Humans of RESQ-Sayali Pilane

Sayli Pilane, a fearless and adventurous girl from Mulshi, literally grew up in the outdoors and learnt how to catch snakes at a very tender age. A Bachelor of Political Science, she considers herself lucky because where she comes from, most other girls were married off right after high school. She gives the entire credit for this progressive upbringing to her mother, who, not just supported her unconditionally, but also encouraged her to be financially independent. So she worked as a Housekeeping Supervisor, followed by Field Manager to support her family.

One fateful day, she happened to read an article in the local Newspaper which changed her life for good. This write up was about RESQ Charitable Trust and the Founder Neha Panchamia. What impressed Sayli the most was how a non-profit organisation founded and led by a woman was making a considerable amount of difference in the life of animals. She instantly realised what she wanted to do in life, and applied to RESQ, joining as a Junior Rescuer.

What she loves the most about working at RESQ is the immense gratification she experiences knowing she is doing something worthwhile with her life which also is productive and stimulating. The part she finds challenging yet invigorating is instances where, despite preparedness and carrying the right equipment, the situation demands outside the box thinking and employing locally found objects to facilitate a rescue. Her most memorable experience at RESQ so far has been the day she managed a rescue completely on her own without the supervision of a senior rescuer. She got to call all the shots herself and the rescue also happened successfully.

The most well-known fact about Sayli is that she is always the first one to nominate herself for any rescue, wherever it may be, at any time of the day, making her the dashing ‘Lady Singham’ of RESQ. She also has a very prominent artistic side. She sketches and paints well and is a diehard fan of Urdu Shayari. Her favourite Shayar is Bashir Badra.

The one statement she believes in is, “It’s natural for humans to evolve, but while doing so, humans must aim at coexisting peacefully with animals”.

When asked what animal would she have loved to be born as, with an ear to ear smile, she says, “An Eagle”.