Karthika has been involved with Reality Gives for five years, but her first interaction with the Community Centre was somewhat by chance. “I was working at a clinic in Dharavi and someone came in wearing a Reality Gives t-shirt. I got talking to them and before I knew it I was studying at the Centre.”

After completing her course, Karthika was quickly accepted to become a part of the Community Centre staff team and over the years she has worked her way to become the Assistant to the Head of Office. “The work that the Community Centre does is really important,” explains Karthika. “People who come here are free to learn in a safe space and in their own way. There’s no age or gender discrimination, everyone is welcome.”

Spending time working at the Community Centre has also been a valuable experience for Karthika herself. “This place is like my family,” she says, “the staff here support me whatever my problems might be and I always feel like I’m part of a great team. When I walk around Dharavi many ex-students recognise me and stop to say hello which is a very nice feeling.”

Karthika’s ambition is to take up a job in the Police, “the Community Centre taught me so many IT skills and my job at the moment lets me practice them every day. I’d like to take these skills to a role working in intelligence at the Police, that’s my dream.”