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CRY America raises $1.5 million to support India’s underprivileged children
“We’re here to make a difference because we care," said Actor Arjun Rampal while urging attendees to contribute
Arjun Rampal with CRY America major donors Laura and Percy Presswalla at the CRY San Francisco gala on Apr.28 / Sunita Sohrabji
CAMPBELL, California — Bollywood actor Arjun Rampal was the guest of honor at five US galas for CRY America, which collectively raised more than $1.5 million to support 111 projects in India benefiting underprivileged children.
CRY America is the fundraising arm of Child Rights and You, a Mumbai-based nonprofit organization founded in 1979 by Rippan Kapur, a former Air India purser who grew up watching children living in the slums near his home. Kapur had no money when he started, but made greeting cards to raise revenue for his fledgling NGO.
Today, CRY has projects in every state in India, directly working with 796,919 children in 5,027 villages and slums. The organization focuses primarily on child health and malnutrition, education, and eliminating child labor and child marriage.
Bollywood actor Arjun Rampal was the honored guest at five CRY America galas, which collectively raised $1.5 million. / Sunita SohrabjiAt the San Francisco Bay Area gala here April 28, Rampal went from table to table, imploring the wealthy residents of the Silicon Valley to open their hearts and pocketbooks. “There are some nasty people out there who do nasty things. Those people need to be stopped. And that’s where we come in,” said Rampal, focusing on CRY’s support for children who are the victims of sex trafficking.
“Those are the bad guys and we are the good guys,” said the actor, who has played the role of villain many times in his long career. “We’re here to make a difference because we care. We’re here to support the millions of children who are in need of a friend to support them.” Rampal, accompanied by emcee Sunny Moza, did not leave the stage until the organization had exceeded its local goal of $315,000, and took photos with every donor.
CRY’s projects indirectly touch the lives of an additional 2.5 million children, said CEO Puja Marwaha. “Our projects have a multiplier effect: if you can change 10% of one district, you change the entire district,” she said, noting that other villages in the district copy CRY’s models.
Marwaha said she hopes to impact 6,328 villages by 2028, with 100% of children immunized, and at least 97% remaining in school to completion until 12th grade. She noted that in India, education is not free after the 8th grade: “there is an alarming drop-off after that.”
On the sidelines of the gala, Marwaha later told New India Abroad that India’s low-income children lack a sense of agency. “We are hoping to build a future in which a child can say: “No, I will not get married. No, I will not drop out of school. We want to create children who then go out and shape the lives of others.”
Child Relief and You CEO Puja Marwaha (left) with SRF Program Director Rolee Singh / Sunita Sohrabji
“Slowly, we are seeing the attitudes of parents changing towards their girl children. If they finish their education, they become earners, contributing to the family’s income, educating their brothers and sisters and contributing to the national GDP. Girls are transformed from being a burden to becoming an asset,” Marwaha told NIA.
Dr. Rolee Singh, program director of the Uttar Pradesh-based Dr. Shambhunath Singh Research Foundation which works to rescue girls from child marriage and sex trafficking, spoke movingly about Rita, a young girl married off at age 14 to a 23-year-old man, who moved her to Mumbai to be employed in the sex trade. SRF — which is supported by CRY — learned of the situation through its network of volunteers on the ground. The organization managed to rescue Rita, but found that she was a couple of weeks pregnant. Through a court order, SRF was able to get the teenager an abortion.
The organization then moved the matter to the courts, attempting to get the husband arrested on criminal charges for sex trafficking. Police had been bribed and would not provide help or documents, said Singh passionately. Rita’s parents did not welcome her back, because of the stigma and shame associated with what she had undergone.
Her ex-husband did go to jail for 18 months, but is now out. The girl and her family have received threats, but continue to receive support from SRF, which has worked with 10,000 cases of child marriage, child sexual abuse, and child abandonment.
Over the past two weeks, CRY America also held galas in New York, Texas, Seattle, and San Diego.
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Comments
Sam Patel
2024-04-30 00:00:00
So what about supporting the Indians in America who are poor! There are children who grow up poor in USA.
Sunita Sohrabji
2024-04-30 00:00:00
Sam, is it not possible to support both children in India and in the US simultaneously? My cousin, for example, volunteers with CRY America, as well as a nonprofit organization supporting low-income families in San Mateo County. It is entirely possible to do both.
Sunita Sohrabji
2024-04-30 00:00:00
Sam, is it not possible to support both children in India and in the US simultaneously? My cousin, for example, volunteers with CRY America, as well as a nonprofit organization supporting low-income families in San Mateo County. It is entirely possible to do both.
Sunita Sohrabji
2024-04-30 00:00:00
Sam, is it not possible to support both children in India and in the US simultaneously? My cousin, for example, volunteers with CRY America, as well as a nonprofit organization supporting low-income families in San Mateo County. It is entirely possible to do both.
Sunita Sohrabji
2024-04-30 00:00:00
Sam, is it not possible to support both children in India and in the US simultaneously? My cousin, for example, volunteers with CRY America, as well as a nonprofit organization supporting low-income families in San Mateo County. It is entirely possible to do both.
Sunita Sohrabji
2024-04-30 00:00:00
Sam, is it not possible to support both children in India and in the US simultaneously? My cousin, for example, volunteers with CRY America, as well as a nonprofit organization supporting low-income families in San Mateo County. It is entirely possible to do both.