Celebrity items star in charity auction
NEW DELHI — It was a night of hope, as two prominent social welfare foundations from India and the UAE joined hands to empower the differently-abled and underprivileged sections of society.
On Monday night, India’s Sun Foundation and the UAE’s Rashid Centre for the Disabled — under the ageis of the UAE Embassy in New Delhi — organised a gala charity dinner to raise awareness and funds to support humanitarian causes.
A nine-member official delegation from Rashid Centre, led by Sheikh Juma bin Maktoum Al Maktoum, from the Royal Family of Dubai and the deputy chairman of the Rashid Centre, paid a short visit to India to participate in the humanitarian and charitable gathering the centre held in the capital city. The collaboration aimed to emphasise that humanitarian issues do bring people together.
The charity auction included celebrities’ personal clothing items (Shah Rukh Khan’s leather jacket and Deepika Padukone’s lehenga saree) as well as other celebrity items, paintings and art works by children from both foundations. The proceeds of the event will be shared between the two charities.
A collection of products and handicrafts items made by the students were also displayed at the charity bazaar.
These were the handiwork of the students at Rashid Centre’s training and rehabilitation sections and Sun Foundation’s humanitarian centres in India.
Rashid Centre students performed traditional dances on foottapping numbers sung by famous Emirati singers Abdullah Balkhair and Fayez Al Saeed, part of the contingent of 50 distinguished guests from the UAE.
Padmashree Vikramjit Sahney, chairman of the Sun Foundation, a known philanthropist, entrepreneur and social activist, said: “There is a lot of pleasure in giving.
“With this collaboration, we aim to open up more centres both in India and in the UAE, where we can train and give skills to these special needs members so they get self-employed and economically empowered to earn a living.
“Our cooperation will go a long way in further nurturing the bond between India and the UAE. We pledge to continue supporting differently abled children and to provide them skills to face the world with confidence and dignity’.
Children from both the charities gave spectacular performances, much to the delight of the guests.
Mariam Othman, CEO of Rashid Centre for the Disabled, said the visit comes as part of the centre’s unwavering support to the Year of Giving initiative, which was declared by the President, His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan. The collaboration is part of the centre’s endeavour to exchange expertise with Sun Foundation Group on rehabilitating the disabled, to facilitate their integration into society.
“With this collaboration, we aim do some workshops together that will benefit both the organisations. Rashid Centre is committed to providing quality education and therapy services to children with special needs as it would create a synergy,” she added. Other prominent personalities at the event included Ahmed Khoury, chairman of Rashid Foundation; Dr Ahmed Al Banna, UAE Ambassador to India; Isha Bhandari, CEO of Sun Foundation, and Bollywood actress Raveena Tandon, who attended the auction to express solidarity with the charities and support the noble causes.
The Indian ambassador gave a speech at the function and cast light on the historic-cultural, civilisational and commercial relations between the two friendly peoples of UAE and India.
Rashid Centre is committed to providing quality education and therapy services to kids with special needs.”
Mariam Othman, CEO of Rashid Centre for the Disabled