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Draft:Azhar Maqsusi

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Azhar Maqsusi
Born
Syed Osman Azhar Maqsusi
OccupationsSocial worker, businessman
Years active2011–present
OrganizationSani Welfare Foundation
Known for"Hunger Has No Religion" free meal programme; "Do Roti" campaign
SpouseMarried
AwardsYudhvir Memorial Award (2018)
Commonwealth Points of Light award (2021)
Websitesaniwelfarefoundation.org

Syed Osman Azhar Maqsusi is an Indian social worker and businessman from Hyderabad, Telangana. He is the founder of the Sani Welfare Foundation, a non-governmental organisation that has run a daily free meal programme called "Hunger Has No Religion" since 2012.[1][2] The programme began under the Dabeerpura flyover in Hyderabad's Old City and later expanded to hospitals and to several other Indian cities.[1][3] He also started the "Do Roti" campaign, which encourages the public to carry extra food for people in need.[4] In 2021 he received a Commonwealth Points of Light award from the British government.[3]

Early life

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Maqsusi's father, an auto rickshaw driver, died when Maqsusi was four years old.[5] He was the third of four children, and his mother raised the family alone.[6][7] After his father's death the family lived in his grandfather's house; his grandfather also had a large family to support, and Maqsusi has said they often ate only once a day and sometimes not at all.[6] He has described his mother as his biggest inspiration.[6]

At the age of ten, while in Class V, he left school and began working as a labourer and at odd jobs to help support his family.[5][6]

Business career

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In 2001 Maqsusi started a plaster of Paris business, which has remained his main source of income.[5][7] The business carries out interior plaster work and is located near Dabeerpura.[8][1] He has described his family as middle class.[2]

Hunger Has No Religion

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Origins

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According to Maqsusi, the programme began on 10 April 2012, after he met an elderly homeless woman named Lakshmi near a railway station in Dabeerpura.[2] She was physically disabled and had not eaten for several days, and he gave her food.[2][9] He began serving meals to homeless people at the Dabeerpura flyover the following day, under the name "Hunger Has No Religion".[2][a]

Early operations

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In the first days, Maqsusi's wife cooked food at home for about 15 people, which he distributed near the flyover.[9][1] As numbers grew, he began cooking in the open space under the flyover itself to reduce transport costs.[1][11] Within two months, at least 50 people were coming for food each day, and he hired a cook on a fixed monthly salary.[8] The daily meal consists mainly of rice and dal.[1][12]

Funding

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The programme was initially funded from Maqsusi's own income.[8] He has said it faced financial difficulties in its early years, and that on some days he borrowed money or sold scrap material to buy food.[2] Support from donors increased after the work became known through social media.[2] The programme does not actively appeal for donations but accepts groceries and rice offered voluntarily.[2] Maqsusi has said he prefers donations of rice or dal and accepts cash only when a donor is unable to bring food.[6]

Daily operation

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Meals at the Dabeerpura flyover are served at around 12:30 pm to homeless people, ragpickers and labourers.[1] In 2020 The News Minute described Maqsusi's routine as beginning at 6 am, with grocery purchases at Fateh Khan Bazaar at around 10 am, followed by cooking and serving in the afternoon.[2] He divides his time between his business, where he works for a few hours each morning and evening, and arranging food at the programme's sites.[1] His brother, a cousin and weekend volunteers help with the work, and Maqsusi himself cooks when no cook is available.[1][2]

Expansion

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The number of people fed at Dabeerpura grew from about 30–35 at the start to more than 150 by 2018, by which time two cooks had been hired.[1] Around 2015 the programme was extended to Gandhi Hospital in Secunderabad, where a van delivers food for 150–200 people daily.[1]

By 2018 the foundation, working with partner organisations, was also running daily food programmes in Bengaluru, Guwahati, Raichur and Tandur.[1] In 2020 Maqsusi named Delhi among the locations where food was served.[2] By 2021 the programme was reported to feed about 1,500 people a day across six cities, at sites including hospitals, railway stations and the areas under bridges.[3][13] According to the Yudhvir Foundation, free food programmes serving over 1,000 people had been started in other cities, some inspired by and some directly supported by Maqsusi, in coordination with local trusts and authorities.[5]

Maqsusi has said that when he began, free food in the city was served mostly at religious places such as temples, dargahs and gurdwaras, and that it later became common at hospitals and railway stations as more donors came forward.[2]

Sani Welfare Foundation

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Maqsusi established the Sani Welfare Foundation in October 2015 to continue and expand the work.[5][7] The foundation's meals are open to all, regardless of religion, gender, caste or other background.[14] In addition to the meal programme, it has set up a free clinic, a free educational academy and a free tailoring centre for women.[5]

Do Roti campaign

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Through the foundation, Maqsusi started the "Do Roti" ("two rotis") campaign, which asks people to carry two extra rotis when they go out and give them to someone in need.[4][15] He has said the campaign was designed for people who want to help but believe it requires a large amount of money.[4] According to The Siasat Daily, it was also intended to discourage children from begging.[7]

COVID-19 pandemic

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During the COVID-19 lockdown in India in 2020, the programme replaced seated meals with packed food parcels, serving dishes such as tomato rice and vegetable biryani that were easier to pack.[2] Queues were marked on the ground for physical distancing, and the foundation began distributing food by van to stranded migrant workers in addition to homeless people.[2] Maqsusi also opened several food distribution counters across Hyderabad during the pandemic.[3]

Recognition

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  • 2018 – 27th Yudhvir Memorial Award from the Yudhvir Foundation, Hyderabad.[5]
  • 2018 – Selected by actor Salman Khan's Being Human Foundation as one of six "real-life heroes" from across India, for an event in Mumbai.[1]
  • 2021 – Commonwealth Points of Light award (No. 187) from the British government, announced by the British Deputy High Commission in Hyderabad in July 2021.[3][7] British Deputy High Commissioner Andrew Fleming said the programme had "meant the difference between a meal or no meal for millions".[3]

In media

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Maqsusi appeared on the television programme Aaj Ki Raat Hai Zindagi, hosted by Amitabh Bachchan.[1] He has given a TEDx talk titled "Hunger has no Religion".[16]

His work is the subject of a chapter in Uday Shankar's book Game Changers: Lessons on Resilience and Success from Everyday Heroes, published by Jaico Publishing House on 10 June 2026.[17] The book's 20 chapters also profile figures including Tessy Thomas, E. Sreedharan and Santosh Babu.[17][18]

Views

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Maqsusi has attributed his work to his own experience of childhood hunger.[9][1] He has described service to humanity as service to God,[2] and has said that his aim is the elimination of hunger, stating that "there should be nothing called hunger".[1] He has said that the queues for food make him both glad that he can help and sad that the need exists.[12]

Personal life

[edit]

Maqsusi lives in Hyderabad and is married; his wife cooked the programme's first meals.[9][1] In 2018 he said that he had no office or staff and that his lifestyle had not changed as a result of the recognition he had received.[1]

Notes

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  1. ↑ The Sani Welfare Foundation's website gives the start of its work as October 2012.[10]

References

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  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Shafeeq, Mohammed (20 May 2018). "Hunger has no religion: Azhar Maqsusi's mission is manna for Hyderabad homeless". Business Standard. IANS.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Parasa, Rajeswari (10 April 2020). "'Hunger has no religion': Hyderabad man Azhar Maqsusi has fed homeless for 8 years now". The News Minute.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Cite error: The named reference pol2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. 1 2 3 Cite error: The named reference tnm-doroti2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Syed Osman Azhar Maqsusi". Yudhvir Foundation.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 Cite error: The named reference vikalp2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 Fatima, Sakina (3 July 2021). "Hyderabad: UK govt honors activist Azhar Maqsusi for his service". The Siasat Daily.
  8. 1 2 3 "Meals under a bridge: The story of a man who feeds the poor with his own money". The News Minute.
  9. 1 2 3 4 "Hyderabad: Azhar Maqsusi heart opens up for poor under the flyover". Deccan Chronicle. 25 June 2015.
  10. ↑ "Sani Welfare Foundation – Hunger has no religion". Sani Welfare Foundation.
  11. ↑ Cite error: The named reference indiacom2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  12. 1 2 Cite error: The named reference gulfnews2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ↑ Cite error: The named reference hans2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  14. ↑ Cite error: The named reference swf2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  15. ↑ "Azhar Maqsusi, Hyderabad Man Feeding 1500 People Each Day Gets Conferred With UK's Commonwealth Point of Light Award". The Quint. July 2021.
  16. ↑ Cite error: The named reference ted2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  17. 1 2 "Everyday heroes who turned game-changers for society". Deccan Chronicle. 12 June 2026.
  18. ↑ Cite error: The named reference hindu20262 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  19. Mallick, Aditi. "A Hyderabad man says no one should sleep hungry, all you have to do is give two rotis". The News Minute.
  20. "Hunger Has No Religion India – Commonwealth Point of Light 187". Points of Light, Government of the United Kingdom.
  21. "Hyderabad: City NGO honoured with UK award". The Hans India. July 2021.
  22. "A guardian angel for the hungry in Hyderabad". Gulf News.
  23. "Meet Azhar Maqsusi, the man who provides daily free food to needy people". India.com. 30 March 2016.
  24. "Hunger has no religion: Hyderabad man feeds hundreds of hungry people". Vikalp Sangam. 31 December 2018.
  25. "Mr. Azhar Maqsusi: Hunger has no Religion". TED.
  26. "Book spotlights real heroes". The Hindu. 7 August 2026.
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