Neil champions the cause of women

Neil Nitin Mukesh has embarked on a philanthropic project to support the welfare of needy women. He’ll start an NGO to provide them with food and shelter. The women would also be given vocational training so that they can earn their own living.

Neil has decided to name the NGO after his grandmother Saral Devi, who had a colourful romance with his grandfather, the legendary singer Mukesh. They had eloped to get married when her family objected to her choice of groom.

He said, “I have read about women getting oppressed, exploited by men and other family members. They get sold like commodities and are driven into prostitution. I’m always pained to hear all this and at the back of my mind I had thought that I would start an organisation to support such women. I think the time is right to launch it and I’m naming this initiative after my grandmother.”

Neil will launch his organisation in Mumbai and then expand it to cities like Delhi, Bangalore and Pune among others. He added, “We will provide them with knowledge and technical know-how on various vocations so that they can sustain themselves on their own. We will also educate them about their rights so that they can stand up against injustice and oppression. We are also looking at building shelters for women who are thrown out of their houses or have become beggars.”

Neil will try and rope in some of his Bollywood friends to spread the word about his venture. “I will have partners in this venture and I’m finalising everything at a rapid pace. I have always done my bit for charity by walking the ramp or doing things for free which I don’t want to talk about as I don’t publicise noble work. But for this one I need the support of one and all as there are lots of women to be rescued,” he said.