– A Drive towards Empowerment of Women-
Prembabu Sharma
Celebrated across the world as International Women’s Day, Zee TV, India’s leading Hindi GEC announces the launch of ‘Project Protsahan’, a drive towards empowerment of women. The inaugural ceremony of ‘Project Protsahan’ was held at the ITC Grand Maratha in Mumbai where the leading ladies of the channel’s primetime shows addressed the media and felicitated four extraordinary women who have made a significant contribution across different walks of life.
Speaking of Project Protsahan, Sukesh Motwani, Head- Fiction Programming, Zee TV said, “Zee TV has always been aware of its role as a medium of influencing public perception and introducing societal change. As a result, we have made it a point to address burning social issues through our programming content from time to time. Be it raising a voice against domestic violence through Ghar Ki Lakshmi-Betiyaan, generating awareness and sensitivity around the issue of autism through Aap Ki Antara or presenting the harsh reality of girl child-trafficking through Agle Janam Mohe Bitiya Hi Kijo, Zee TV has pioneered socially relevant television programming. Today, on Women’s Day, we’d like to take our involvement one step further and pledge our commitment towards the cause of empowering women through Project Protsahan.”
Akash Chawla, Marketing Head, Zee TV & Zee Cinema said, “Today on Women’s Day, we’d like to pledge our commitment towards the cause of empowering women through Project Protsahan. Under this project, we will identify issues affecting women and work in a focussed manner towards improving the economic and social potential of all Indian women. To begin with, we will be working closely with many children-based NGO’s as we launch our new show Chhoti Si Zindagi and have many more plans in the year ahead that will make a difference to thousands of lives!”
Marking the first initiative under Project Protsahan, Zee TV presented awards to four extremely deserving women for having made a noteworthy difference to society. Veebha Anand, popularly known as Lakshmi in Zee TV’s Sanskaar Lakshmi presented Shaheen Mistri, the founder of Akanksha Foundation and Teach for India with the Honour for Excellence in Education. Akanksha Foundation alone has made a difference to the lives of 3500 children across its 58 centres in the country while Teach For India is a nationwide movement of college graduates and young professionals who commit themselves to teaching full-time in under-resourced schools.
The Honour for Significant Contribution to Society was presented by Binny Sharma, Gauri of Zee TV’s Sanjog Se Bani Sangini toYvonne D’souza of Crrystal Care Service, an organization that provides caretakers across all parts of Mumbai to nurse the old and sick at their homes and in hospitals. Apart from facilitating the care of thousands of needy patients, Crrystal Care Service has been instrumental in providing meaningful occupation to over 500 under-privileged men and women who work around the clock and earn a living as care-takers!
Sweta Mangal who founded the ‘Dial 1298 for ambulance’ project across Mumbai, Bihar, Kerala and Rajasthan received the Honour for Social Entrepreneurship at the hands of Aruna Irani, the veteran actress who has been associated with Zee TV for years. Making over 500 ambulances easily accessible to patients across the country, ‘Dial 1298 for Ambulance’ can be credited with having changed the role of ambulances from mere carriers of dead bodies to life-saving vehicles.
The Honour for Excellence in the field of Athletics was presented by Kratika Sengar, Zee TV’s Jhansi Ki Rani to Manjit, a spirited girl from Pandharpur who has made a distinct mark in the male-dominated world of boxing at a tender age of 19.
Speaking on the occasion, actress Kratika Sengar said, “I am extremely grateful to Zee TV for having given me the opportunity of a lifetime. Essaying the role of a woman who epitomizes women’s empowerment in India has been a great learning experience. As India’s most revered female freedom fighter, Rani Laxmi bai has inspired millions of women the world over and I believe I have grown as a woman playing her part. As the show now reaches a most crucial stage where the legendary Rani wages the first war of Indian Independence against the British, Zee TV has gone the extra mile to bring alive the sheer scale, the fervor and the magnitude of this war. So I urge every Indian to watch the show as it approaches a very exciting climax!”
As a tribute to the spirit of womanhood, the ceremony ended with the screening of Zee TV’s world-class, impactful promo showcasing the war for Independence led by Jhansi Ki Rani.
