08.04.2026

S: You know, I was always taught when I was growing up that charity began at home. I have family that are poor in India. So the money always went to them, not to ‘causes’.

A: Seems to be a sensible thing to do, to send the money back to the family. After all, who else cares about them?

S: But yet, causes do exist. So, I cheated. Instead of volunteering money, I volunteered my time, which is free. I volunteered to help all the causes that I believed in. I volunteered in reading clubs for the socially isolated during Covid. I volunteered in after school homework clubs for underprivileged children. I taught English to refugees and migrants. I volunteered in arts organisations, to work on the exposure of Japanese art and art about plants and flowers. I volunteered in a charity for Hindi film music and to spread Indian culture. I volunteer at Kew Gardens, in the art gallery and as a tour guide giving tours in the gardens. I volunteered in the Witness Service in the courts. I volunteer with an organisation that lobbies governments to increase foreign aid spending.

A: You are a busy man and you are socially committed.

S: It counts for nothing. It is always worth saying that. But you know, all this volunteering is never enough. There is so much to do in this world. And yesterday, after considerable reluctance, I decided to give money to a charity. The WWF. To help the poor animals.

A: What was the basis of this decision?

S: I believe that we should all try to save the world in our own way. I am not trained in this field. I am studying Biology but I cannot do anything else much with all the work, study and volunteering that I am already committed to. But my money can do something. So I am giving to them every month. It is time to make all of that money work.

A: The next plan?

S: Investing in sustainable projects.

A: You are about to become a businessman?

S: I am already a businessman with my own business. I am a professional photographer and run a small photography business. But the thought of just making money for its own sake disgusts me. That is why everything has to have a social dimension.

A: Why does just making money disgust you?

S: Because I am Punjabi. I come from the Sikh community. We are heroes. The world looks up to us. And therefore, we cannot become greedy. We are not a Trump who only has greed, selfishness, arrogance and hate. We have altruism, community spirit, humility and love. That is who we are.

A: Give and keep on giving.

S: I am endless. I can keep on giving and giving. And I am generous at heart. Because wealth is not what you have in your pocket. It is wealth of the heart that makes us prosperous in this world. I tell myself one thing: you have to put your money where your mouth is. All that training in thrift has to give way to philanthropy because now I am settled in life and it is the right thing to do. Charity begins at home but it continues out into the world. Money is badly needed to build the future. And I have money. Nothing is worth more than one’s own conscience.