It was a usual afternoon — middle of the week. I had just finished lunch. It was one of the coldest winters I’ve experienced in my eleven years in Tehri. Luckily, the sun was out. I pulled a chair and my laptop, deciding to work under the sun. Most of our team was at their workstations, and the kitchen staff was finishing post-lunch chores.

I’d been working on Dost Education’s IVR platform for four years. This year, we have set an ambitious goal: to reach and empower one million parents by the end of 2027. We have already reached close to half a million parents and now aiming to onboard more parents to reach 650,000 parents by the end of 2025.

This particular month, we are onboarding a new district to the program. I was running some final tests by listening to program audio and validating the API responses. Full from a heavy lunch, laziness was hitting in, and I already started craving tea. I was trying to get into the “zone” when I heard a voice behind me: “Do you also listen to these programs?” It was our head chef, Prakash.

His question surprised me. I asked him to clarify, and he explained, “A few months ago, an Aanganwadi didi (sister) enrolled my wife in a program.” He paused, then added, “I don’t remember the name, but it’s for parents with newborns.” I remembered he was recently blessed with a baby; I’d even been at the naming ceremony. “We get these calls every day,” he continued, “teaching us how to raise our child. What you just played was one of those calls.”

In that instant, I connected the dots. From his confused expression, I understood what he might be thinking: “Why the hell Satendra is listening to this? He’s not even married!” I decided to explain before he asked.

“Yes!”, I exclaimed, “Sachin and I work on this here in our office.” I saw Prakash’s expression change, and I realized it was time to sit him down and explain.

I told him more about the program, explaining that his wife was enrolled in Dost Education’s initiative with the Uttarakhand government and the ICDS department. The program had recently started in Tehri, and ColoredCow manages the technology from the very same office where he worked. It was the program he listened to daily. I explained to him how the Dost team curates the content and then we put these into our system, and have an algorithm that schedules daily calls and complexities like handling missed calls, incomplete calls, IVR-based inputs, and call logs. I’m sure the technical details lost him, as he tuned out after the simpler explanations. Finally, he patted my shoulder, said he had never imagined we were behind it, and left for his post-lunch break to see his newborn before dinner preparations.

This conversation chased away my laziness; I was now full of energy and felt a surge of adrenaline. The desire to “get in the zone” had disappeared. I felt like my life had come full circle.

A few hours later, I was still ecstatic. I decided to share this story with the Dost team. After dinner, I read their responses:

“Thank you for sharing this, Satendra! This is a wonderful story! It’s amazing to hear how our program is making an impact on the ground, and even more heartwarming to see it resonate with people like Prakash. Thanks for sharing this moment with us—it’s a beautiful reminder of why we do what we do!” – Krishna Sharma, User Insights & Growth, DostEducation

“Wow, that’s amazing! Thank you so much for sharing this. Our work in Uttarakhand is starting to reach all corners, even ColoredCow offices!” – Sneha, CEO and Co-founder, DostEducation

My joy amplified. “So this is what working on something meaningful feels like”, I thought to myself and walked home after another usual day.