Raj Bhattacharjee

Went to a boarding school, Goethals Memorial School (Kurseong) till 10th standard which helped me learn to live alone, did my 11th & 12th standards from St.James School (Calcutta), BCom from St Xaviers College, Calcutta and was into sports big time all the time. Having an inquisitive mind, I loved exploring and that led to my career with travel companies like SOTC and Make My Trip, working as the Regional Head for both, learning a lot from them. Later went solo with Mylestone Holidays since 2010 and ever since have had an amazing journey, many miracles, many milestones. Had one strong belief - " when you want something, the entire universe conspires in helping you to achieve it " and " whatever happens, happens for good".

Married young, children have always been friends.

Through the entire journey so far, there were times when I wanted to change situations, help people in their helplessness, realized that this cannot be done alone, so felt helpless myself. Any change stands like a big boulder at first, difficult to be pushed alone. I realized that we cannot do all that we wish to accomplish without working together. It is a process of learning together and doing things together, at first small things, then bigger things. We need to create awareness with people, discovering themselves and building strength from within, so as to deal with any situation without any fear. We decided to create a community and a common platform. Children and youngsters can learn a lot more from real life situations and activities which will make them stronger both physically and mentally. Through these activities, they will realise that nothing is impossible and get ready to take charge. Mylestone Champs is a club and a community for everybody who wish to learn, grow and contribute towards a better world.

Biswajit Singh Roy

Born in family with strong Rajput traditions, we saw hardships pretty early in life. This was the start of a life of a dreamer, with simple milestones – play a lot, work hard in good companies and make bucks, build a home and travel to see the world. It was these dreams that have kept me going.

As kids we played different games - Hockey, Football , Cricket, Badminton, Volleyball; we loved flying Kites, playing Marbles, spinning Top , Kho- Kho, Pittu, Swimming, Philately, collecting coins and much more. During my higher secondary days went off for a trek with friends to the Himalayas and Garwal range. This, for the first time, made me aware of the immense power of nature.

Having worked in multicultural and deliverable-based environments in India and Kenya for over 27 years, my expertise lies in sales, marketing management and strategic planning. I studied in Calcutta University and did my MDP program from IIM Ahmadabad.

As I went through life's journey, I continued to follow my passions and worked hard to see that nothing or nobody limited these dreams. I quit The Times of India at the peak of my career to pursue a dream of providing solutions for people. Thus, the birth of KolkataKonnect- a portal created in 2010 to help non-resident Kolkatans- my biggest self-learning experience.

The dream of Mylestone Champs was born from several deliberations with many friends and colleagues on how the virtual world has stolen the infancy of children, how the pressures of curriculum have made them live with only school books and tuitions. They do not play like we used to. So I want this to be a platform for children and youngsters to a "Route Back to Life".

Shukti Singh Roy

I was 15, knew how to cycle and was eager to learn to learn to ride the motorbike.

I hopped on to my Anup uncle's KB 100 and asked, 'Which is the brake, which is the accelerator?'

'Have you done this before?' was his instant repartee with distinct concern on his face; I'm sure it was more for his bike than me.

I said 'No, but I know how to cycle!'

'Ah! Ok then, try it out but I will be tagging just alongside!', the unease never left his face.

It was heavier than the cycle but I managed reach my feet to the ground. I kicked off, managed to put the machine in gear and started rolling at a slow pace with uncle running beside on the roads of Kalyani. As he realised I could balance he asked me accelerate. Suddenly, I was moving faster than him and could hear him shout 'Go slow, I can't keep pace!'

The bike wobbled and he instantly screamed 'accelerate, accelerate!' I did and was suddenly sailing through, leaving him panting behind me. The roads were empty and the wind was in my hair. The lanes passed by, a freak person or two, and on the hot summer afternoon I was so happy that I was finally a biker. That was when I suddenly realized that I was panicking to remember which the break handle was! There was a lake ahead and I was gripped with the fear that I would head right into it. I pushed the accelerator by mistake and only sped faster. Trying to avoid the lake, I swerved right and went into a lane. I was screaming, uncle was too far behind shouting some vague instruction. I tried pressing every flexible part of the bike to discover the brake, and managed to hit upon it just after another speedup. I was flipped up in the air and landed on my knees and arms. Badly bruised and a little shaken, the only consolation was that the bike had only a few scratches and no major damage.

I got up and rode the bike again, and did it every day that summer.

On the way from there to now, I managed to complete my MBA in Finance & Marketing ( G.U ), started a career in advertising ( Mileage ) and went on to join the banking bandwagon for two decades & more, gathering experiences in Citibank, ABNAMRO, RBS and RBL. Now, I am on a mission with Mylestone Champs- a platform to empower children with ideas, experiential learning and the joys of conscious living.

Kaushik Ray

A Xaverian to the core, have spent the major part of my career with The Times Group. A keen reader, I have delved into writing too and have had the opportunity to have a book published; currently writing a series of short stories.

I have been constantly irked with the apathy of fellow citizens towards the unclean circumstances our cities endure - both visible and invisible. With Mylestone Champs, I firmly believe, we can prepare a generation that will take up the cudgel and attempt to truly change this. I want to leave behind a better tomorrow for posterity and feel it is only with their help that I can do so!