Talented children from Delhi’s slums showcase their craft in a musical theatre programme “Badlaav Ke Beej (A Tale of Compassion)” depicting the compassionate life story of Nobel Peace Laureate Kailash Satyarthi

New Delhi: Young talents from Delhi’s slums enthrall the audience at Pearey Lal Bhawan, New Delhi through their enchanting musical theatre performance “Badlaav Ke Beej (A Tale of Compassion)” under the initiative of “Meri Awaz Suno” organized by Kailash Satyarthi Children’s Foundation (KSCF) and supported by boAt, India’s leading audio and wearables brand. The mesmerizing event musical theatre was staged by children who were selected after a year-long talent hunt programme under the “Meri Awaz Suno” initiative by Kailash Satyarthi Children’s Foundation and supported by boAt. The programme was inaugurated by Nobel Peace Laureate Kailash Satyarthi, eminent social worker Sumedha Kailash, CEO of boAt, Vivek Gambhir, Managing Director of KSCF, Rear Admiral Rahul Kumar Shrawat AVSM, Retd and children of Delhi’s slum communities. Other key dignitaries present at the event were Nilotpal Mrinal, eminent poet and celebrity writer and Aditya Om, famous screen writer, actor, director and film-maker. Scholarships were also awarded to top 10 child talents to pursue their cherished dreams in their chosen fields like dance, theatre, music and cricket.

“Badlaav ke Beej” showcased the life story of Nobel Peace Laureate Kailash Satyarthi, which speaks of human compassion, empathy and love for children and their precious childhood. The performance highlighted the various crimes committed against children like child labour, child marriage, child sexual abuse and child trafficking. The programme depicted how he dared to walk on a “path less travelled” of saving the precious lives of thousands of innocent children who were victims of heinous crimes. The musical theatre also emphasized how a common citizen through his firm resolve and conviction was able to make a positive impact and awaken the social consciousness to bring crimes committed against children to the fore and persuade the government to enact appropriate laws to curb such crimes. Scholarships were given to – in dance to Nujhat, and Ankit, both are in class 10 and Kumkum is in class 12; in theatre Kajal Thakur from class 10, Neha and Nisha both from class 8; in cricket Tashu from class 7 and Shivam from class 12; in music Tilak is second year college student and Shobha from class 6.

Stressing on the need for having common education for all children across the country, S.P. Singh Baghel, Minister of state for Law and Justice said, “It is a privilege to be part of the programme. Our country missed the opportunity to adopting a common education system for all children in the country. This would have given an equal opportunity to all children to develop their capabilities and grow equally. Today’s performance was very different from other programmes staged by trained professionals, the performance today was real-life and natural, the children were living their real life on stage much like professional actors. I’m certain that some of the children among these young talents will go on to become great actors in future.”

All the children belong to Bal Mitra Mandal (BMM) or child friendly community, and were mentored by professional trainers and the programme this evening showcased their immense talent before the audience.

Bal Mitra Mandal (BMM) is an innovative concept of Nobel Peace Laureate Kailash Satyarthi and was launched in 2018. BMM is a sustainable, holistic, and preventive intervention for child protection and development in urban slum communities so that every child is safe, free, and educated.

Vivek Gambbir, CEO of boAT said, “It is a privilege to partner with KSCF and the Meri Awaz Suno initiative. Kailash ji speaks of three D’s – dream big, discover your full potential and do act on your dreams. The third D ties in very well with the boAt mission “to do what floats your boAt”. We at boAt are fully committed to enable our community to explore and achieve their full potential. To provide a platform to develop their talents in dance, theatre, music and cricket and we remain very committed to develop their talents further”.

Expressing his delight at the immense talent of the young children, Managing Director of Kailash Satyarthi Children’s Foundation, Rear Admiral Rahul Kumar Shrawat AVSM, Retd said, “All these talented children, who are performing in different roles in front of you, all have the same objectives of eliminating child labour, child marriage, child exploitation, child sexual abuse and child trafficking from our society, neighbourhood and colonies. These children will work as goodwill ambassadors to achieve their objectives”.