Beverly Hills, Calif. – A visionary social activist, legendary musician and Bollywood actor highlighted the VIP charity fundraiser for the Sheila Kar Foundation held Feb. 13 at the Beverly Wilshire hotel here.
An estimated crowd of 200 people filled the mezzanine level ballroom to support the Sheila Kar Foundation’s 11th Annual Valentine’s Day Seminar and Gala festivities, where Barefoot College founder Bunker Roy was honored for his work with illiterate and semi-literate populations in the Indian state of Rajasthan.
The evening gala was also highlighted by the support of Bollywood actor Gulshan Grover and a musical performance by Grammy award winner and Eagles lead guitarist Don Felder.
Former Saturday Night Live personality Joe Piscopo served as the gala’s emcee for yet another year. The comedian and actor who also starred in films such as “Johnny Dangerously” and “Wise Guys” told India-West he makes it a point to attend the annual Valentine’s Day event no matter his other commitments.
“I’m supposed to be at NBC in New York for the ‘SNL’ reunion. I told NBC, ‘look, if you need me there, I’ll be there,’ but I made a commitment to be here [at the Sheila Kar Foundation gala],” Piscopo said. “My dear friend, Dr. Kar, put this together, so I had to be here.”
Also altering his schedule to support Sheila Kar, an attending Indian American cardiologist at Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute, and her annual event was Bollywood actor Gulshan Grover. The actor was scheduled to return to India earlier in the week but extended his stay in the Los Angeles area after hearing about Kar and her foundation from a friend.
“The work she is doing is something I want to applaud and want to encourage. She’s surely a very dedicated person and she’s helping people by fixing, mending, repairing and making their hearts happy,” Grover told India-West.
Grover also commended Roy for his vision, hailing Barefoot College as revolutionary.
Though Kar has recognized several high-profile names at previous galas, including Larry King, Anderson Cooper and Brett Ratner, this year’s gala paid tribute to Roy’s work in educating villagers in India to become self sustaining through clean water and electricity.
Piscopo said Roy’s work in rural Rajasthan could also benefit inner cities across the United States.
“Bring Bunker Roy to the inner cities of the United States of America. This guy has a plan. It’s God’s work that he’s doing,” Piscopo told India-West.
Interestingly enough, last week’s gala could indeed be the beginning of Kar and Roy working together. Kar told India-West she plans to support Roy’s endeavors and travel to India to expand the reach of Barefoot College to other villages.
“Our foundation will definitely commit to students working with Bunker and commit to electrifying a few villages every year,” Kar told India-West, adding she hoped Roy could earn a Nobel Peace Prize one day.
Kar put in some work to promote Roy’s work in Southern California, as well, hosting a discussion between him and a group of local youth about what Barefoot College has achieved at its campus in the rural village of Tilonia in Rajasthan.
The BarefootCollege founder said conventional wisdom is not always the best way to achieve true progress.
“You have to start thinking outside of the box. If you think what is happening in front of you is not right, is not correct, you have to think outside the box,” Roy said. “That is how I started. How do think of something that no one accepts but you believe is the way to go about [reaching the right solution]?”
Roy added it is important to distinguish between literacy and education. Specifically, education and literacy is not one and the same, he said. For example, someone might have knowledge of how to farm different crops through the seasons and be illiterate. It would be a mistake to label this person as uneducated, Roy said. The acquisition of any form of knowledge, regardless of how it is obtained, makes someone educated, according to Roy.
The dissemination of knowledge was freely shared prior to the Feb. 13 evening gala, as the Sheila Kar Foundation hosted a free to the public health seminar on sleep. The two-hour seminar discussed how one could improve his or her sleeping habits, common sleep disorders and sleep hygiene. Joining Kar on the four-member panel were sleep experts Alon Y. Avidan, Gary Feldman and Susan Rausch.
“All age groups are being deprived of sleep,” Kar said. “The minimum amount of sleep, irrespective of age, is eight hours.”
The Sheila Kar Foundation, which aims to close the gap between our knowledge of heart disease and what could be done to prevent it, regularly hosts a Valentine’s Day seminar and gala event. More information about the foundation can be found at www.skhf.net.
Roy founded Barefoot College in Tilonia in 1972; the college does not grant degrees or certificates but instead is a voluntary organization focusing on helping rural communities gain access to drinking water, education, electricity through solar power and health.
Source: India West