Vikram Rai joined “The Thing With This One Is” podcast with Ram Deshpande. Vikram is the President of Bangalore Apartments’ Federation (BAF). He also has his own healthtech startup called Vitor Health. In this episode, we focused on Vikram’s work with the BAF.

Urban living in India has transformed over the last couple of decades. Whether we live in apartments or independent houses, there is a sharing of resources that happens. That leads to rules and regulations, which when are flouted there are conflicts. Most places have Resident Welfare Associations or RWAs or societies to take care of these conflicts and ensure a proper living environment. In Bengaluru, all these RWAs have an umbrella body which is the Bengaluru Apartments Federation, led by Vikram.

In this podcast, Vikram has described how BAF

- began and grew on the back of citizens’ agitations

- is not just about agitations though but effectively represents residents’ concern and solves the problems by collaborating with the government, civic bodies, and other entities

- has handled multiple issues in the past and what its current focus areas are

- is also a ready resource for all information needed for better urban living. This includesresources on a range of topics including rooftop solar, water connection, STPs, common area electricity, fire safety, workers training, and many more. Everything is available on BAF’s website and its app.

While many serious topics have been addressed by Vikram, funny yet important topics emanating from RWA or society WhatsApp groups have also been discussed. No topic is off limit. Pets, lifts, parking, business promotions, and many others.

BAF is an excellent example for other cities to follow. Vikramand others at BAF are available to share their expertise with folks from othercities.

Follow Vikram Rai:

X - https://x.com/raizerius

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/raizerius/

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/raivikram/

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/rai.vikram/

Follow Bangalore Apartments’ Federation (BAF)

YouTube Page : https://www.youtube.com/bafbangalore

Insta Handle : https://www.instagram.com/bafbangalore/

X Handle : https://x.com/bafblr

FB Page :https://www.facebook.com/BangaloreApartmentsFederation/

LinkedIn Page :https://www.linkedin.com/company/bangalore-apartments-federation/

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Chapters

00:00Intro and sneak peek

04:40 Podcast starts

07:30 How was the Bangalore Apartments Federation formed

14:18 How BAF grew as an umbrella body representing interestsof lakhs of people

19:30 The thing about ‘every vote matters’

21:33 The people of BAF, their corporate professionalapproach, and the structure of BAF

29:45 The thing with Bengaluru

32:58 BAF has an app and it has a lot of useful information

34:22 BAF’s work with Horticultural Producers' CooperativeMarketing and Processing Society (HOPCOMs)

36:43 BAF’s multiple programs – teaching Kannada, MoU withtraffic police, sale of treated water, overall water management, helping newRWAs with many complicated processes

42:40 Training and education of RWA staff, workers, and committeemembers; collab with IIM-B

46:05 The thing with building compliance requirements

48:38 BAF’s work on climate and sustainability issues; theHasiru program

52:12 Issues from RWA WhatsApp groups

53:07 Pets and other animals

58:25 Lifts

1:05:01 Parking

1:07:05 Workers making noise

1:08:09 Trash clearance

1:10:26 Shoes in the hallway

1:14:06 Promoting businesses on WhatsApp groups

1:16:12 Kids

1:17:34 Fire hazard

1:18:32 The thing with lack of courtesy

1:19:55 RWA committee members fighting on WhatsApp; how BAFdoes dispute resolution

1:23:30 RWA WhatsApp providing material to standup comedians

Sattva Consulting founders, Srikrishna Sridhar Murthy, Rathis Balakrishnan, and Aarti Mohan, joined “The Thing With This One Is” podcast with Ram Deshpande. They started Sattva Consulting over a decade ago and continue to drive impact by working with clients and partners across corporate social responsibility (CSR), philanthropy, non-profits, social enterprises, government bodies and multilateral agencies. Their areas of work include climate action, quality education, food security, agriculture, gender equality, healthcare, inclusion, livelihoods for economic growth, clean water & sanitation, and many other areas.Krishna, Rathish, and Aarti have demonstrated exemplary leadership in building an organization that is not only driving impact in India but is also going global now. Sattva Consulting is not the usual consulting firm that just provides plans for business problems. They are involved with execution of the plans and also with driving and measuring impact. Started by these batchmates from BITS Pilani, Sattva Consulting is now over 400-people strong organisation with not only a very impressive list of clients but also a diverse portfolio of services & products. Sattva Consulting is a leading impact and CSR consulting firm in India and is considered a leading reliable source of data and knowledge in the domain of impact. In this podcast, the founders of Sattva Consulting discuss how they started the company, how they grew it, and how they are now planning a future with significant impact. They have also shared their views on what impact means and what it takes to drive social impact on a consistent basis. Discussion inlcuded multiple relevant topics such as CSR in India, attitude of young people towards impact driving work, role of the government, and what excites the team about the future. Krishna, Rathish, and Aarti have been devoted to activities that drive social impact from their early corporate days. Even after decades of experience among them, the enthusiasm and excitement for impact work is still clearly visible. They also share an enviable bond as old friends which brings clarity among themselves towards work matters.There are a number of lessons to be learnt from the work done by the founders of Sattva Consulting. Viewers and listeners of this podcast can expect to learn interesting points about entrepreneurship, business growth with clear vision, developing and maintaining trust-based relationships, running a large organisation with an ambition to go global, and above all driving social impact at every step of the way. Chapters00:00 Intro05:25 Origin story – how theatre, dance, journalism, and volunteering built the foundation of Sattva15:05 The Thing with setting up a formal for-profit entity called Sattva Consulting and becoming full-time founders19:55 The Thing about answering “what do you really do”21:48 The Thing about the first client and initial work that set Sattva Consulting on course30:48 Developing the pitch for impact consulting with every engagement35:35 Timeline of growth of Sattva Consulting40:46 The thing about the CSR law in India47:36 Why companies do good52:24 The thing about structuring and running a large organisation 59:50 The thing about trust among founders1:06:36 What can a young person expect while working at Sattva Consulting1:11:16 Role of the government in driving social impact1:13:54 What are Sattva founders positive about in the near future? How’s the mahoul?1:18:53 BTS and bloopersEpisode 4 credits Guests: Srikrishna Sridhar Murthy, Rathish Balakrishnan, and Aarti MohanHost: Ram Deshpande Photographed, Edited, and Directed by: Kedar Gavane Title concept and music created by: Ram Deshpande Location: Sattva Consulting, Bengaluru, India