From Victim to Victor | Paresh Patel | TEDxSomaiyaVidyavihar
[Music] you good evening everyone how are you all doing tonight great this is my first time in so my University and I must say it is a beautiful campus I have a question for you all how many of you like to travel raise your hands please now how many of you have travelled to two or more countries quite a few how many of you have taken a family vacation or taken a road trip or sea voyage wow what a wonder less crowd let me take you through a journey of Kabir's who had an action-packed vulture of his life as a teenager he travelled from South India to Sri Lanka to Switzerland to Canada and so on he Travers continents and oceans mountains and forests swamps and jungles now don't get idea of Tarzan or a Mowgli from Jungle Book but he sure did take a road less traveled let's take a look at it [Music] [Music] [Music] they kind of do they how much imagine you happy too [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] Ganesh your penis okay yeah making her each other a little [Music] [Music] Costa Rica Romania okay sorry [Music] come [Music] Hey [Music] [Music] not the picture in mind right who could have thought how could an action-packed vulture shrink to a deadly Cobb chase a bodily matter of life and death he did visit Sri Lanka in all the other places but only as a victim of human trafficking why he was lucky enough to be trafficked on a borrowed identity there was immense possibility that who he could be sold into a prostitution or child labor and hence at a tender age he was deprived of a sound mental and physical existence and that Kabir is here with you all today thank you I was beaten into a new identity I was molded into a new face I was scribbled into a new name and I was marked into a new body my life's purpose was reduced to merely another man's passport I landed on American soil why a global racket set up by mafia what followed was familiar faces were replaced by strangers books were replaced by brooms and plungers memories were replaced by pure and fragile trust soft hands toughen to feed empty stomach and the dubbing village boy now was pushed into his own cocoon as I'm speaking this very minute eleven children are being trafficked into a life of uncertainty traffickers exploits the sense of desperation of the poor of the uneducated unaware and the deprived in my case they gave me an impression that my family will follow me into a better future while both boys and girls are considered victims girls are considered objects of desire with their fate only worsening as they grow older it is not hard to see that these factors and their interplay has led to human trafficking which is a sad reality after getting tormented for three years I escaped into a land where the soil smelt of freedom and hence the absence of money or home did not matter in front of this I was fortunate enough to get odd jobs at a hotel but I started cleaning rooms cleaning toilets doing maintenance and housekeeping in the day the hotel became my school where I learned new tasks and gained knowledge and at night it became my home with each passing day I learned to value my life more and to work harder with each passing day I became more independent more determined and more fearless and with each passing day the thought of owning my own hotel became my dream the fear of losing control of my life drove me to achieve my dreams all I wanted was to own a hotel the only problem was that I had no money no bank account no social security number no driver license I was not even legal what I was I was an amazing toilet cleaner and I can show you many innovative ways of how to clean them but I was clueless about owning a hotel as I learned the tricks and trades of owning a hotel or running as a business I faced rejection time and again in fact I've been rejected by so many people so many times that being rejected by a women does not hurt anymore finally on July 4th while the United States was celebrating their Independence Day I celebrated my years of sweat with tears of joy I had acquired my first hotel and then there was no looking back thank you I ensured that this circle of life didn't end here that each hotel should have a worthy successor which led to a foundation of Oasis enterprise now having portfolio of luxury hotels exercising hospitality through my hotels is an exciting experience but exercising hospitality through my nonprofit arm helping and truly makes a difference local churches foster cares organizations for homeless these are the places where service is not restricted to only rooms and goes beyond to the people people like Omar who had to leave Africa as a refugee people like Sarah who had to leave Syria as a widow and people like beresch who had to leave his family and country as a smuggled and trafficked victim everyone has a gift and creating opportunities for the needful will lead to their rightful and bright future and I reiterate that only man himself is the master of his own fate beat any situation take charge over it shape your own way walk your own walk however the situation paralyzed you over comment that Oasis innovators our startup incubator we shape young thoughts leaders to pave the way for change and transform the world I would like to conclude with a thought this hundred-dollar bill will not lose its value if I fold it scrambled it crumble it or stomp it the same way this hundred dollar holds value so do all of us so do all of you no matter how many times life shatters you or life smack you down or life will try you or challenges you your value will always be with you the spark within you will never be taken away your value is not created your value is not destroyed your value it your value is infinite and immortal and your value is within you thank you [Applause]