Active philanthropist Rajashree Birla and actor John Abraham who have teamed up to work towards providing homes for the needy — only this one will concentrate on South East Asian countries like Thailand, Laos, Southern China, Cambodia and Vietnam.
“Everybody is equal and every country has poverty. So we are just trying to reach out to as many people as possible and provide homes to the really poor in the Mekong region. John Abraham has been very interested in working with us for this cause,” said Rajashree, who is the co-chairperson of Habitat for Humanity Advisory and a member of Habitat’s Global Capital Campaign.
But it’s not as if the poor in India aren’t beneficaries — Rajashree clarifies that Habitat has tied up with several other NGO’s in the country to provide homes.
“Recently we had an association with an NGO in Gujarat to build around 1000 houses there. We have also teamed with ASK for a joint project — so we are partnering with many like-minded groups,” she says.
Meanwhile, John Abraham who’d been named the brand ambassador for Habitat for Humanity (India) in 2006, is delighted that he’s now been conferred the title of ‘Habitat Hero’ this year.
“I’m delighted and feel priviliged to be working with this body. The need for this country is homes and I’m happy that I’m with them. I can never forget the face of an old lady who walked up to me and just said ‘thank you’ with a smile. I’m excited that this project also targets the youth,” John told DNA.
So is looking to take along lady love Bipasha Basu when he travels to South East Asia to build homes? “Everyone is welcome to partner in the cause — and yes, I’ll be very happy if Bipasha comes with me.”
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