‘LALKAAR’- The Concert On a Mission to End Violence Against Women and Girls Unites Mumbai

Farhan Akhtar, Armaan Malik, Harshdeep Kaur, Papon, Salim- Sulaiman, Sukriti- Prakriti say Bas Ab Bahut Ho Gaya

Shah Rukh Khan makes a special appearance and recites a poem dedicated to women

Mumbai: The much-awaited ‘LALKAAR’ concert led by Population Foundation of India, Farhan Akhtar's MARD, director Feroz Abbas Khan and supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation united Mumbai as music and musicians lent their support to the campaign that aims to end violence against women and girls.

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The concert rolled at Mumbai’s Bandra Fort Amphitheatre with Farhan Akhtar, Armaan Malik, Harshdeep Kaur, Papon, Salim- Sulaiman and Sukriti- Prakriti preforming to a packed venue. Superstar Shah Rukh Khan made a special appearance and recited a poem written by Javed Akhtar dedicated to women.

“We are using our creativity and our music at the LALKAAR concert to galvanise the movement to end violence against women and girls. We are on a mission to galvanise support and inspire the youth to be a catalyst of change for generations to come”, said Farhan Akhtar.

Aamir Khan, Priyanka Chopra, Hrithik Roshan, Shabana Azmi, Vishal Dadlani, Shankar Mahadevan, Richa Chadha, Kriti Sanon and Varun Dhawan have lent their voices to the campaign & supported LALKAAR on social media. 

The concert was free for registered communities at large pan India and the rest of the world. The concert was broadcast on Facebook Live to be available for all in a bid to inspire change for the greater good now and for generations to come. 

LALKAAR also had real life heroes from across the country who have transformed their lives or those of others.

According to Poonam Muttreja, Executive Director, Population Foundation Of India (PFI), “We are done talking, the data has been shared, the schemes have been introduced and the laws have been framed and while all this is important it has not been sufficient. With LALKAAR we demand real action on changing mindsets and norms that perpetuate a culture of violence”.

Feroz Abbas Khan says’, “We want to take this campaign to those who are usually left out of the conversation, we cannot limit our engagement to a reaction but want it to convert into action. Bas Ab Bahut Ho Gaya – Enough Is Enough is a campaign that intends to be a way of continuous and sustained engagement to sensitise people who are usually left out of this conversation. This is our message to men, because agar desh ko badalna hai, toh mard ko badalna hoga”.

Launched by Population Foundation of India, Farhan Akhtar’s MARD and Feroz Abbas Khan on 30th  May, Bas Ab Bahut Ho Gaya- Enough is Enough is a campaign that aims at generating debate and promote positive change in cultural and social norms around the value of women in India. National celebrities joined this campaign to relay messages that motivate young girls to stand up against violence, and show boys that masculinity is not connected with violence. Apart from the films, there were several activities including college panel discussions across 40 campuses and a film making contest in which 600 colleges took part with close to 2000 entries.

Twitter-

Population Foundation of India -  @PFI3

Farhan Akhtar  -  @FarOutAkhtar     

MARD- @MardOfficial

Poonam Muttreja - @Letstransform

Instagram-

Population Foundation of India -  @Population Foundation of India

Farhan Akhtar -

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@FarOutAkhtar

#LALKAAR #VAWG #BasAbBahutHoGaya #FarhanAkhtar  #LALKAARConcert #PoonamMuttreja #FerozAbbasKhan #PopulationFoundationofIndia