1000-plus differently-enabled youth to be felicitated by NGO Blind Dreams on Children's Day (14th Nov)

Tuesday 15th October 2013; Mumbai: Over a thousand differently-enabled, autistic, and disabled youngsters and adults between the age of 10 to 40 from all over India will be felicitated in a touching, heart-rending and soul-stirring event, on 14th November - Children's Day in Mumbai by the NGO Blind Dreams in association with Newz66.com. The NGO and Newz66.com are in the process of raising about Rs Ten lakh in donations and sponsorship from the corporate sector to support and finance the career goals of these thousand plus youngsters.

Announcing this project on the auspicious day of Vijaya Dashami or Dussehra, blind celebrity healer and chairman of Blind Dreams, Dr Samir Mansuri said, "On 24th August this year, more than 300 blind and differently-enabled youth from all over Maharashtra participated in the western zone round of auditions for the Blind Dreams’ Talent Hunt for the disabled or differently enabled. The auditions were held at the Kamla Mehta School for the Blind at Dadar in Central Mumbai. Most participants came from far off towns and villages in Maharashtra and Gujarat. Over the last 45 days auditions were held in various cities in India and we have short-listed about 1000 talented youth who will be specially felicitated and given sponsorship and donations to help them pursue their career goals including those from the performing arts, software and financial services sector."

"The over whelming response to the Blind Dreams’ Talent Hunt for the differently enabled and visually impaired is an indication that differently enabled youth are otherwise as talented as their colleagues and sometimes even more talented in certain fields like music, singing, acting, etc. All differently enabled should come together in a show of strength to demand their rightful place in society and in the day-to-day working of organizations and corporates," Mansuri said. He spoke about the lack of support and empathy from various sectors including the police and civic agencies. He demanded that all public places, railway stations, airports, government offices, etc., should be enabled to provide the differently enabled a level playing field.

Blind Dreams and Newz66.com have formed a panel of eminent persons including bollywood photographer Raju Asrani, TV actress Sheila David, actress and model Nisha Sharma, TV actors Rashmi Ghosh and husband Siddharth, HR professional Mamta Namdeo (herself blind who works with SBI as an HR manager) and several others to monitor and co-ordinate the event and help in the fund-raising activity for this ambitious project.

Actresses Swati Bajpai, Nisha Sharma attend a cultural program by Poddar International College for underprivileged school kids

 

 

 

 

Actresses Swati Bajpai and Nisha Sharma attended a charity event organized by the students of Poddar International College for the underprivileged school kids of the Chembur Balkanji Bari. They interacted and played with the students, gave away prizes and even danced with them during the 3-hour interaction. 

 

Swati Bajpai has been acting in Zee TV's daily soap Mrs. Kaushik Ki Paanch Bahuein which has completed more than 400 episodes. She was also seen dance class show Nachle Ve with Saroj Khan, hosted by popular Bollywood choreographer Saroj Khan, as one of Saroj Khan's students. She has done several TV ads and walked the ramp for more than two dozen fashion designers in a career spanning over 5 years.

Mumbai-based Tamil actress Nisha Sharma will be seen in Ramesh Babu Nair's latest Tamil film in a main lead which also stars Venkatesh and others. She is also shooting for two more Tamil projects produced by Vrindaavan Films.

Also present at the event were celebrity bollywood photographer Raju Asrani, the Dean of Poddar International College Kishore Pillai, College Board of directors member Balwindar Singh, President of the school Jaswinder Singh, Principal Renu along with students of the organizing committee  Arsh Khan, Saheb Bajaj, Murtuza, Duj Jain, Yashna and Jai Mavani.