SAN JOSE, California — With two-thirds of the country facing severe penury, India’s poverty rates are at an all-time high. Each day, more and more people are learning about the gravity of India’s poverty crisis. Through the increase of education and access to information regarding the situation, the general public is able to find ways to help. Furthermore, celebrities from America’s Hollywood and India’s Bollywood are using their platforms to tackle poverty. These celebrities are especially helpful since not only are they donating their fortunes, they are bringing India’s poverty to the public’s attention.
Nicki Minaj
Besides leading the music genre of rap, Nicki Minaj is known to emphasize the importance of education for the world’s youth. Through Pastor Lydia Sloley, her donations to villages in India resulted in a computer center, a tailoring I\institute, a reading program and two water wells. Through the caption of an Instagram post, Minaj stated, “This is the kind of thing that makes me feel the most proud… We complain about the most ridiculous things when some ppl don’t even have clean water. Blessings to India. Our work is far from done.”
Priyanka Chopra
Popular Bollywood and Hollywood actress, Since 2010, Priyanka Chopra served as a UNICEF National Ambassador. She closely associates herself with the Deepshikha campaign which resulted in an estimated 70,000 girls learning important entrepreneurial skills through financial and leadership education. Chopra also works to educate the underprivileged in India by bringing attention to organizations such as Nanhi Kali and Save Girl Child. Through her position with UNICEF, Chopra actively advocates for children in India to have access to free schooling.
Aishwarya Rai
Indian actress and Miss World ’94, Aishwarya Rai founded an all-girls college at Daulatpur Village in Uttar Pradesh. It will be available to support underprivileged women in the region. Along with this, she works as an ambassador for International Year of Microcredit and raises awareness regarding poverty alleviation.
Chris Martin
Famous singer Chris Martin from the band Coldplay serves as an ambassador for the Global Poverty Project. He makes an impact by meeting India’s politicians and working closely with non-profit organization leaders. He also has been curating the Global Citizen Festival since 2015 and plans on continuing to do so. He outlined the Project’s four-part plan of designing campaigns, channeling voices, building the movements to end extreme poverty and reaching out to influential people.
Dev Patel
The actor of the award-winning film Lion, Dev Patel used the attention from his remarkable acting and film to bring attention to poverty in India. His role in the launch of the #LionHeart campaign has resulted in $250,000 being donated towards supporting India’s homeless children. Patel said in his statement to Variety that it is important for us to help Indian homeless children by donating to many NGOs that are working to help these children.
Continuing the Support
The celebrities who partake in the fight to alleviate global poverty are changing the lives of countless people. Each of the individuals on this list pushes the message that millions of dollars are not necessary to make an impact. Any donations to charity, volunteering and outreach to Congress are all steps towards a global difference.
– Meghana Nagendra
Photo: Flickr