At the time, the young boy didn’t quite understand these visits. He often questioned his parents, only to be met with a smile from his father, who would say, “One day, you’ll understand.”
What he didn’t realise then was that a seed of selflessness was being planted in him: one that would flourish in the years to come.
“There’s just a happiness that comes from helping others. It might feel like a small thing to you, but it might be a big thing to other people,” Thashidaran told FMT Lifestyle.
Today, at 31, Thashidaran is a passionate youth leader devoted to empowerment, entrepreneurship, and personal growth.
Over the past 11 years, he has embarked on volunteer missions to eight countries, namely Laos, Nepal, Thailand, Indonesia, Japan, Brunei, Vietnam and India.
And just recently, the Seri Kembangan-born changemaker was named National Champion – Individual (Male) Category at the 2025 Anugerah Perdana Belia Negara, held during the Hari Belia celebrations at Dataran Merdeka.
Thashidaran was selected from a highly competitive pool of 236 candidates representing 113 districts across 15 states. The ceremony was organised by the youth and sports ministry, with the award presented to him by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.
“I had to go through two rounds: the first was state level, and then it was national level. I really didn’t think I would win at national level because there were so many talented and qualified people who made it through,” Thashidaran mused.
“But I just decided to try my best, answer my interview questions and deliver my pitch the best way I could. And when they told me I had won, it felt unbelievable.”
According to Thashidaran, he got his first taste of volunteerism when the Indian Cultural Society he belonged to at the Multimedia University where he was studying, began helping students of a Tamil school in Dengkil.
Thashidaran helped run a transition camp for the Standard Six students there, organising team-building and character development activities to prepare them for secondary school.
The experience left such a deep impression on him that it set him firmly on the path of volunteerism, even leading him to seek opportunities abroad.
In 2018 he flew to Laos for two weeks, volunteering in a programme spearheaded by the education ministry. There, he led a team of five in conducting 37 projects, including helping local students learn English and entrepreneurship skills.
His team also assisted in community activities, helping build bus stops, as well as rebuild their damaged schools.
In 2020, he spent two and a half months in Nepal, where he and his team helped build a water pipeline catering to about 300 families there.
“They still get clean water now. I still get news and updates from them. I think this is probably my favourite memory from everything I’ve done,” he said.
Today, juggling his role as director of his family’s logistics company, Thasidharan makes time to give back to the community. One of his major projects is serving as football coach for about 200 students from four secondary schools around the Klang Valley.
Now as the recipient of the national award, he plans to continue reaching out to the less fortunate, this time on a larger scale.
Why is he so passionate about volunteerism? He shared a personal story about a boy he once encountered on one of his missions, who was struggling in school.
“He was a Standard Six student, on the verge of dropping out. He couldn’t read or write. We nurtured him for about six months, and he narrowly passed his UPSR. Somehow, things turned around in Form One, and he began doing much better,” he said.
“Today, he’s studying for a medical degree. And that’s the beauty of this. You never know how things will turn out, how you can make a difference,” Thasidharan concluded.