His Love for Gotipua Dance - A Traditional Dance form of Odisha

It is often said that follow your passion but very few are allowed to do it. A student of standard V in Government Kapoteshwar High School in Raghurajpur, Puri, Jyotiranjan joined the Padmashri Guru Magunidas Gotipua Gurukula Niketan (dance academy) to learn Gotipua at the age of seven. He already has to his credit over 20 performances in various cities of Odisha, including Puri and Bhubaneshwar, as well as metros such as Delhi, Mumbai, and Kolkata.

Gotipua, a traditional dance form has an important place in the culture of Odisha. It is performed by young boys and involves a range of acrobatic moves – right from handstands to human pyramid.

Jyotiranjan wants to put this dance form on the world map so that it does not disappear like several other traditional dance forms in the country. His long-term plan is to master the dance form and help to promote it all over the world by teaching others. “If we do not save these dance forms, there will come a day when no one will know about them,” he says innocently. At present, he is happy that it gives him an opportunity to travel to different parts of the country. The dance also gives him an exposure to the world outside the heritage town of Raghurajpur.

Short film on Jyotiranjan Das - Gotipua Dancer

His family is based in Puri. His father Nalinikanta Das works as a priest, while his mother Sailabaila is a homemaker. Jyotiranjan lives in the hostel facility provided by the dance academy which eases the burden on the family. Here children wake up 4 am and begin their dance practice which goes on for two hours. After practice, they do their homework and leave for school. The academy also takes care of their students’ breakfast and dinner, while Akshaya Patra an NGO in Odisha takes care of their lunch at the school.

Jyotiranjan says he likes coming to school because he gets to learn about different things in life and also play kho-kho and kabaddi with his friends. As for academic learning, he enjoys Odiya literature. He also likes environmental science and geography as they give information about the nature, planet, different countries, etc.

The 10-yr-old Jyotiranjan is confident that he will make it big in the world of Gotipua and to a great extent, his confidence stems from the exposure he has got over the course of time. As for his parents, they want him to focus on both – dance and academics and make a name for himself all over the world.

Currently, Akshaya Patra’s school lunch programme feeds over 1.6 million children in 13,800+ schools across 12 states of India. We have to make sure that no child suffers from malnutrition and can have a bright life. You can be a part of this journey and your donation can transform life of a child. You can donate for education in India by choosing to sponsor a child or more!

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With one click, you can make a child smile!

Lighting up a child’s face with a smile is now in your hands! Unlock Smiles is an Akshaya Patra initiative to spread smiles and to feed children through your support. You can donate a smile simply by clicking on the smiley – one smile will feed a child for an entire year.

Through Akshaya Patra’s unlimited food for education, millions of children are able to access education without any fear of going back home hungry. Unlock Smiles initiative, which urges you to sponsor a child, looks forward to reaching out to many more children across India.

Start clicking on the smiles to unlock them. The campaign will be active until Jan 31, 2016!

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The Akshaya Patra Foundation is a not-for-profit organisation which serves mid-day meals to 1.6 million children across 27 locations in 11 states of India.

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Giving for Charity Changes Everything! Read the Story

Ask us what’s the most meaningful aspect of our work and we would be happy to shout out our answer – feeding India’s school children nutritious and healthy meals every day.

In the state that promotes itself as 'One State, Many Worlds' to the globe, The Akshaya Patra Foundation was born with a mission to curb classroom hunger. Karnataka is not only rich in history but is also home to over 64 million people. While this number can boast of manpower and productivity, we also ought to focus on crafting a healthy future for children in Karnataka.

In an effort to make this state a better place for school children, Akshaya Patra, a charitable trust in Bangalore has implemented its Mid-Day Meal Programme across the country to feed the hungry and provide freshly-cooked meals to over 4 lakh students in Karnataka. 

Everyone has a beautiful story

Recently, one of our representatives from Akshaya Patra visited a beneficiary school in Jyothipura, Bengaluru and came back with an enthusiastic story of a girl studying in Standard VIII.

Meet Kirti. She is simple, innocent and full of life. Inspired by dance shows on television, Kirti has built a dream for herself – to become a professional dancer. In fact, to mould her dancing skills, she travels to Hoskote located 15 km away from her residence only to learn the art from her master. While this is not a common dream for a girl whose family depends on daily wages, Kirti receives complete support from her father, who is a construction worker in Bengaluru.

Good music is a requisite for great dance. When we spoke to her about her interests, she said, “I love songs with peppy tunes and would love to participate in competitions.” Although dancing defines her, Kirti does not compromise on studies. She is a lover of math and enjoys solving puzzles and math problems. According to her, problem-solving gives her the skills to tackle everyday concerns.

Is there anything else that motivates Kirti to attend school? Mid-day meals have encouraged many families to send their children to schools because they are assured of one wholesome meal. Kirti loves Akshaya Patra’s food as it helps her concentrate on studies and also gives her strength to dance. Her story shines bright. 

How impactful is Mid-Day Meal Programme?

According to a report in Times of India, Akshaya Patra’s Mid-Day Meal Programme in Karnataka has witnessed an increase of school enrolment in the last two years – growth of over 6,000 children in 2015-16 as compared to 2013-14 and provides meals to 678 schools as compared to 568 in 2013-14.  Above all, the Foundation focuses on empowering children through education by eliminating classroom hunger.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bengaluru/Karnatakas-dropout-rate-dips-as-midday-meals-lure-kids/articleshow/51690096.cms

Although Akshaya Patra receives significant support from the government to address hunger among children in India, it is collective support from donors that has stabilized its service.

To make this initiative more effective, you can sponsor a child’s mid-day meals for a year by contributing only Rs 750.

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Feed the Children to Promote Healthy Living

Have you ever considered why children should eat healthy food? The answer is simple: childhood is one of the most important stages in life and following a proper, nutritious diet is crucial for remaining healthy later in life.

A healthy diet, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), is one which is rich in fruits, vegetables, nuts, legumes and whole grains like unprocessed wheat, rice. The experts also recommend eating at least 400 grams or 5 portions of fruits and vegetables every day.  A healthy diet can help improve cognitive development in children and can also protect them against malnutrition, obesity, diabetes, stroke, cancer and heart disease.

In India, millions of children lack access to a single healthy meal a day. There are NGOs all over the country that works tirelessly to combat this. One of them is The Akshaya Patra Foundation, children NGO that has been providing unlimited food for school children in India since 2000.

The NGO for Children has brought rays of hope to over a million underserved youngsters in India. Starting the journey by feeding 1,500 children in Bengaluru, Akshaya Patra at present delivers nutritious and tasty meals to over 1.4 million children from 10,845 schools in 24 locations across 10 states in India. The meals prepared by the foundation contain the vital nutrients required for growth.

To feed the children, the organisation depends on support from the Government of India, corporates and donors.  People from across the world come forward to feed the children. The organisation accepts donation both in the form of money and kind. An interesting fact about Akshaya Patra is that it takes just ₹750 to sponsor a child for a whole year.  An additional incentive to sponsor a child is the opportunity to save on tax. Well-wishers who contribute ₹500 or above are eligible for 100%tax exemption under section 35 AC!

Although Akshaya Patra has made great progress in the past 15 years, the Foundation’s mission is to feed 5 million children by 2020. So Sponsor a child and enjoy the joy of giving!

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