A participant at the Juhu Half Marathon

Over 4000 runners from all across Mumbai and beyond participated in the Juhu Half Marathon, running through the scenic Juhu and Juhu Beach areas with Hrithik Roshan & Harbhajan Singh as brand ambassadors. The marathon was flagged off by Kunal Kapoor, Vatsal Seth, Darasingh Khuraa, Sujay Jairaj of Jamnabai Narsee School, and District Governor of the Rotary District 3141, Mr.Prafull Sharma among other dignitaries. Bharat Kapadia of Get Fit Thru Sports Foundation and Ujwal Andhari - President, Rotary Club of Bombay Aiport also graced the occasion.

The marathon was divided into three race events of 21km, 10km & an untimed race of 4km - all starting from the Joggers Park, opposite Jamnabai Narsee School. The route was through the tree-covered JVPD bylanes crossing the iLoveMumbai sign, JW Marriott, Juhu Promenade to the newly renovated Lions Garden towards Bandra National College & back for the 21km & a variant of the same for 10km & 4km — all the three getting to run upto & beyond the Juhu promenade. The race culminated at the starting point, that is the Joggers Park.

Said Bharat Kapadia of Get Fit Thru Sports Foundation and Ujwal Andhari – President, Rotary Club of Bombay Airport who have promoted the event through various initiatives, “The aim of the marathon is to inspire people across all age groups to get active and take up sports to maintain and enhance fitness.”  Echoed Ujwal Andhari – President, Rotary Club of Bombay Airport, “We are highly grateful to the fitness enthusiast community in supporting us and inspiring several others to participate in the marathon — we had a fairly good level of first time/amateur runners along with  the regular and in that we saw the popularity of this sport meeting our objective.”

The marathon also boasts of Dabur Honey as the presenting Sponsor of the Juhu Half Marathon, Motilal Oswal as the Investment Partner, Hrithik Roshan’s fitness brand HRX as the Fitness Partner, Nanavati Super Speciality Hospital as the Medical Partner, Bisleri as the Hydration and Pedialyte as the Energy Drink Partner, Mahindra & Mahindra’s Thar as the Lead Car Sponsor, Imagica as the Entertainment Partner, among several others.

Every participant emerged a winner!

Bharat Kapadia Kunal Kapoor and Vatsal Seth at the Juhu Half Marathon 2018

JOSH Foundation in Mozambique

Devangi Dalal with the Hearing Impaired

Audiologist and Speech Therapist, Devangi Dalal, got felicitated by the Indian Ambassador to Mozambique in Maputo in the presence of the American and Mauritius Ambassadors to Mozambique.

Rizwan Adatia visited India and met us at the Josh Foundation and he had in his mind to conduct and organize a hearing camp in Maputo, Mozambique.

Last year they organized a camp with USA’s Entheos. It was their first project and they found it difficult to screen and fit hearing aids at same time. The camp was conducted in two phases with 4 audiologists. 700 people were screened for hearing loss and out of them, 430 patients were fitted with technologically effective hearing aids. Entheos from USA, Rizwan Adatia Foundation from Maputo (Africa) and JOSH Foundation from India work together for humanity to create Hear the Future.

And then we went to fit the hearing aid to them and see how to make long term plan to help people to hear well.

Out of 400 hearing aids fitted, more than 50 % were on kids and middle age people getting hearing loss because of Mycin drug being administered to treat Malaria and Tuberculosis there.

In the future, awareness camps need to be conducted for all age groups to keep them informed.

She is planning to work with the Indian embassy of Maputo to make a public policy in this hearing health care issue.

Rouble Nagi joins hands with Sachin & Sangeeta Ahir for Worli Koliwada Coastline cleanliness drive

A cleanliness drive was undertaken at the Worli Koliwada Coastline. The Coastline, located right opposite the Indian Coast Guard in Worli Village, had widespread garbage dumping issues and needed immediate attention. Artist and social activist Rouble Nagi, as part of her Misaal Mumbai initiative, teamed up with Sachin Ahir and Sangeeta Ahir of Maitree Charitable Trust, to bring about the said change and beautification to the lives of the Koli fishermen who dwell in that area.

Rouble Nagi, Sachin Ahir & Sangeeta Ahir at the Worli Koliwada coastline cleanliness drive, an initiative by Rouble Nagi of Misaal Mumbai & Sachin & Sangeeta Ahir of Maitree Charitable Trust 1

Sachin Ahir, Rouble Nagi & Sangeeta Ahir at the Worli Koliwada coastline cleanliness drive, an initiative by Rouble Nagi of Misaal Mumbai & Sachin & Sangeeta Ahir of Maitree Charitable Trust

The Misaal Mumbai artist Rouble Nagi has also been instrumental in Dharavi, Bandstand, Cuffe Parade and Colaba slums painting and revamping projects, wherein, besides just the paint, the slums are also refurbished, roofs redone with waterproofing to ensure the they do not leak in the rains. Also, recently her foundation, Rouble Nagi Art Foundation (RNAF) took it up on themselves to beautify Mumbai’s pride, the Dhobi Ghat in Cuffe Parade.

“At Misaal Mumbai, we want to ensure a clean and hygienic coastline for the fishermen and at the same time, help them beautify their surroundings. That is the least we can do for the dwellers of the Worli Koli community. As a Mumbaiite, it is a matter of pride for each of us that we house the Koli Communities!”, said Rouble Nagi.

"Rouble Nagi’s initiative as an artist and social activist is commendable. We loved the way she infused fresh life in the city of Mumbai with a new vigour and a new colour palette when she refurbished and painted the slums of a Worli Koliwada is a community and Rouble looked at the project like a blank canvas and breathed creative colours into it. Rouble, along with my wife, Sangeeta Ahir, has pioneered a citizen movement. Tomorrow, BMC and Navy workers, Podar school students, doctors and advocates will be lending a hand as well," added Sachin Ahir.

Maa...I Can Speak Now!!

On the face of it, hearing impairment may sound like a disability that can be easily dismissed. Take a closer look and the statistics are staggering. Over 360 million people in the world suffer from disabling hearing loss and the impairment among children is increasing at around 60%. Simply put, 5.3% of the world population has disabling hearing loss of which 32 million are children, according to WHO estimates.

In India alone, 63 million people suffer from significant auditory loss and that includes around 50 lakh children. Surveys have estimated hearing loss to be the third leading cause of chronic disability, following arthritis and hypertension. 

Audiologist & Speech Therapist Devangi Dalal with kids at the JOSH Foundation's inter-school dance competition for the hearing impaired

World Hearing Day is held on March 3 each year to raise awareness on how to prevent deafness and hearing loss and to emphasize on ear and hearing care the world over. This year, with the theme 'Hear the future', World Hearing Day draws attention to the anticipated increase of people with hearing loss in the coming decades and preventive strategies to stem the rise and ensure rehabilitation services and communication tools are in place. This makes the relevance of World Hearing Day the need of the hour. 

"In most cases, children who struggle to hear can be helped with the correct hearing aid. We need to understand that hearing disability can be a nowned speech impediment resulting in the child being a socially isolated underachiever, something that can be prevented/controlled", says Audiologist, Speech therapist and Author Devangi Dalal, the recipient of Humanitarian Award from the American Academy of Audiology (AAA).

Dalal has dedicated her career to improving the quality of life of hearing impaired children of India for the last two and a half decades, and also provides free hearing services that is new digital hearing aids to hearing impaired children, enabling them to speak and attend normal schools. Dalal believes that "a hearing handicap is no longer a handicap", and is currently working at providing hearing impaired children in India the same privileges as the hearing impaired children in Europe and the United States through her foundation, Juvenile Organisation of Speech and Hearing (JOSH), whose purpose is to educate and empower hearing impaired children.

"Through JOSH, we organise programmes to empower the children, be it entertainment programmes were they perform to music, or self development or counseling sessions. We also personally fit children with hearing devices free of cost enabling them to lead normal lives. So far, over 750 children have benefited but there is a need to bring about a movement that will be a road map to independence for children with hearing impairment.”

Dalal points out that there is a need to create awareness in society about early detection of hearing disability and usage of proper hearing aids as hearing impaired children can then be integrated into normal schools.

“Proper neo-natal screening equipment need to be in place,” she adds, stating that there is a need to educate and counsel parents and children and provide the latest technology available to them.

“We also need to work on educational and job opportunities of the hearing impaired. It is then that the children will speak and not use gestural language for communication as if only they could hear with proper diagnosis, proper digital hearing and proper rehabilitation, they are as normal as any of their compatriots. Every successful child fitted with the right hearing devices is a step in that direction", urges Dalal asking each citizen to join her in this mission by lending their ears this World Hearing Day, and be the change.

Chidiakhana is the story of every underdog: Director Manish Tiwary

Diractor Manish Tiwary and Actor Ritwik Sahore

Dreams do not transpire into reality through magic; it takes sweat, determination and hard work. And it may take a little pixie dust to make them come true…This seems to be the crux of director Manish Tiwary’s Chidiakhana, his latest venture after Issaq and Dil Dosti Etc.

Tiwary who wove his tale from his observation of the goings-on in our own metrop, adds that, the story of immigrants and the underdogs is a global issue. The 'Dreamers' in the USA and the cause of immigrants elsewhere in the world are politically rife and topical issues today! Manish Tiwary's Chidiakhana is the story of the underdog Sooraj, a teenager from the heart of hinterlands of Bihar who comes to Mumbai with his mother and finds himself caught in the throes of the Marathi-Bihari conflict, that threatens to take him away from his only passion – football, a game, that he worships, reveres and lives 24x7.

Says Tiwary, “Nevertheless, when you follow your dreams with passion and work hard, you find help from the most unexpected quarters. But will the boy be able to scale the wall that stands between him and his dreams in the zoo of this world that seems to bring with it unique creatures with minds of their own, forms the base of my film.”

Tiwary, who is working on the post-production of the film, avers that Chidiakhana is the story of every underdog. “The hero might be a young teenager fighting against all odds, but in him lies the story of each one of us, our strife and our will that will bend things our way. I would like Chidiakhana to inspire each viewer to achieve his dreams, irrespective of their circumstances.”