Swar Utsav raises fund for Jersey based Autism foundation
By siliconindia   |   Friday, 03 December 2010, 13:32 IST   |    2 Comments
Printer Print Email Email
New Jersey: 'Swar Utsav', an event which featured musical performances, raised about $2,000 for the Akhil Autism Foundation in Watchung, N.J., a nonprofit that was established by New Jersey couple Manisha and Mahesh V. Lad in 2008, reports Ela Dutt for Desi Talk. The event was organized by Kalamanch, a cultural group that aims to find and encourage artistic talent. Manisha's and Mahesh's son son Akhil, was diagnosed with autism in 2002, prompting them to become proactive about helping parents cope with the symptoms in India, where there is little infrastructure to help them deal with it. Kalamanch, which is headed by Mahesh Lad, has so far raised about $10,000 to fund awareness about autism in India. The fundraiser which was held in Lakhani Auditorium featured chief guest Dr. Sudhir Parikh, an allergist and publisher of Desi Talk, who was felicitated at the event for his philanthropy. Parikh said that as an allergist he saw many children with autism because one of the theories is it may be from an allergy. "I am really impressed and want to congratulate Akhil Autism Foundation because they are doing a great service to our community," he said. "Autism is a medical disorder that can be manageable and curable." The program featured Hindustani semi classical music ranging from Bollywood songs, to ghazals, thumris and nirguni bhajans. Rucha Jambhekar and Pradnya Jadhav, accompanied by Prashant Gijare on harmonium and Prasad Joshi on tabla performed at the event. The event was compeered by Shrikant Joshi. Manisha Lad who commented on the event also added that she will attend an international conference on autism that their foundation has organized along with India's Apollo Hospitals in Kolkata on December 11 and 12.