Hyderabad: Once people enter this house, they are the owners
This house, Andari Illu, translating to 'Open House' is a shelter for people where they can stay, eat and read for free.
Hyderabad: Upon stepping inside this house at Kothapet, you will notice a bell by the entrance, cleverly connected to a window through a lengthy thread. When you ring this bell, someone comes out, offering a listening ear to empathize with your concerns and ensure your well-being.
However, if you prefer complete privacy to vent your feelings, they provide you with a paper and pen to pour your heart out. You can then deposit the letter into a secure box, knowing that it will remain unread.
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This house, Andari Illu, translating to ‘Open House’ is a shelter for people where they can stay, eat and read for free. Founded by a couple, both doctors in 2006, Dr. Surya Prakash Vinjamuri and Dr. S V Kameshwari, under their NGO, ‘Life-Health Reinforcement Group’ (Life-HRG).
“We never ask anyone who they are, which caste they belong to, their religion, or why they are here,” said Dr. Prakash, a 58-year-old who started open house with an aim to provide food to people.
Many visitors are youngsters who are preparing for competitive exams, women who have gone through domestic violence, or those who have lost jobs, homes, and hope. “Dr. Surya is a gem of a person, we have never seen someone doing this for others and he treats us like a family,” said Venkat who stays in a nearby hostel and visits the house daily to prepare for exams.
The couple started sharing bananas on a cart in 2001 and also relief to the victims of the Odisha cyclone and provided medical relief during Gujarat riots. Dr Prakash later started a food counter in the colony to serve food to the hungry and then opened doors to the house with shared kitchen space where people can cook and eat with the available groceries.
“Rice, oil, salt, spices, cooking equipment, and other items are made available throughout the day,” he said, adding that “no one serves anyone food, once they enter the house, they are the owners.”
Along with this open house, they have two other places with different objectives, one for providing knowledge and one for life, while providing food and shelter remains common.
Andari illu is painted in the vibrant colours of the national flag and is surrounded by lush greenery along with a tree house near the entrance, inviting you to eat, rest and unwind in the beautiful house.
