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Agency gives free candy to Mumbai slum kids who attend sponsored pop-up English schools

Candy vendor in IndiaGrey has unveiled an idea for radio station Radio City 91.1FM to teach English to Mumbai slum-dwellers by hiring candy sellers as pop-up schools.

Mobile candy vendors who visit slums every day have been given FM receivers and megaphones and a brief to park their cycles in specific localities at a certain time when Radio City 91.1FM will air lessons on spoken English. The vendors will hand out free candy to each child who sits through a lesson.

In a press release, Grey described the idea as a “first of its kind innovation” which it planned to scale to 10 other cities across India and ultimately reach 3m underprivileged children.

The idea will be supported by on-ground promotions and activities for children in slums by DJs and other radio personnel.

Abraham Thomas, CEO of Radio City 91.1FM commented: “Candy Class is an ambitious project and we have rolled out the first phase. Dharavi, as one of Mumbai’s largest slums, seemed to be the right place to start our efforts to give back to Mumbai in a special way under the ambit of Rag Rag Mein Daude City. Using the power and reach of radio to make a difference to the lives of these children might help them gather a lifeskill that they might not otherwise have been fortunate enough to get”.

Sandipan Bhattacharya, CCO of Grey Group India, added: “What’s really interesting is the way this initiative brings together the power of radio with the cycle candy vendors for a common purpose. Candy Class is not elaborate, does not require huge infrastructure and investments, yet is incredible when you consider the economic and social implications of speaking the language in a country such as ours.”

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