Summer workshop at Yellow Bus - Koothu by Palani

The Aseema Trust facilitated a summer workshop on traditional therukoothu movements at Yellow Bus School from 19th to 30th April 2010, Children in the age group of 6 - 12 enjoyed their time with Purisai Palani grand son of Kalaimamani Purasai Kannappa Thambiran.


Please see the attached link for the photographs of the first session on 19th April, 2010.

Dr.Gita Arjun at Avvai Home

The Aseema Trust is very happy that the most distinguished gynecologist of Chennai, Dr.Gita Arjun readily consented to answering questions about their bodies that the girls of Avvai Home school had expressed during their sessions of our project UMA (Using Media to address health issues among Adolescents) in partnership with World Education, Boston. The meeting took place on 31st March 2010 at Avvai Home.
For more photos click here.

traditional performing arts

V.R.Devika gave a talk on Traditional performing arts for the prestigious south India heritage group organised by Mr.Chari at TAG centre.

siva nataraja orion

V.R.Devika gave an illustrated talk on Siva , Nataraja and the Orion constellation on the occasion of Sivarathri on 12th February 2010 at Janaki MGR College at the invitation of its Natya department.

The HIndu young world report of Sarvodaya day at Central

http://www.hindu.com/yw/2010/02/09/stories/2010020950451400.htm

The Hindu Young World February 9, 2010

Progress for all
SELINE AUGUSTINE
Sarvodaya Day saw unusual activity at the Central Station with singing, dancing and spinning the charkha.
Mahatma gandhi coined the word 'sarvodaya' as the title of his translation of ruskin's tract 'unto this last'. sarva means all, and udaya means uplift.
All dressed up :Waiting to get the feet a-dancing.
As usual the Central railway station was crackling with life and frenetic movement on Saturday last. But as the passengers and their kin entered the main hall they did a double take on seeing half a dozen school girls busy spinning the charkha! It was Sarvodaya Day and the Aseema Trust, Anusuya Foundation for Women and Children, Gandhi Mission, Chennai, together with the Southern Railway had come up with the idea of paying tribute to Gandhiji on his death anniversary.
The founder director of Aseema Trust, V. R.Devika, said the reason for choosing the Central station is that “it is only in the railway station that you can see people of all hues, all dispositions and all status”. The girls from Avvai Home were adept at spinning and when onlookers were invited to try their hand at the charkha, a few foreigners were eager to volunteer.
Try your hand
There was this woman from Bihar who was waiting for her train later in the evening, Bemikaladevi — she came and took to it like a duck to water. It almost seemed like she had missed working on the charkha, Devika remarked.
The day's programme was to urge men and women of India to unite for peace and justice based on Gandhian principles of truth and non-violence. The date was chosen as it is on this day 62 years ago that the Father of the Nation fell a prey to an assassin's bullet.
Interestingly, it was Mahatma Gandhi who coined the word Sarvodaya as the title of his 1908 translation of Ruskin's tract, Unto This Last. Sarva means all, udaya means uplift. Thus the word signifies Progress for All.
Sowmya Madhanagopal and her students took the stage next and sang songs and bhajans dear to the heart of the Mahatma, beginning with Vaishnava Janato. A good many in the audience joined when the troupe came to “Shanti Nilava vendum”.
Then came the show stealers, the little dancers from schools in Anna Nagar. Trained by choreographer Premnath, the colourfully costumed kids danced to the song, Ahimsa devi (recorded by Bombay Jayashree) which described her 63 attributes. The Anusuya Foundation honoured all the artists and the programme came to a close with “Raghupathi Raghava”.

Spin a yarn in Cochin....

The Rotary International in Cochin had a conference on "World Peace for youth" February 5 - 7th 2010. V.R.Devika was asked to speak on "Gandhi's Ahimsa and pluralism". She was asked by Shyamala Surendran, managing trustee of Sarvodaya International, kerala chapter to do an outreach of Aseema's "Spin a yarn .." project by giving a presentation on Gandhi and ahimsa and a demonstration of spinning on the Charkha to two schools also. The response from the students of class 9 and 11 of Bhavan's Elamakkara and of classes 5 and 6 of Vidyodaya were tremendous as well as the two hundred and odd students of various colleges in Cochin who had registered for the conference judging by the number of students who came up to Devika to discuss during the lunch break.

January 2010

The Aseema Trust ended January with the Sarvodaya Day commemoration at the Central Railway Station, Chennai. A wonderful collaboration with D.K.Oza's Gandhi Mission and Anusuya Foundation and with the enthusiastic participation by G.Rammohan, the event was memorable.
see more pictures here http://picasaweb.google.com/trustaseema/SarvodyaDay30thJan2010#
We had spinning on charkha by girls from Avvai Home lead by the warden Mrs.Jeyaraj and Bharathanatyam dance on Ahimsa Devi (sung by Bombay Jayashri) by the students of Rukminidevi Natyakshetra run by Premnath our ever sincere resource person and songs liked by Gandhi sung by Sowmiya Madanagopal and students. We projected still images and video clippings of Gandhi on a screen. Passengers waiting in the concourse said they had a most satisfying day. Bemikalamba, on her way back to her Madhubani village in Bihar after visiting Rameshwaram had to spend ten hours in the Chennai station due to the late arrival of the connecting train to Patna. She rushed in when she saw the spinning wheels and began to spin furiously getting very fine thread. This was just what we wanted.. connection with the masses. She joined in when we all sang Raghupati Raghava Raja ram at the end. As we were coming out, the police men and women at the gate told us that they had the most moving time in their entire career watching this.
January has been hectic. Sowmya Balakrishnan has joined us and we are very happy with her enthusiasm and her expertise. She has been conducting the dance sessions at Avvai Home school and teacher trainees. Sessions were held by her on 4th, 11th, 18th and 25th. Raviraaj and Mansadevi of Kalanjiyam did sessions on evaluation of impact of these sessions.
V.R.Devika gave a ppt presentation on Gandhi and Khadi at Premnath's Rukminidevi Natyakshetra on 2nd and was the guest of honour with Vasantha at the valedictory of their cultural week on 10th.
On 13th and 14th, V.R.Devika guided two couples from the US at Mamallapuram and Dakshinachitra's Pongal festival. We participated in full measure at Prakriti Foundation's annual Dennis Hudson memorial lecture and the release of Vaikunta Perumal temple an interpretation by Dennis Hudson. 4th - 8th.
On 8th V.R.Devika was asked to do a face to face with dancer Priyadarsini Govind for Deccan Chronicle newspaper.
V.R.Devika attended the Mamalla heritage group talk sessions every Sunday. She also interviewed usha Rajkumar, an entrepreneur extraordinary for Eves Touch magazine.
V.R.Devika gave a ppt presentation on Gandhi and spinning to the children of Yellow bus school on 22nd more pictures at http://picasaweb.google.com/trustaseema/AtYellowBus#

and participated in Prakriti Foundation's Gharana Dhrupad festival 22, 23, 24.
SOS children's' Village mother's day celebrations on 25th.
V.R.Devika gave an illustrated talk on Gandhi at the Martin Luther King jr day of Indo American Society at Stella Maris College. on 28th.
V.R.Devika gave a ppt presentation and told stories of Gandhi as part of Prakriti Foundation's tree of life festival at AMM school on 29th.
Sarvodaya day on 30th.