Mumbai Rotarians light up lives with solar energy
On October 30, 2024, the iconic Gateway of India in Mumbai became the canvas for a breathtaking art installation titled Field of Dreams: A Pathway to a Brighter Future. This awe-inspiring display featured 1,996 handcrafted clay solar-powered flower lamps, each symbolising hope, innovation, and the promise of a greener, more sustainable future,” says an excited Lata Desai, community service director of the Rotary Club of Bombay Juhu Beach, RID 3141.
She described to Rotary News a game-changing and transformative project undertaken by her club (with 65 members, of which more than half are women), to make available solar energy to underprivileged groups in Maharashtra and Gujarat, in the process enhancing Rotary’s public image, through three major initiatives. These include the club’s partnership with Porsche India, Liter of Light India Chapter and Power Pack, to put up a dazzling art show at Mumbai’s historic monument, a hands-on workshop for schoolchildren and women, and distribution of solar lamps in tribal and other villages in the two states.
The solar lamps are not merely a source of light, but a lifeline that enables children to study, families to engage in day-to-day activities and communities to thrive despite erratic power supply.
The genesis of the dazzling art show at the Gateway of India lies in Porche wanting to create an environmental buzz around the launch of its EV (electric vehicle) model in India. To focus attention on sustainable energy sources and raise awareness about the environment, they chose the theme of solar lamps, and contacted Illac Diaz who has popularised the concept of solar bulbs (known as bottle bulbs which use solar energy for lighting homes during night — see box) in the Philippines. But since Diaz doesn’t work in India, he contacted his friend Viraaj Doshee who works on renewable energy in India. “As Viraaj is my son’s friend too, he contacted me and asked if our Rotary club would be interested in joining as a partner in this event as he knew about the workshops we had done earlier for schoolchildren and local artisans for making clay lamps.”
RC Bombay Juhu Beach saw this as a huge opportunity and embraced the partnership invite. “Actually, both Viraaj and Diaz had come to my workshop where I was teaching children from underprivileged families in a school at Vile Parle in Mumbai on how to make lamps using solar power. This was in Oct 2024, and it was hosted by our Rotary club with the aim to educate the next generation about renewable energy solutions. This workshop was done in partnership with Diaz’ Liter of Light and Doshee’s Power Pack.”
Adds club president Mansi Thakker, “This workshop saw 100 students from Vidhyanidhi School for underprivileged children learning to assemble solar study lamps. This engaging experience not only imparted technical knowledge about solar energy but also sparked a sense of responsibility and advocacy in the students. Our District Governor Chetan Desai attended this event, highlighting the essential link between education and sustainability in shaping a bright future for the next generation, and turning the youngsters into ambassadors for a cleaner, greener world.”
100 schoolchildren learnt to assemble solar study lamps. This experience not only imparted technical knowledge about solar energy but also sparked a sense of responsibility and advocacy in the students.
Returning to the Gateway event, Lata explains that originally Porsche India wanted to place its EV model — Macan Electric — at the venue but due to a recent murder of a politician in Mumbai raising security concerns, the auto major was not able to get permission for such a display. So it was decided to illustrate the theme of clean energy by illuminating this historic landmark of the city by lighting up nearly 2,000 clay lamps in an artistic formation. “Priced at ₹3,000 each and created by local artisans, the lamps were not just a work of art, but a statement of environmental consciousness. This was also officially registered by the Guinness Book of World Records; the installation captured global attention, serving as a visual testament to the power of renewable energy, and a powerful reminder that every small step can contribute to a larger, more sustainable world,” says Lata, who has been elected the club’s president for 2026–27.
It was a proud moment for the Rotarians from the club, as 15 of its members were present at the event along with 15 students. “Rotary got a huge boost to its public image as clips of Porsche’s documentary on this event were beamed throughout the world on its various portals, as well as through social and traditional media. Their marketing head from Germany was here and they highlighted the fact that the lamps are made from clay and the majority of them were crafted by women artists. Not only that, they also chose us as their distribution partners.”
I am also working with Diaz on the idea of doing a much bigger project with plastic bottles, and want to involve clubs from all over India.
– Lata Desai, Community Service Director, RC Mumbai Juhu Beach
The corporate spent over ₹58.95 lakh on the project of making these lamps, and “our club also raised over ₹80,000 required for transportation and the training. It also took on the task of distributing lamps worth ₹41 lakh in tribal areas of Maharashtra and Gujarat. That project took over three months to execute. The remaining 100 lamps will be distributed to Class 11–12 students of an institution we are working with. They are living in slum areas and need solar energy. Moreover, they are doing electrical courses, so it is important to teach them something about solar energy,” she added.
Sharing details of the solar lamps worth ₹48 lakh the club members had distributed in power-deficient areas, Lata said that the first phase of distribution took place at the Sai Baba Vidyalalya in Haloli village in Palghar district of Maharashtra. Adds club president Mansi, “This is a small village near a mountain, over three hours’ drive from Mumbai, and there is often electricity outage here and during rains power supply fails totally.”
Another set of 75 lamps were distributed in an ashram in a village in Vadodara, Gujarat, where because of frequent power failure and darkness, one of the inmates had been bitten by a poisonous snake recently.
We make sure that we give solar-powered lamps to students, providing them with a reliable light source for their studies.
Lata, who has done a lot of community service even before she joined Rotary five years ago, adds, “All these places were selected after a lot of hard work, as there is so much of need everywhere for energy. I’ve personally visited many such areas, and we have chosen places where the need is most dire. And we make sure that we give solar-powered lamps to students, providing them with a reliable light source for their studies. In Tamsai village, Palghar, where power outage is common, 27 additional lamps were distributed to local residents. The support from the Rotary Club of Manor Highway was crucial to the success of this project.”
She adds that to the recipients, “the solar lamps are not merely a source of light, but a lifeline that enables children to study, families to engage in day-to-day activities and communities to thrive despite erratic power supply. The joy and gratitude expressed by the recipients and school principals alike were overwhelming, and for us, it underscored the initiative’s profound impact.”
In conclusion, Mansi adds, “The Porsche documentary captured the transformative effects of RCBJB’s efforts to change lives of underprivileged people, while spreading the message of sustainability far and wide and driving positive change. Our commitment to empowering communities through sustainable solutions remains steadfast. This collaboration with Porsche, Liter of Light and Power Pack marks a defining moment in the journey toward building a more resilient, environmentally conscious future. Through collective action, unwavering dedication, and the shared vision of a brighter tomorrow, our club continues to illuminate lives, one solar lamp at a time.”
From a plastic bottle to a clay lamp
Illac Diaz is a climate hero and a social entrepreneur whose NGO Liter of Light “has already helped 382,000 Filipinos, and 690,000 people throughout the world, to get out of energy poverty,” says his website. This NGO was born from an original idea by Alfredo Moser from Brazil in 2002, who developed the concept of using plastic bottles to give natural lighting to households in areas where there was no stable electric supply. The basic idea of the ‘solar bottle bulb’ as it was called, was further developed by Diaz and converted into a local entrepreneur business model in the Philippines. This bulb uses a 1.5-litre-plastic water bottle filled with water and bleach (to prevent algae from growing in the water) to households and schools in areas with little or no electricity.
These solar bottle bulbs are installed on the roof of homes and can refract sunlight to light up a room. The project’s innovation lies in its utilisation of cheap, durable and readily available material to produce bright natural lighting enabling the urban poor to have access to an affordable, environmentally friendly long-term alternative to electric light for use during the day.
In order to help the idea to grow sustainably, Diaz implemented a “local entrepreneur” business model whereby bottle bulbs are assembled and installed by local people, who can earn a small income for their work.
Mumbai Rotarian Lata Desai adds that Diaz himself later devised the clay lamp idea and this is what has been embraced by her club for its various projects. “This clay lamp gives power for about six hours and we also distribute a plate with it which can be kept out in the sunlight to recharge the solar lamp. I am also working with Diaz on the idea of doing a much bigger project with plastic bottles, and want to involve clubs from all over India so that this can be area transformational project.”
