Fellow or an Intern?

My journey with Karkhana started when a dear friend recommended the “Call for Fellows” opportunity shared by Karkhana. It began with me attending a virtual meeting where our dear Mr. Pavitra Bahadur Gautam (in my POV then, the big shot at Karkhana) made us aware about what Karkhana is and what the “Fellowship” was actually about.

I got selected to the next step of the screening, the “Design Challenge”; a fancy term indeed but it is actually what sparked an interest inside me to become a part of Karkhana. I was selected as a fellow following the design challenge.

It was also this “event” that made me aware of Karkhana recruiting personnel. I applied to the team that oversaw Partnership and Events. After sitting with the company executive that led said team, Ms. Sameeta Amgain, I was recruited for a trial period at Karkhana, and thus my tenure as an intern began.

Then came the big question, “Am I still a fellow or just an intern now?”

To my relief, म दूईटै थिएं. I took the necessary training to become a “Fellow”: capable of leading STEAM Classes under the “Book Free Friday” initiative of Kathmandu Metropolitan City. At the same time, I began my role as an intern at Karkhana.

23rd Feb, 2024 was the day I was set to take my first STEAM class. Following that, I started my work at Karkhana. Due to unforeseen circumstances, I was unable to give my first class (I gave a class the following week and it was very fun.) However, nothing was stopping me from starting my internship. I went to the office and the first thing I was assigned to do was to LEARN about Karkhana; its missions, values, and operations. Also, I was intrigued by the fact that there were no such thing as Departments at Karkhana, instead there were “Communities”, specializing in different disciplines. I was now in the “Partnership and Outreach Community” of Karkhana.

I do not know if it was pure luck or destiny, but on my very first day, I got the chance to witness the gathering of individuals from Karkhana and Karkhana Samuha. There, I learned what Karkhana actually was. Yes, it was an organization, but this was just the tip of the iceberg. Karkhana was a group of like-minded individuals, colleagues and FRIENDS who were not only dedicated towards a common goal, but also were having fun in the process. Of course there was a hierarchy here, but the hierarchy was as it was mentioned in the guide to Karkhana; “Fluid”.

Everyone was responsible for their work, everyone was a leader and most importantly, everyone was EQUAL. The big shot, Mr. Pavitra Bahadur Gautam was making ढकनी for everyone. He was serving and was having a fun time with all his FRIENDS. Pavitra reflected for me our most important value, “WE EXIST FOR OUR PEOPLE”. He did not just reflect it, he lived this value daily.

Not only this, the culture of calling everyone “तिमी” was something I found very unusual at the beginning, but as I got used to it, I found out that this helped everyone voice their opinions freely and give the office a homely feeling.

All this made me feel that I was a fit to work not at, but with Karkhana since the day I joined. My first day felt very natural. I felt I had been working with these people for years and these were not my work colleagues, but my friends too. This for a company is not an easy feat to attain. Our values are embedded into each and every individual connected to Karkhana. Thus, this is what makes Karkhana not just a work-place, but also a HOME for all of us.

Our people live our values; WE (DO) EXIST FOR OUR PEOPLE, WE (DO) PUSH BOUNDARIES IN EVERYTHING WE DO, WE (DO) EVOKE EMOTIONS THROUGH OUR WORK AND WE (DO) SHARE BEYOND TO CATALYSE CHANGE.

Even though I have just started as an intern here at Karkhana, I feel like I belong here and most importantly, I feel valued and adored by all my colleagues and friends. I couldn’t have found a better place than this to start my career and I hope I can contribute to Karkhana in every manner I can.

WE are KARKHANA and KARKHANA is US.