“One of the most memorable moments for me was when I learned a new term, which describes the state my mind is in most of the time. Most of us were hungry, but this little girl Parmita wasn't. She said - I don't want food. I'm 'pungry' - hungry for play!” – Play for Peace Facilitator Nikhil Mehta
Nikhil Mehta is a very enthusiastic Play for Peace facilitator who understands that creating a peaceful environment for children is the essence of society. His journey with Play for Peace began when he was doing a course in experiential education called DEEP, facilitated by Vishwas Parchure in Pune, India. In November 2014 he stumbled upon a Play for Peace workshop facilitated by master trainers Swati Bhatt Agyat Shunya, and Nisha Sharma. After some research, he was instantly connected to the idea. He attended another workshop conducted by Play for Peace Executive Director Sarah Gough & trainer Andres Armas. Since then, he has been facilitating Practice Peace & Cooperative play sessions. He has been invited by a few NGOs & shelter homes in Mumbai, India to conduct a few exciting Play for Peace sessions. On the first week of May 2016 a week-long workshop was conducted to expose parents, and children to learning and living together at EBHLE (Sapna Ranch farm).
EBHLE (ebhle.org) is a learning environment that has been initiated by a visionary Hasmukh Sapnawala, where 'student-centered', holistic learning is encouraged and facilitated, in line with the principles of experiential education to foster an environment of learning and play. Play and hands-on experience are the main modes of learning and living at EBHLE. The objective of the Play for Peace sessions was to build a strong sense of community among the participants. The eclectic mix of 22 people, which included eight children, seven youth, and seven adults (2 to 3 of the adults were there for 4 to 5 days) made for an interesting week-long session. Nikhil, or Raahi, talked about what he likes about EBHLE: “There's something magical about EBHLE (Sapna Ranch farm) that makes life and learning quite effortless.” Nikhil was invited to EBHLE to facilitate sessions that incorporated Play for Peace games & Capoeira (a movement-based Afro-Brazilian art form).
As a Play for Peace facilitator, his main challenge was to facilitate and create games for participants from 6 to 56 years old who come from different backgrounds and speak different languages. Each day of the week, Play for Peace sessions were conducted for 30 minutes to 1 hour for which detailed planning was required to create inclusive and community-building exercises. Introductory sessions involved participants getting rid of their inhibitions. The games that were chosen were intentionally simple without involving any risks (physically, intellectually & socio-emotionally). Based on each day’s experience, the content of the session was improvised keeping in mind the participants’ requirements. By the end of the week, there was a noticeable difference in camaraderie and body language of the participants.
Raahi commented on the experience: “I believe that once our food, sleep, and safety needs are taken care of, play comes instinctively to us like breathing. If those instincts are listened to, then wonderful, unthought-of things can happen. The fact that play is dwindling so fast from our lives these days is worrisome! I intend to keep doing something about it, especially when it comes to children. Play for Peace, with its core values, is a strong medium for doing that. Besides, I personally just love facilitating it and letting more people know about it! It helps me be the best of me.” 
