Smile Foundation participates in Bharat Nirman Jan Soochna Abhiyan
Smile Foundation participated in a three-day public information campaign ‘Bharat Nirman Jan Soochna Abhiyan’, organised by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting at Chanderi, Ashok Nagar district in Madhya Pradesh. The programme was inaugurated by Union Minister of State (Independent charge) for Power Jyotiraditya Scindia in March. Around 30 stalls were put up to disseminate information among the rural population about the flagship programmes of the government of India as well as development initiatives of NGOs. On display were banners, brochures, information pamphlets regarding various development initiatives of Smile Foundation in the areas of education, healthcare, livelihood and empowerment of women and girl children. Movies regarding Smile Foundation’s initiatives were further screened for the people.
Smile Foundation received an award and certificate for putting up the best informative stall among all the participants.
Holi with Sushant Singh Rajput
Riding on the wave of recent box office success of Kai Po Che, actor Sushant Singh Rajput chose to celebrate a special Holi with the underprivileged children of Mission Education centre SHED, pledging to bring more of these children in the ambit of education.
Taking time out from his busy schedule, Sushant visited the centre on the outskirts Mumbai to spread some joy among the children there. He interacted with the children and gifted books, chocolates, and sweets. He also danced with them to the tune of his songs.
Juhi supports Smile Children at Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon
Bollywood actress Juhi Chawla joined 30 Smile Kids to cheer participants in the tenth edition of Standard Chartered Mumbai Marathon in January, who ran for the cause of sending every child to school.
Students from STeP programme were also there, accompanied by BNY Mellon employees and volunteers from Government Law College Mumbai and Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda. Explaining the importance of education, Ms. Juhi Chawla asked the Smile students to commit themselves to sincerely acquiring knowledge. The students also wished her luck for her upcoming film ‘Main Krishna Hoon’. Around 40,000 enthusiastic citizens participated in this year’s marathon, which also highlighted various social causes ranging from education and health to female foeticide and women’s safety.
North East Film Festival for Children
Smile Foundation, in association with Children’s Film Society, India (CFSI), took the inaugural North East Film Festival for Children to the privileged and underprivileged children of the region during March.
The film festival showcased six children’s films, some of them award winning like ‘The Prince and The Crown of Stone’, ‘Tora’s Love’, ‘Touching Wild Horses’, in the cities of Guwahati, Dibrugarh, Silchar (Assam), Shillong (Meghalaya), Dimapur (Nagaland), Imphal (Manipur), Agartala (Tripura), Aizwal (Mizoram) and Itanagar (Arunachal Pradesh). The film festival was inaugurated in Guwahati by youth leader Gaurav Gogoi and in Agartala by Tripura Governor Dr. D.Y Patil.
Shemrock Mega Showcase spreads smiles
Smile Foundation was the cause partner for the Shemrock Mega Showcase, the 24th Annual Day celebrations of Shemrock group of preschools in March. The first day of the celebrations was graced by Master Harsh Mayar, who won the 58th National Film Award (Best Child Actor) for the film ‘I Am Kalam’, produced by Smile Foundation.
More than 2500 Shemrockites from over 30 Shemrock branches across Delhi and NCR and around 5000 parents and grandparents attended the five-day event, which supported Smile Foundation’s cause of education among the underprivileged children of the society. The endeavour also helped sensitise the privileged children and their parents, acquainting them with the existing disparities in our social order to motivate them to become the ambassadors of change.
New Year eve with Sonakshi Sinha
Sonakshi Sinha, along with her mother, spent the new-year eve with children of Smile Foundation expressing the hope that the world is a better place for women and children. She also hosted a special screening of her movie Dabangg 2 for the children, sharing her success with them. The children had a memorable time and were thrilled to watch the movie along with the actress. They also presented her with a memorabilia and requested her to come and meet them often. Sonakshi expressed happiness at being associated with Smile Foundation’s kids and considered them to be her lucky charm.
Mission Education kids on a HOHO ride of Delhi
Abatch of students from Mission Education centre Health and Care Society was taken on a HOHO ride to visit various places of historical importance in Delhi in January. The joy trip was made possible in partnership with Delhi Tourism’s Hop-on Hop-off sightseeing service. The children were taken to Humayun’s Tomb, Indira Gandhi Museum, Nehru Planetarium and many such historical places. Apart from being exposed to rich architecture of India’s heritage, the children were also educated about India’s freedom struggle, its advances in science and technology, etc.
Smile Foundation participates in Investothon 2012-13
Smile Foundation participated in this year’s CII ‘National Conference on School Education: Is Secondary Education on track?’, which focused on various issues affecting secondary education in India.
The conference, held in Delhi in February, was attended by Director, Development, H. N. Sahay. It offered a platform to have a deeper look at the current scenario in the sector, share learning on preparation of teacher educators, need for NGOs in education sector and relevance of vocational education, and suggest a roadmap for the future.
Smile Foundation participates in CII conference on school education
Smile Foundation participated in this year’s CII ‘National Conference on School Education: Is Secondary Education on track?’, which focused on various issues affecting secondary education in India.
The conference, held in Delhi in February, was attended by Director, Development, H. N. Sahay. It offered a platform to have a deeper look at the current scenario in the sector, share learning on preparation of teacher educators, need for NGOs in education sector and relevance of vocational education, and suggest a roadmap for the future.
Protecting Children and Adolescents from Sexual Predators
Sexual abuse of children and adolescents is increasingly becoming a matter of great concern. In an effort to sensitise the school authorities on the growing incidences of sexual abuse of children and adolescents and ways to protect them, the Child for Child programme held a sensitisation workshop for principals and heads of 14 select schools in the southern region in February.
The workshop, ‘Protecting Our Children and Adolescents from Sexual Predators’, was conducted by Dr. Ali Khwaja It focused on ways schools can safeguard their children from people who could turn out to be sexual predators. Dr. Khwaja discussed in detail the importance of sex education and role of parents in providing early sex education; improvement in interpersonal relationships with children and adolescents; parenting issues; and ways of handling children of all age groups. ildren. They both spent a lot of quality time with the children.
Sania promotes the spirit of sharing and caring
On the eve of Christmas, Tennis sensation Sania Mirza played Santa Claus to join the children of Smile Foundation for lunch at Barbeque Nation in Lokhandwala, Mumbai. The event sought to promote the spirit of giving and sharing among the privileged masses, inspiring them to act and make a difference in the lives of the underprivileged children. Bringing joy and smiles to the children’s faces, she happily participated in the games and activities along with them. The children also presented her with a memorabilia. She also released balloons with the message of ‘Be the Change’, with an appeal to the masses to come forward and take an initiative to make them smile.
Coffee table book on responsible dining launched
Femina Miss India 2011 finalist and model Dayana Erappa launched a coffee table book during Christmas to mark responsible dining. The event was conducted to felicitate those restaurants that had participated in a week-long campaign ‘Serve with Smile Week’, carried out in partnership with Motherhood.
