PUNE: The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), now in its centennial year, is reshaping its daily shakhas to connect with younger generations, particularly Gen Z. Once seen as largely physical training grounds, shakhas are now combining games, debates, cultural activities, and discussions on modern issues like artificial intelligence.
In Pune’s Model Colony, 18-year-old Soham Joshi leads the Damodar shakha, carrying forward his family’s three-generation association with the Sangh. He has built a steady membership of around 20 to 25 teenagers. “The focus is not only on physical exercise but also on intellectual exchange,” he said, pointing to regular poetry sessions, debates, and social gatherings like walkathons and tiffin parties.
Across India, the RSS runs more than 83,000 daily shakhas and 32,000 weekly meetings, according to its publicity chief Sunil Ambekar. The youth-centric Sayam shakhas, held in the evenings, have seen an increase in first-generation participants, many encouraged by parents who hope to reduce their children’s dependence on mobile phones.
Soumitra Mandke, 24, who heads the Bal vibhag at the Vivekanand Sayam Shakha in Pune’s Bibwewadi, said inter-shakha competitions such as athletics and chess draw strong interest. Retention efforts are also structured, with young pramukhs meeting dropouts to understand concerns and reconnect them to the network.
The RSS framework is also proving to be a support system during personal crises, with members offering practical help to each other in times of need.
