“The girl child is someone precious in your family,” said international fashion designer Sanjana Jon, speaking during Save the Girl Child Campaign in the Capital on Wednesday. She is supported in this cause by Miss Universe-2009 Stefania Fernandez of Venezuela, who will be visiting India between July 6 and 11 to promote public awareness against female foeticide and AIDS.
“There was a film doing the rounds in the US last year that showed a lake in Rajasthan with 5,000 female foetuses floating in it. It was like watching a horror film,” said Sanjana recalling how she got involved with the campaign to save the girl child.
The next step, she said, was to work at the grassroots level. Spreading the word against female foeticide in villages was the best way to move forward. “I would love to go to the villages myself. But celebrities talking about the cause would reach out to the masses. Music directors Sajid-Wajid Khan are planning a music video on the lines of mile sur mera tumhara to support Save the Girl Child Campaign,” she said.
Sanjana and Stefania will travel to Haryana, which is one of the States most affected by the problem of female foeticide. They plan to travel to Bangalore because of the “tremendous support” and will also try and visit Mumbai and Chandigarh.
Sanjana has been associated with the AIDS awareness campaign since 2003, and has worked with six Miss Universe title holders and a host of Indian and international celebrities who have actively supported the cause. It was last year that she announced her support for the Save the Girl Child Campaign at the Wills Lifestyle India Fashion Week.
Salman Khan, Sushmita Sen, Mani Ratnam and Suhasini Ratnam are some of the celebrities supporting the campaign in India.
