(Jun 9, 2025) Rooted in his Gujarati-American identity, Neil Barot channels tradition and insight into storytelling that makes a difference. “Stories can change systems,” he tells Global Indian. A high school student from Orlando, Florida, Neil is championing youth leadership at the intersection of storytelling and service. He has founded two youth-led nonprofits, performed in musical theatre productions, launched an inspiring podcast series, and raised over $10,000 to build clean water infrastructure in rural Gujarat.
As the founder of Where the Water Speaks, he has cultivated a global digital platform that amplifies marginalized voices through poetry, podcasts, and art, garnering over 56,000 followers and helping lead advocacy against statewide arts funding cuts. Meanwhile, his earlier nonprofit, Hydrate India, turned local cultural events into powerful fundraising tools to bring safe drinking water to more than 400 villagers in his ancestral hometown.
Neil is also Executive Vice President of his school’s Student Government Association, a youth voter registration organizer, and founder of his school’s Hindu Student Union demonstrating leadership across civic, cultural, and creative arenas. For Neil, stories are more than expression. They are instruments of equity, activism, and belonging.
Rooted in duality: A Gujarati-American voice
“I was raised in Orlando, Florida, in a household rooted in Gujarati tradition and diasporic resilience,” Neil shares. His upbringing was shaped by the stories of immigration, rituals, and cultural memory passed down by his parents and grandparents. These were the narratives that often existed outside mainstream representation. “That duality shaped my voice as both an artist and an advocate,” he adds, pointing to the cultural undercurrent that now encompasses all aspects of his work.
As a first-generation Indian American, Neil’s cultural awareness sparked early action. From founding his school’s Hindu Student Union to raising funds for water access in his ancestral village of Kalyanpura, Gujarat, his initiatives combine pride in identity with tangible change. “It took persistence to get people to care about a village thousands of miles away,” he says. “But we leaned on storytelling, cultural pride, and transparency to build trust.”
Storytelling as activism: The birth of Where the Water Speaks
Neil’s flagship initiative, Where the Water Speaks, is a youth-led nonprofit that uses storytelling to illuminate issues of identity, environment, and justice. “It was born from a deep love for stories, especially the ones at risk of being erased,” he explains. The name itself is poetic, reflecting the belief that water, like stories, carries memory and flows freely when given space.
The initiative started as a social media page showcasing poetry and prose. With carefully curated visuals and emotionally resonant captions, it grew organically, amassing over 56,000 followers. “Every post centered on care,” Neil notes, emphasizing the platform’s commitment to authenticity and community. In response to Governor Ron DeSantis’s $32 million veto of arts funding in Florida, which impacted Neil’s own theatre program, he turned to performance and advocacy. Through online campaigns and collaborations with local educators, Neil helped bring attention to the broader consequences of the funding cuts.
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The Echoes Project: A podcast for change
Expanding from page to voice, Where the Water Speaks includes a student-led podcast titled The Echoes Project, which invites youth artists, educators, and community changemakers to reflect on formative experiences. “Each episode is a confessional—a space to grieve, celebrate, and speak back to silence,” Neil says.
With technical knowledge self-taught through YouTube and local mentorship, the podcast found its way to Spotify. While Neil doesn’t quantify its reach in terms of episodes or downloads, it’s evident that the medium aligns with his broader mission: offering underrepresented stories a place to echo. “Stories can change systems,” he believes, and the podcast acts as yet another vessel for that change.
Theatre and thespianism: The stage as second skin
Parallel to his nonprofit and podcast work is Neil’s presence on stage. With standout performances in musical theatre and participation in state Thespian competitions, he combines emotional depth with technical training. Whether part of his school’s acclaimed group Four Counts or performing solo, theatre offers Neil a form of storytelling that is immediate and embodied. It also became a site of resistance when funding cuts disrupted productions, fueling his advocacy through art.
Hydrate India: Clean water, cultural bridges
Before Where the Water Speaks came Hydrate India, a grassroots nonprofit that Neil co-founded with his family. Through community fundraisers, temple events, and cultural festivals like Navratri, the initiative raised over $10,000 to build clean water infrastructure for over 400 villagers in Gujarat. “A large organization didn’t back us, so every dollar had to be earned,” Neil says. That experience taught him how to mobilize community power with cultural sensitivity and clarity of purpose.
A life of civic imagination
The youngster’s leadership extends beyond the arts. As Executive Vice President of his Student Government Association (SGA), president of his school’s Young Democrats chapter, and a delegate at the prestigious NAIS Student Diversity Leadership Conference (SDLC), he channeled voice into action. After SDLC, he founded the Hindu Student Union to fill a gap he felt in school: “SDLC didn’t just inspire reflection—it demanded action,” he remarks.
He also led a nonpartisan voter registration drive that enrolled over 60 new voters. “To me, voting is a story we write together,” he reflects. “And too many people are left out of the first draft.”
The story continues
With over 1,000 volunteer hours and plans to study the humanities, Neil is poised to continue building platforms that combine art and action. “I’ve developed a multidimensional identity that bridges the arts and public service,” he says. His path may still be unfolding, but the principles guiding it are firmly in place: equity, voice, and the belief that storytelling isn’t a luxury, rather a necessity.
Whether through a poem, a performance, or a podcast, Neil Barot continues to ask the same question that first launched his advocacy: Whose voice is missing? In seeking those voices, he’s helping ensure the answers don’t go unheard.
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