We are a small community-driven NGO with a simple dream: to make sure that every child, especially every girl, has the chance to learn, grow, and stand on his or her own feet.

Yet, no matter where life took him, his heart remained in Darjeeling. That love for home quietly grew into a dream within his daughter, Roshni, who spent her childhood absorbing her parents’ stories and passion for their homeland. Working with foreign travellers, she too felt a calling to give something back to the village that had given their family its roots.

That dream took its first steps in 2004, when the family welcomed a small group of international volunteers to Bijanbari. At first, the locals were amused and friends in Darjeeling would often ask how could they possibly do in good old ‘Bijan-boring’as they jokingly called Bijanbari. But soon, something beautiful unfolded. Children began flocking to the old Trekker’s Hut where the volunteers stayed, eager to play, laugh, and learn. 

Roshni: ‘The children’s curiosity was boundless and it dawned upon me that we could use this to instil the importance of education in the children. As it is children seemed to prefer spending time frolicking by the river instead of going to school. Teacher absenteeism, lack of interest, lack of attention by parents were some of the factors. They had no one to love them, listen to them and show them the way. Slowly and steadily, the focus shifted towards education. The children themselves told me of how they would love to be in school, wear nice a uniform with shiny shoes and carry a nice & clean bag. Basic things like getting a paper, pencil, colour pencils/ crayons, eraser etc were a luxury for them. After talks with the volunteers, I decided to start the Sponsorship program. 

In the first decade, we used profits from our travel business to support these children, with volunteers joining in to help. For a long time, we hoped to carry the weight themselves without seeking outside assistance. But by 2015-16, it became clear that the need was growing and costs had risen beyond what we could manage by ourselves especially as the children has to move to the nearest town/city to further their education. What began as a family dream, nurtured with love and sacrifice, evolved into a community movement. And thus, the Unbound Futures Foundation was born-an organization built from the ground up, driven not by outside agendas, but by the hopes of children, the strength of a community, and a family’s unwavering love for their home. The project was thus named, ‘Project Shiksha’ and it aimed to fill the gap for the children of the region.’