MAM
Humans of Bombay celebrates ten years with ‘Realign’
Mumbai: Humans of Bombay, one of the storytelling platforms renowned for capturing inspiring stories from diverse individuals celebrated its ten anniversary on 29 January 2024. Commencing its legacy in Mumbai, over the past decade, the platform has expanded to cover all Indian cities and connect with people across the globe through the power of storytelling. With a community of over 5M followers and a diverse pan-India audience, HOB chronicles stories ranging from local tea stalls to decoding the journeys of India’s foremost leaders like Ratan Tata and Narendra Modi.
The platform is committed to capturing the brighter side of human experiences, delving into complex subjects such as domestic violence, homosexuality, sex work, and drug abuse. This milestone not only marks a decade-long strive to championing India’s exceptional stories, but also signifies the platform’s dedication to making important conversations accessible to a wider audience.
The journey has been extremely rewarding, achieving numerous milestones, including raising funds for individuals such as Ali Bhatt, a Kashmiri carpet weaver wrongfully imprisoned for 23 years, a young girl from the Kalbelia tribe, and a 14-year-old aspiring pilot. In addition to sharing inspiring narratives, HOB has collaborated with brands like Dove, Amazon, WhatsApp, OLA and Hindustan Unilever, to further showcase the achievements and success of ordinary people. The Suvidha Centre, a CSR initiative by Hindustan Unilever, collaborated with HOB highlighting stories of individuals benefiting from dignified sanitation, generating positive responses and increasing social media awareness. Beyond these online initiatives, the platform extends its influence through various channels, including a white-label agency, YouTube shows like ‘How The Hell Did I Do It’ and ‘The Humans of Bombay Show’.
Looking ahead, HOB is gearing up for its first large offline event, the ‘Bombay Storytelling Festival,’ scheduled for later this year. The festival aims to bring online stories to an offline space, offering unique experiences like the human library, panel discussions, open mics, live music performances, food stalls, and interactive installations. Alongside this HOB now has plans to diversify further into long form content as well.
The platform is now diving deep alongside their storytelling approach, with ‘Realign’, a new venture that serves as an immersive experience, exploring a unique intersection of science, spirituality, and wellness. ‘Realign’ stands on three pillars, ‘listen,’ ‘learn,’ and ‘live,’ offering a podcast with insightful conversations, courses that help you align life, and creative community based experiential events, to provide a comprehensive platform and community to Realign.
The launch of ‘Realign’ marks a new venture expanding towards diving deep into holistic narratives and guiding people towards a better life. The first leg of ‘Realign,’ the podcast, is now live. With each episode, listeners are invited to partake in transformative conversations with experts, thought leaders, and visionaries who add up to one’s personal growth. Patrons can anticipate engaging conversations with notable guests such as Shikhar Dhawan, Zepto founders Aadit and Kaivalya Vohra, and humanitarian and spiritual leader Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar.
On 13 January, 2024, the 3 Pillar of Realign – Live, was launched with their Manifestation edition. The event focused on the topic of manifestation conducted by Karishma Mehta and specialist Dr Karishma Ahuja. The 3-hour event was a mix of conversations, a workshop and a bringing together of like-minded individuals. It saw a wonderful turn out that was a diverse range of people from 18 to 60 years of age of whom some had flown in from different parts of the country with the vision and goal to Realign.
A glimpse of the first event is presented here.
Humans of Bombay CEO Karishma Mehta reflects on the journey, stating, “One thing that binds us together is inspiring real-life stories. And in the past ten years of Humans of Bombay, we have believed in the thought strongly. As we look back with gratitude, it’s empowering to see how the platform has created a sense of belonging and resonated with millions of hearts. In the future, our goal remains the same – to unify humans with authentic stories. We are also excited to introduce new avenues, the ‘Bombay Storytelling Festival,’ and much more, as we embark on the next chapter of storytelling. While these 10 years we have focused on the going wide with our stories and we continue to do that, we now bring to you Realign which is a whole venture about Diving deep into Science, spirituality & Well being”
Celebrating a decade of impactful storytelling, Humans of Bombay (HOB) remains steadfast in its commitment to positive change. Humans of Bombay, pledges to explore new ways of storytelling that uplifts and inspires. Realign, HOB’s latest venture, is a testament to giving back and empowering the community to lead better lives. In this next chapter, Humans of Bombay continues with its mission, weaving narratives that resonate with the essence of humanity.
Brands
Ather Energy doubles service network to 500 centres nationwide
EV maker scales support alongside growth to keep riders on the road
MUMBAI: Ather Energy is quietly building more than just scooters. It is building the backbone to keep them running.
The electric two-wheeler maker has expanded its service network to 500 authorised centres across India, nearly doubling its footprint in a year from 277. The move mirrors its growing retail presence and signals a clear focus on one often overlooked part of EV ownership, what happens after the purchase.
From the outset, Ather has prioritised service support in every city it enters, aiming to make ownership as smooth as the ride itself. Its Gold Service Centres bring in upgraded customer lounges, modern equipment and processes designed to make servicing more transparent and reliable.
Speed, too, is part of the pitch. Through its ExpressCare initiative, riders can get periodic maintenance done in about an hour, now available across 82 centres, turning what used to be a chore into a quick pit stop.
Ather Energy chief business officer Ravneet Singh Phokela said, “Crossing 500 service centres is an important milestone as we scale across the country. Reliable after-sales support is central to the ownership experience, and our focus remains on consistent service quality and accessibility.”
The expansion comes as demand grows for models like the Ather 450 and the Rizta, which have helped the company reach a broader set of riders across metros and emerging cities alike.
Alongside servicing, Ather continues to power up infrastructure through the Ather Grid, now one of the largest fast-charging networks for two-wheelers, with over 4,300 charging points.
With plans to scale further and deepen its presence, Ather’s approach is clear. Selling the scooter may start the journey, but keeping it running smoothly is what sustains it.
