Each one of us has the power within ourselves, a superpower indeed that makes us unique. Finding this power within empowers us to inspire and uplift others. Raell Padamsee’s Create Foundation’s ‘The Power Within’ event witnessed participants, hailing from mainstream schools across Mumbai, alongside participants from marginalised & challenged backgrounds (abled & differently-abled), perform their personal interpretations of one’s inherent power through art – drama, dance, song, movement, and creativity. Promoting ‘equal opportunity for all’, the event held at the Sophia Bhabha Auditorium in Breach Candy was graced & judged by several well-known personalities including Siddharth Roy Kapur, Jim Sarbh, Boman Irani, Raell Padamsee, Nandita Puri, Suchitra Pillai, Sandhya Mridul, Denzil Smith, Asif Ali Beg and Anupama Varma among others.
Founded in the loving memory of Pearl Padamsee, The Create Foundation has been relentlessly working with children over the years, with the aim to educate and empower them, including those who face physical and mental challenges. Using the transformative form of the creative arts, the foundation helps to instil essential life skills such as leadership, teamwork, communication, self-confidence, et al, in the children.
At Power Within, seventeen finalists hailing from mainstream schools across Mumbai performed their personal interpretations of the afore-mentioned theme, showcasing their dramatic prowess, and refining their creative and performance skills. Simultaneously, various participants from marginalised & challenged backgrounds expressed their unique takes on ‘The Power Within’ through various mediums of art. While there were two categories of age groups for the children from mainstream schools – 7 to 9 years and 10 to 13 years, participation from the marginalised and challenged (abled & differently-abled) communities came from the children between 8 to 18 years of age. The judging criteria included originality, relevance to the theme, creativity (including props and costumes), diction, proficiency in an art form and overall presentation.
About the event and the initiative undertaken by The Create Foundation, producer Siddharth Roy Kapur imparted, “I thought it was incredibly inspiring. I had a lovely afternoon. The kids put on such a great show! And, I just want to say that The Create Foundation is doing such incredible work to be able to give them (the children) the opportunity to express themselves in this way!”
Actor Jim Sarbh added, “First, I just want to say thanks to Raell and The Create Foundation, because they do this every year and it’s really incredible that they continue to do it with such regularity and make all of the kids that get to go up on stage feel so special. And, in addition to that, I really enjoyed the performances. The spirit of the kids and the creativity that they showed was really incredible! I hope to be back next year to do the same thing!”
Actor Suchitra Pillai sang “Koi Kahe Kehta Rahe” from her film Dil Chahta Hai for all the children present, while Sandhya Mridul shook a leg, instantly adding more energy to the event, bringing wide smiles on the kids’ faces.
Reminiscing about how he started off as an actor, and his first acting stint, Boman Irani said, “I happened to have a photography studio, literally two blocks away from here, back in the day. One day, Shiamak Dawar came to the studio. After the session, he suggested that I should pursue acting. After six months, he came again and drove me down to Alyque Padamsee’s office, where I auditioned and I bagged a role in his play Roshni, which made its debut in this very auditorium where we are standing (Sophia Bhabha Auditorium). This is where I met Raell, when I was 35 and she wondered why I did not join the little actors’ club! (laughs)” About children from different backgrounds performing together on the same platform, the actor said, “The moment you step on the stage, I forget what community or background you belong to. It does not matter! What matters though, is the moment you step on the stage, how creatively rich you can be, the onus is on you to be as rich as possible. The moment a child steps on that stage, it is for him/her to feel like the king/queen of the world.”
The other guests, actors Denzil Smith, Asif Ali Beg, Anupama Varma and journalist Nandita Puri did not leave any stone unturned to cheer the children in every possible way.
Theatre veteran and host Raell Padamsee expressed, “At Create, our core belief revolves around the notion that every individual possesses unique talents and untapped potential, capable of soaring to great heights when provided with the right opportunities. Our vision is to foster an inclusive world, one where every child, regardless of their challenges or economic circumstances, enjoys equal access to opportunities, enabling them to evolve into productive members of society.” And to this, we say touché!