Twenty-one-year-old Chinlalchoi’s journey from a small town in Manipur to an apprenticeship at Taj West End, Bengaluru, shows how youth skilling opened a new opportunity for her. The eldest of four siblings in a farming family, she grew up amid limited opportunities, fear and uncertainty. After a friend shared a WhatsApp message about a youth skilling programme jointly run by The Art of Living, Tata STRIVE, IHCL and Assam Rifles, Chinlalchoi chose hospitality.
Through the training and The Art of Living’s Youth Leadership Training Programme (YLTP), she developed hospitality skills and gradually overcame her lack of confidence. Today, she earns enough to support herself, contributes to her parents’ household expenses and encourages other young people in Manipur to pursue opportunities worth working hard for.
A Childhood Shaped By Fear
The breakfast rush has just begun at Taj West End, Bengaluru. Among the hotel staff greeting guests is 21-year-old Chinlalchoi from Manipur. She smiles easily now, answers questions without hesitation and moves through the dining hall with a sense of self-assurance. A few years ago, she would have struggled to introduce herself to a stranger.
For years, Chinlalchoi measured every dream against one question: “Would a girl like me ever get that chance?” Growing up in a small town in Manipur, opportunities were few even in peaceful times. Her parents earned a living through farming, and whatever the family needed came from the fields they cultivated. As the eldest of four siblings, she understood early that every rupee mattered.
Then came the uncertainty that settled over the region. Neighbouring villages were burned. Her own village survived, but it stood on the frontline. Fear became part of everyday life. Nights were spent wondering what would happen next. Education continued wherever possible, but imagining a future beyond survival became difficult. Looking back, Chinlalchoi says she remembers little of her childhood except living in fear.
She enrolled for a Bachelor’s degree in her town, hoping to become a teacher eventually. It felt like the safest ambition she could imagine. But certainty was missing. She rarely spoke to people, avoided asking questions and kept mostly to herself. “I wasn’t confident at all. I used to be in my own shell,” she recalls.
Art Of Living Opens Doors
Life took a new turn when a friend forwarded her a WhatsApp message. It mentioned a youth skilling programme jointly run by The Art of Living in association with Tata STRIVE, IHCL and Assam Rifles.
Founded by Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, the globally renowned humanitarian leader, The Art of Living is a non-profit organisation working towards holistic human development in 182 countries. Tata STRIVE is the flagship skill-building initiative of the Tata Group for youth from disadvantaged communities.
Gurudev often says, “If self-confidence awakens in the individual, one is ready to do anything. This nation has to develop a new consciousness with new enthusiasm.”
As Chinlalchoi read through the list of courses, one word struck her: “Hospitality”. She had always been drawn to the sector. She saw hospitality as a field where every opportunity could offer a new experience and a chance to bring out the best in her personality.
She called her friend and asked about opportunities the programme could lead to and whether it could help her find a job.
Confidence Through YLTP
Chinlalchoi sat quietly among 17 youths, listening and learning as trainers discussed sector-specific skills, guest relations and communication, among other things. The training sessions were conducted inside the secure premises of the Assam Rifles.
At first, Chinlalchoi was uncomfortable speaking to fellow participants in the skilling programme. Slowly, that began to change. As part of The Art of Living’s Youth Leadership Training Program (YLTP), she practised yoga, breathing techniques such as Sudarshan Kriya and meditation.
“We practiced Sudarshan Kriya for about a week, and I started liking it because it made me feel refreshed and peaceful, especially after a tiring day,” she says.
These practices helped her manage stress, overcome self-doubt and find greater confidence in her own abilities. Group discussions, mock interview rounds and team activities gave her a chance to speak with people she barely knew. Laughter broke the silence as they practised team activities, solved tasks and learned to speak with confidence.
With each activity, she found herself speaking a little more freely and becoming less hesitant around strangers. Over time, this also helped her communicate more clearly and confidently. She started introducing herself to new people, participating in conversations and asking instructors questions whenever she did not understand something. The hesitation that had shaped much of her personality gradually gave way to curiosity.
Chinlalchoi worked hard throughout the training. She spent hours preparing for classes, learning the basics of hospitality and practising communicating with guests. This decision changed the direction of her life, not just because it guaranteed a more financially secure future, but because it allowed her to test herself in unfamiliar situations.
From Manipur To Bengaluru
Then came the day when she would find out where all that effort could take her.
She had been selected for an apprenticeship at the Taj West End in Bengaluru. The news took a moment to sink in. When her friends began shouting her name after the results were announced, she laughed, convinced they were pulling her leg. Then she checked her phone.
There it was, in black and white.
For someone who had once wondered where her life’s big opportunity would come from, this was a glimpse of how far she could go.
Bengaluru brought many firsts for Chinlalchoi. It was her first journey outside Manipur. Her first flight. Her first experience of working in a luxury hotel.
Today, Chinlalchoi earns enough to support herself. A part of it goes back home to help her parents buy vegetables and meet everyday household expenses. It isn’t a big amount, she says, but being able to contribute back home, a home in the throes of conflict and uncertainty, makes her feel slightly more useful to her family that she has left behind.
A Wider Skill Movement
Chinlalchoi is among the millions of youth whose lives have been transformed by a grassroots skill empowerment initiative envisioned by Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar.
The movement recognises that India’s demographic dividend can become its greatest strength when young people are equipped with skills, unshakable confidence and a sense of responsibility.
Through the Youth Leadership Training Programme (YLTP), launched in 1999, lakhs of rural youth have been empowered to become change-makers, leading thousands of development initiatives in their communities.
Alongside this, Art of Living’s skill-development initiatives have trained over 4 lakh people through hundreds of centres across 18 states, opening pathways to employment, entrepreneurship and sustainable livelihoods.
While getting a job has enabled Chinlalchoi to stand on her own feet, the training has meant much more to her life and personality. The biggest change, however, cannot be measured in money.
Finding Her Voice
The young woman who once avoided conversations now interacts confidently with guests from across the globe. From being someone hesitant and reclusive, she now speaks her mind. She can question authority when she needs to, a confidence she never had before.
Friends and family tell her she has become calmer, happier and far more confident than before.
She often tells young people back home about the training programme because she knows many are still searching for opportunities. Not shortcuts, she says, but opportunities worth working hard for.
Somewhere along the journey, employment became only one part of Chinlalchoi’s story. She didn’t just leave her village to find a job. She found a voice that had remained silent for years.
The Logical Indian’s Perspective
Amidst the din of stories of violence and human suffering, Chinlalchoi’s story from Manipur is briefly hopeful. Her journey shows how the opportunity to learn skills and build confidence can change the direction of a young person’s life. While employment has enabled her to stand on her own feet, her experience also shows that the biggest change cannot be measured in money. How can more young people in Manipur get opportunities worth working hard for?
