Bangalore: They were ignored, discriminated and denied of their rights by birth– from the luxury of a life with parental love to the hopes of a rosy future. But the journey took them to the safest hands of a few good people who gave wings to their dreams and there is one dream that they held very close to their hearts, prepared for it over eight months, and the team of mentors toiled for it over an year – but now, all seems to have gone in vain as the embassy denied visas to the 8 orphans to go U.S. to represent India in the World Orphans Choir.

Only 7 children and 1 leader are selected from various third-world countries and after auditioning over 1000 Indian at-risk and orphaned children from different parts of the country, International Children's Network's (ICN) representative from the U.S., Heather Mehra-Pedersen selected final 7 from Udayan Care Homes located in Delhi NCR. The selected seven was deemed the best to represent the country in sharing their stories and culture during a one year United States Tour touring 20 cities. The one-year program was forced to cut short to 8 months as two months wer spent on clearing the paper-works, both in India and U.S. including permission from the Department of Homeland Security in U.S. The kids were practicing for eight months to perform before the world stage and to compete with children from different parts of the globe, but just two days before their much-awaited departure, the embassy denied them visas shattering the big dreams of the small minds apart.

“At Udayan Care, we have always ensured that despite their circumstances, children feel "equal" to their peers in the neighborhood, school and society. The most recent denial of U.S. visa, has undermined this belief and their confidence, leaving them feeling "less than" or inferior to other children, They are also deeply disappointed that 6 months of their hard work "has gone waste". Moreover they are anxious that that their "school friends will make fun" of them,” said Reena Tete, Director-Programmes at Udayan Care.