I'm not here to push myself, but the causes I have: Ness Wadia

He may not be the one to court fame or celebrity, but headlines continue to chase Ness Wadia, scion of the Wadia Group, turning him into India's most recognized and "selfied-with" face in the corporate world. But behind the suit and corporate armor, is a man with a philanthropic drive. Ness is an active force in his company's innumerable charitable ventures, one of them being the Little Hearts Marathon that took place on Sunday. The event, which Ness flagged off with health minister Dr Deepak Sawant, Dr Minnie Bodhanwala, CEO of Wadia Hospitals, and Aditya Thackeray, saw participation of 12,000 kids. In an interview with Rubina A Khan, Ness shares his vision to reach out to kids with cardiac problems. Edited excerpts:

How did the idea of the Little Hearts Marathon come about?

We wanted to help kids with cardiac ailments and raise awareness on that front as a lot of kids suffer from cardiac problems. We found out that many hospitals were not looking into children's cardiac care so the Bai Jerbai Wadia Hospital for Children (BJWHC) tied up with the Siddhivinayak Ganpati Temple Trust and formed a cardiac unit to help such kids. Last year, Salman Khan flagged off the first edition of the marathon, with 10,000 kids participating. We are planning to take it across India and other parts of Maharashtra as well to raise funds for setting up a cardiac center at BJWHC to reduce the costs and waiting time for cardiac surgeries.

Lots of marching bands, cadet corps… how do you involve these schools and their kids?

This is all voluntary work on behalf of the schools and the children as this is a charitable organization and everything is pro bono – it's children helping other children. The staff working here are all from the Wadia Hospitals, Lions Club, Rotary Club and schools. We treat thousands of kids a year, and last year was special as we treated a set of conjoined twins who are now doing well. This is one of the most important joys in my life. I was here for most part of Diwali last year and spent it with all the kids. The Wadia Hospitals have been around for 86 years and we are looking to renovate and expand. We don't publicise the Wadia Hospitals, we never have, now we are beginning to. Our goal is to have possibly, charitable hospitals across India, as opposed to hospitals that earn money; we have enough businesses that earn money. We do change lives here. My plea to anyone who reads this and anyone who hears about this, even if it is one rupee, please, just donate.

The work which one does in the Wadia Group has always been very low key, the family has always been low key. But the perception is not, unfortunately. We have been involved in the building of India and will continue to do so. And honestly, I am not here to push myself, but the causes I have.

Do these children feel like yours at some point given you spend time, follow their progress charts and are so involved in their lives?

I don't know if they feel like mine, but they inspire me to do more. We have the hospital website - http://wadiahospitals.org where you can donate and help. In fact, we had an argument about the amount as I firmly believe you cannot put a minimum on a donation. A man wants to put one rupee into a box, let him put it. Let him choose.

Are you looking forward to the eighth season of the IPL this year?
Sure! We (Kings XI Punjab) want to win this year. We have a great bunch of players and it feels like a good season.