An ardent social worker, Seema is working hard to make it possible for seniors to socialize and take part in planned activities. As the co-founder of a senior citizen center, she believes that seniors deserve to receive care, love, and respect from society.

Seema Shah is the co-founder of Pujya-  a Senior Citizens’ Center in Udaipur.

Seema says she first became acquainted with Udaipur eleven years ago when her husband was transferred here. She says that, as a chartered accountant, she had a well-established practice in Bangalore, and so she was reluctant to come to Udaipur. However, now she feels there is a charm in Udaipur that mesmerizes everyone, and so she plans to settle in Udaipur only in the future.

Seema shares that after coming here, she first joined Sadhna, an organization working for the upliftment of women, and started working as its CEO. She did a lot of grassroots work with this organization.

Seema expresses concern that she has seen joint families break up around her, and due to the increasing trend of nuclear families, the elderly people have to go through difficult situations with no one to take care of them. In view of this, she organized many camps in rural areas, like physiotherapy camps and health checkup camps. But she found that the elderly have more health problems in urban areas than in rural ones.

Seema goes on to say that her organization is still in its early stages, but she hopes to open rehab centers for the elderly in the city in the future.

Seema believes that society needs to understand that these elderly people, who have worked for their families for approximately 35 years, deserve to live happy and respectful lives in their later years. Through her organization, she hopes to bring this respect and happiness to the elderly. She believes that through these programs, society will learn that the elderly are assets to our society.

When asked about her role models, Seema says she can't name anyone specifically because she draws inspiration from everyone. However, she recalls being deeply touched by the lives of both Devendra Mehta, the Jaipur foot maker, and Dr. G. Venkataswamy, the founder of Aravind Eye Hospital, about whom she learned from her husband.

Seema urges the youth to educate the elderly about modern technology so that their lives will be made easier. She extends an invitation to all young people to spend some time engaging with such elderly people and offering them all the support they can to make their lives better.