outlining my mission and vision for the group. That was about three years ago. Today our group has nearly 5000 volunteers from all walks of life -- IT professionals, doctors, teachers, entrepreneurs, social activists and students," says Harish.
For founder Harish Srinivasan it all started after reading MoondramUlagaPor (Third World War), a novel by Tamil poet and lyricist Vairamuthu.
"Though I have no agricultural background, the plight of our farmers has always moved me. But it was only after reading MoondramUlagaPor that I was actually jolted into doing something.
"The book described in painful detail the untold sufferings of our farmers. I knew that I had to do something.
"We convinced some of the big, more educated farmers, who took us in and taught us some of the basics. We went back week after week until they realised that we really had their best interests at heart."
They spend their own money for travel and usually spend the night in open terraces, schools or small hostels.
The core group of volunteers is between the ages of 20-30, but there are older volunteers and some bring their families as well.
Harish lets him know in advance when the group will be coming. He identifies the farmers who need help most.
They groups are of 10-20 and they work for two days from 6:30 in the morning to about 4 in the evening, doing whatever needs to be done.
"Vegetables like brinjal, chilly, or tomatoes can be grown very easily. I myself harvest about three or four kilos of brinjal every month in my garden. Growing your own food is a totally exhilarating experience," Satish claims.
The volunteers are encouraged to buy produce from the farmers.
"These poor farmers sell their produce to middlemen, who buy for as low as Rs 5-6 per kg and sell for Rs 40-50 in the city. We are currently working to get corporates interested in building a direct link between the farmers and consumers, to help farmers get a better rate for their produce," says Harish.
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