What does it mean to belong?
In Auroville, I found that belonging is a practice. It is cultivated through shared work and the simple act of being present. I spent time here, documenting these humans, listening to their stories, and capturing the real-life moments where community life takes shape. Each image is a reflection of how ideals meet reality, how everyday actions carry the weight of a shared dream.
These stories invite you to explore what it means to contribute to something larger than yourself. They are a reminder that real community is not a concept but a choice made every day to show up, to listen, and to build together.
"The more you care, the more others are inspired to care too. I believe in being a model for others, especially children. They learn by example. If they respect you, they’ll follow you, act like you do. This is how real leadership works."
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Johnny has been part of Auroville since 1971. Sitting with him, I could sense how his experiences have shaped his understanding of what it means to live in community. His leadership comes through not as authority but as example, a quiet strength built on trust and openness.
"Living in a community like this means being tolerant. You learn to live with people who think differently, who come from different cultures and habits. It takes patience and openness to find a way to live together."
Johnny spoke about how trust forms the foundation of community life. For him, trust is an instinct, a feeling that guides relationships. "Trust is intuitive. It’s not logical. You feel it. Trust is the basis of real human relationships. When trust is present, true connections can grow."
His early days in Auroville were filled with building not just physical spaces but also a culture of cooperation. "We started with open fields and a sense of possibility. It was a place where we could try things, create without rigid systems, and explore new ways of living. It offered freedom to experiment and live by our own values."
Johnny’s approach to leadership focuses on showing up and setting an example. "The more you care, the more others are inspired to care too. I believe in being a model for others, especially children. They learn by example. If they respect you, they’ll follow you, act like you do. This is how real leadership works."
His story is a reminder that community thrives not on perfection but on presence. It is built through daily acts of care, through the willingness to show up, to listen, and to live in a way that invites others to do the same.
“People talk about community as if it is something that exists on its own, as if once you build the structure, the spirit will just appear. But community is a practice. A daily effort. You wake up and you choose to be part of it. You offer something of yourself, and sometimes it is received, sometimes it isn’t. But you offer it anyway.”
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I feel honored to have had the opportunity to meet and sit with Peter, listening to his experience from his experience of Auroville.
"I came to Auroville after a long time searching. I had already gone through my phase of trying to understand the contradictions of the world. Leftist politics, movements that promised change but never quite reached the root of things. There was a moment when I saw it clearly, the need to step into something different. Not as an escape, but as a step forward.
People talk about community as if it is something that exists on its own, as if once you build the structure, the spirit will just appear. But community is a practice. A daily effort. You wake up and you choose to be part of it. You offer something of yourself, and sometimes it is received, sometimes it isn’t. But you offer it anyway.
I have lived long enough to see people come with great visions and leave disappointed. But I have also seen those who stayed, who allowed themselves to be changed by the experience rather than trying to change it into what they expected. That is where something real begins."
"You don’t need a lot of money or a perfect plan. You need the willingness to show up every day and put your hands in the soil. It’s about being present, not perfect."
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As much as we sometimes wish to hold on to grand ideas of what can bring us together to form a community, the simplest and most ancient binding material is food. We need to eat to survive. We need each other to grow it, to cook it, and we enjoy eating it together much more than in front of Netflix in a city bachelor pad.
I met Krishna at Solitude Farm, where he has been growing food and playing a key part in community life in Auroville for more than 30 years.
"Local food is our lowest common denominator and the biggest profit of it is the creation of a cultural identity, 'cause it’s what creates resonance within a society. You may have different political views, religious views, or musical preferences, but if I put a plate of fresh local food between us, we will both say, 'This is good.'
If we lose our culture, then we lost that relationship with Bhumi Devi (Mother Earth), and therefore food only becomes functional. You eat to go to work, to get a paycheck, to afford a two-week holiday. But what is life about?"
Krishna shows us how important it is to grow your food, cook it, and serve it right there on the same spot to support yourself and the community around you in a way that is healthy and regenerative to the whole region.
"We heard at Auroville's birthday, the Mother said, 'Surrender yourself fully without expecting anything.' That word stuck in our mind like a mantra. We surrendered ourselves to the project. Many things started to change. We still believe that."
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I first heard about New Colors through Renana and Kumar, sitting with them in the village just outside Auroville, listening to them talk about the years they’ve poured into this place. The way they describe it, it grew over time, shaped by the children who kept coming back.
It started small. A handful of kids looking for a quiet space to study, nowhere formal, just a place where they could focus. As more children came, a library took shape. Classrooms were built. Volunteers arrived, bringing books, ideas, and the kind of attention that can shift the way a child sees their own future.
Kumar grew up here. He knows what it feels like to have the world just out of reach. Renana came later, but she saw it too. Kids eager to learn, but without the right support to push forward. Together, they built New Colors, not as a rigid system, but as something that could adapt to the needs of the children who walked through its doors. A space to learn, to gather, to grow.
Now, they are trying to take it further. The library isn’t finished. Some days, there aren’t enough books. There is always something missing. Funding, materials, hands to help build what’s next. But the kids keep coming, and that, more than anything, is what keeps them going.
Sitting with them, you can see how much this place is a part of them. It’s in the way Kumar watches the children arrive in the afternoon, the way Renana speaks about what still needs to be done. New Colors has already changed so much, but there is more ahead. What they have built is already here. What they need now is the means to keep going.
"When you create a space like this, you need a huge amount of love for people. I really love people and care for them deeply. I can meet someone, and after half an hour, I feel a huge commitment to their well-being. I’m willing to go a long way to support them."
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Sadhana Forest is a place where care feels like the strongest currency. Walking through the community with Aviram, I could see how his leadership is woven into the fabric of daily life. His influence comes from presence and compassion, showing what it takes to create a community where care comes first.
“When you create a space like this, you need a huge amount of love for people. I really love people and care for them deeply. I can meet someone, and after half an hour, I feel a huge commitment to their well-being. I’m willing to go a long way to support them.
At first, I thought it was all about reforestation, about planting trees and water conservation. Over time, I understood that Sadhana Forest became a place for personal growth. People come here, and they find healing, for the land and for themselves. You can't teach this. You have to really want to do this and do it with love. Compassion is at the heart of it all.
There was a young woman who felt unwell. I was exhausted. I had hardly slept. I sat with her. She started talking about her family, her traumas. I listened until two o’clock in the night. You can't teach this. You have to really want to do this and do it with love.
Sadhana Forest runs on love and genuine care for people. The more you care, the more authority you have. I learned to say, ‘We’re doing something beautiful here. If you want to support us, you’re welcome to.’ Finding that confidence wasn’t easy, but it was necessary to move away from the feeling of asking for help without knowing the value of what we offer.
I understood that Sadhana Forest is more than a project. It is a model for a way of living. It is a place where community grows through practice, through showing up, through being there for one another, and offering a space where people find a sense of belonging.
Many volunteers arrive looking for a break from their everyday lives. They find a community where they are invited to be part of something bigger. Sadhana Forest is a place where people can bring their stories, their struggles, and find that they are met with kindness.
I call it a hierarchy of care. The more you care, the more influence you have. At Sadhana Forest, the community thrives through the simple, consistent act of showing up, of offering a space where people feel held.
Every Tuesday, we hold sharing circles where people can speak freely, where they are heard without judgment. Many have shared stories they never said out loud before. It is a space where healing happens in quiet, genuine ways, through the presence of someone who truly listens.
Sadhana Forest is a place where healing happens for the land and for the people. It is a community that grows through planting seeds of care and compassion. The more I see this happen, the more I understand that leadership is about being present, about sharing space and showing up with love and consistency.”
