Change Today ...Change Tomorrow

2011www.bhumi.org.in

About BHUMI

Bhumi is one of India’s largest independent youth volunteer

non-profit organisations. Our volunteers work amongst orphaned

and underprivileged children in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, New Delhi, Maharashtra and several other parts of the country with the aim of providing quality education and enabling them to become responsible and

productive citizens. The efforts of our volunteer force, consisting of over 500

students and young professionals under the age of 30, are presently

benefiting over 5,000 children and the number is rising

every year.

Contact:13/1,Cenotaph Road

First Lane,Teynampet, Chennai 600 018 # 98408 68441 /

95661 42535 mail@bhumi.org.in www.bhumi.org.in

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Awards and RecognitionsBhumi volunteer Ms. Vaishnavi Srinivasan received the Youth Volunteer of the Year Award at Apeejay India Volunteer Awards 2011.Bhumi received the 'Beacon of Hope' Award 2012 from Lions District 324 A8

Bhumi received the ‘Big NGO initiative’ Award at the ‘Big Chennaiite Awards 2011’ by BIG FM.Bhumi received the Service Excellence Award 2010 from the Rotary Club.Bhumi received the Excellence in Literacy Award 2009 from the Rotary Club.Bhumi was selected as one of Asia Pacific Emerging 100 youth social entrepreneurships by the FYSE in 2009.

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Educational ProgrammesComputer Literacy• For children with little or no access to computers• Training in the basics of computers, Microsoft Office, the Internet• Custom-made, internally developed syllabus• Knowledge and Implementation partnership with NIIT foundation• Knowledge-transfer sessions for new volunteers by senior volunteers• Focus on providing essential IT skill-sets• Ample time spent on the computer for practical exposure• Minimum expenditure: used computers donated by corporates and maintained by Bhumi volunteers

English Language Skill Development• Enabling children to harness the English language for confident and effective communication • Knowledge partnership with Cambridge University Press• Cambridge English for Schools (CES), an internationally acclaimed communicative, task-based English course designed especially for young students as curriculum• Basic Starter level for learners with little knowledge of English, followed by four progressively advanced levels• Volunteers trained by CELTA-certified professionals • Training workshops for volunteers and class visits by trainers to consistently improve the quality of teaching• Mentoring of new volunteers by experienced volunteers

Simplifying Mathematics & Science • Activity-based learning methodology• Teaching through puzzles, worksheets, outdoor activities and experiments• Syllabus adopted from the Akanksha Foundation altered to suit our children’s needs• Focus on strengthening fundamentals

4Other Programmes

Mentoring and Skill Building

Field Trips and Workshops

Making Wishes Come True

• Annual programme to fulfil children’s wishes• Children write down their wishes on cards distributed by volunteers• Filled-out wish cards are then distributed at companies• Employees pick cards and purchase gifts, which are distributed at children's homes by the donors and volunteers of Bhumi

• Opening the minds of children to the outside world .• Exposure to various career opportunities• Children taken on visits to zoological parks, factories, farms, etc.• Workshops on origami, puppetry, aero-modelling, acting etc.

• Career guidance for children in classes 9 and 10• Instils confidence in children, moulding them into better citizens• Two-hour sessions every week for skill development and one-to-one mentoring• Training for volunteers on mentoring and leadership by acclaimed professionals• Skill-building sessions based on best practices from around the world

Thank you!

Siragugal 2011 proved to be bigger and better than Siragugal 2010 - a result of over a hundred days of effort, hundreds of helping hands, and the power of one dream! The energy, passion and commitment of Bhumi volunteers made the two-day cultural, literary and athletic event a great success.

Siragugal was honoured by the presence of eminent IPS officers and other reputed artistes and sportspersons.

Cricketer Lakshmipathy Balaji, chess Grandmaster Vijaylakshmi S, and singers A.R. Reihana, Aalaap Raju and Karthik were among the celebrities who added glitz and made the weekend even more exciting for children. We thank each of them for supporting our cause and gracing the occasion with their presence. We also thank the event judges who spared the time to

make the day complete at Siragugal. Siragugal was honoured by the presence of eminent IPS officers like Mr.

Armugum IPS (IG, Technical) and Mr. S. Davidson IPS (Zonal Director, Narcotics Control Bureau)

An affectionate “Thank You!” to every volunteer at Siragugal!

5A million thanks to the thousands of large-hearted individual and corporate donors. We are moved by your generosity.

With the promise of a bigger and better Siragugal 2012...

-Team Bhumi

Thousands of thoughtful minds contributed to Siragugal 2011 - Team Bhumi and many others. We take immense pleasure in thanking volunteers from Infosys - Sneham and Beroe Inc., and NCC cadets from College of Engineering, Guindy.

We also express our heartfelt gratitude to:- MCC Matriculation Higher Secondary School, Chetpet for offering their school premises and Mr. Arthanari for his invaluable support.- ISS Catering Services for providing lip-smacking breakfast, lunch and snacks.- St. Joseph’s College of Engineering and Rajalakshmi Engineering College for providing us with transport facilities.- Big FM and NDTV Hindu for taking Siragugal to the masses.

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and a line up by the kids who released colourful balloons up in the air as the

days, and the pace and energy levels just got higher as the day progressed. The children were exposed to inspiring speeches on the spirit of sportsmanship delivered by the guests of honour who encouraged the kids to pursue their sporting talents. The children were particularly inspired by Ms. Vijayalakshmi

importance of Siragugal as a platform to nurture their talents.

The platter for the day comprised 14 sports competitions spread across three

Juniors, Seniors and Super Seniors.

On the playground, tracks were set ablaze by sprinters who refused to give up despite the scorching sun; even the preliminary stages of the races were won

by the proverbial whisker. Short-distance races were held in the 75m, 100m and 200m categories. Long-distance running races included the 400m and 800m races as well as the relays. Team events witnessed the maximum participation, drama and spirit. The Kho-Kho, Throw-Ball and Volley-Ball

The long-jump, high-jump and shot-put events were a big hit too. Kids were

knows? The next Usain Bolt / Yelena Isinbayeva could have been there!

Away from the ground, sharp minds were at work, planning each move with care and precision as the chess competition got underway. The moderators

were amazed at the swift and smart moves the children came up with. Children participated with reat interest in carrom as well. Indoor

events were clearly a favourite among kids.

The karate workshop in the evening received such an overwhelming response that the organisers had to restrict participation. The kids got basic tips on the martial art and they participated with much gusto!

great

It was unadulterated fun for the whole day leaving the kids with fond memories to take home.

Day 1 - Sports

Winners on Day 1 Winners on Day 1

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Home Sevalaya 11 8 3Ramakrishna Mission Students’ Home 8 4 5Avvai Home 5 5 2Bala Mandir Kamraj Trust 2 - 3Good Life Centre 1 3 1P.V.Rao Children’s Home 1 2 1Government Children’s Home 1 2 1St. George’s Children’s Home 1 1 2Anandha Illam – CHES - 1 3Chennapuri Annadana Samajam 2 1 -Padma Adarsh Home - 3 -Siragu Home 1 1 -Leo Correya Home 1 - 1SEED - 1 1Amaithi Illam - - 2Christian Mission Service Children’s Home - 1 2Adi Dravida Samooga Sevagar Sangam 1 - -Love Foundation 1 - -Seva Samajam Children’s Home - 1 -Share and Care Children Welfare Society - 1 -Open Door Children’s Home - 1 -Child - - 1

SILVERGOLD BRONZE

The other homes that participated were Annai Anbalaya, Bethel Children’s Home, Ebenezer Children’s Home, Jeeva Jyothi, Jeroham, Karunai Illam, Maranatha Children’s Home, Nalmanam, Roshini Home, St. Thomas Orphanage, Swami Charitable Trust and Webbs Memorial Children’s Home.

Day one belonged to the children from Sevalaya, who were the overall winners for the day with a tally of 22 prizes. The brave hearts from Ramakrishna Mission Students Home came second with 17 prizes, and the children from Avvai Home shone in more than one event, reaching the third place with 12 prizes.

“I got a firsthand

feel of the children’s

enthusiasm for Siragugal from

the overwhelming response to the

event. While the girls from Sevalaya

were very impressive in the 400m

dash, the boys from

Ramakrishna Mission stole the show

in both the 400m and 800m

dashes.” – Karthikeyan G,

Long-Distance Running

(400m and 800m)

“The

image of a child from the junior category who utilised the

event coordinator’s prep time to warm-up and practice is still

vivid in my memory!” – Yogesh R, Short-Distance

Running (75m and 100m)

“I saw a true

champion in every

high-jump participant. Focus

and determination were the

highlight of the event. Aishwarya

from Avvai Home stood out for her

passion to win because she wanted

another go even after failing the first

time. This is what Siragugal set out

to do – bring out the children’s

passion and undying spirit to

win!” – Vishal Hinsodiya,

High Jump

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“All the kids gave their best shot to

reach the no. 1 position. The effort by

Tony, a differently-abled child, is unforgettable!” –

Renuka Natarajan, Chess

“It was good fun organising carrom, and the

day was made memorable by the great games we witnessed. It was real fun watching Moorthi

from ‘Child’ Home score 8 coins on his own even though

he didn’t win. Jagan, from ‘Ebenezer Children's Home’ also entertained us with his brilliant game by scoring 6

coins including the red in one chance.” – Aravinth M,

Carrom

“The children played to

win with almost every game being closely contested.

Some of the games were unforgettable–for the big audience they attracted and the effort put in

by the children. From the prelims to the finals, the energy and intensity

were very high, with most of the matches ending in a close

finish.”– Arun Kumar, Volleyball

“Of the many

participants, one child

who started the event with

normal scores and then consis-

tently improved his game stands

clear in my memory. I was amazed by

his never-say-no attitude. He also

showed true sportsmanship when

he cheered and supported the

other participants.” – Chetan

Prakash Sancheti, Long

Jump

“The judge Mr.

Amirtharaj, a state level

Kho-Kho player, was so

impressed by the winning

team that he took the time to

play a game with them and

be part of the high-spirited

team of kids!” -

Jaiganesh G,

Kho-Kho

Comments from Bhumians who c o o r d i n a t e d Sporting Events

Science ExhibitionSiragugal 2011 was a blockbuster to say the least and the

science exhibition played its part in a big way this year by ‘spreading COLOUR, joy and more’. The science exhibition

provided a platform for learning in a fun setting. With ‘colours’ as its theme, the exhibition saw experiments with 3-D glasses

and charts prepared on topics like camouflage, colour blindness and rainbow formation. The kaleidoscopes on

display were a big hit, with kids wanting to try one experiment after another. The kids were fascinated by the experiments in Chemistry which exhibited colours and related concepts. The

exhibition also included fun games which were extremely popular with the children. The walls of the room were

covered with colourful wallpapers, adding to the visual appeal of the experience.

Volunteers organised fun stalls and events to

entertain the children, especially the ones from the junior category. The games at the stalls included mini golf, archery

and darts. The kids enjoyed them so much that the stalls were perpetually occupied! Apart from the indoor stalls, sack

races, obstacle courses, lemon-and-spoon races and skipping races were organised outdoors. The skipping race and obstacle race

were so much fun that some external volunteers joined in after the events had officially ended for the kids.. Other events were conducted on the spot to engage the viewers near the main

stage. More than 1,000 kids enjoyed these fun stalls and events during Siragugal, and hundreds of gifts were

given during the course of the day.

Fun Stalls and Events“No tension, no competition, just fun!”

REACH OUTWe realised that two days of fun weren’t enough and there was a lot more potential to be discovered. So we decided to Reach Out to the children with competitions at their own homes. This year, three art and four literary events were conducted for 996 children at 15 homes.

DrawingWithin minutes of distributing the material to the children, sheets of white paper were transformed into colourful works of art. Each drawing possessed an element of unique-ness, and the children had no doubt about what had to go where. The final products of their work depicted the perfect balance between the children’s aptitude to observe their immediate surroundings and their ability to let loose their imagination.

Topics Juniors: Nature or Seasons Seniors: Space or Under the SeaSuper Seniors: Indian Heritage

Campaigning for a theme was a challenge that these children were able to tackle with great ease and creativity. Innovation and excitement filled the room as children worked in groups to come up with catchy slogans and vibrant doodles to sell their product / convey their social message.

Topics: : Road safety, Go green or Product : Mobile Phones / Clothing

Greeting Card DesignPoster Design

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Making greeting cards brings immense joy. For most of these Junior children, this was their first experience in collating ideas and conveying their gratitude to their teachers and friends. Caricatures, poems and what not, these cards were truly outstanding!

Topic-Teachers’ Day or Friendship Day

Inadequate exposure to the English language was the primary challenge for those who participated in this event. However, their essays proved that such barriers could never deter children with a passion to learn continuously. The essays were simple and straight-forward with oodles of creativity.

Topics: Seniors: India is the best country because Super Seniors: If I were the Prime Minister of India…

English Essay

Writing

Tamil Essay Writing :Structured thoughts led to a beautiful flow of words; essays with clarity and strong messages were penned down by the children.

Topics - Juniors: A day at school or My dreamSeniors: Role models or My ideas to keep the Earth clean and greenSuper Seniors: Strength of youth or The fantasy world I would love to visit

Poetry Writing :Reading through the children’s well-articulated poetry was both captivating and overwhelming.

Topics- Juniors : Friendship or Nature’s beauty Seniors : My dream or TeachersSuper Seniors : Silence or Our Chennaiit

TamilEssay / Poetry

Writing

With just a topic and no plot, the children could move in any possible direction to create a good read; this competition kindled the artistic abilities of the children by setting the story’s beginning, climax and a primary character. The children thought through this challenge well and each of the stories had different twists and turns.

Topics :– Features of a magic pencil or Terrorists planting a bomb in the heart of the city.

Creative Story

Writing

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Siragugal 2011, Day 1 - A SNAPSHOT

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Day 2 of Siragugal ended with the same excitement with which it began. The cheerful children took home precious memories of winning prizes and witnessing their friends win. Awe-inspiring cultural performances, wildly imaginative artwork and thought-provoking speeches came from all the homes that participated on Day 2.Day 2 featured 22 events in three categories – Literary, Cultural, and Art events for Juniors, Seniors and Super Seniors. It was a day of frenetic excitement, for both the kids and the coordinators. The kids came prepared for some of the events; ready with costumes, musical instruments, accesso-ries, and of course truly amazing ideas and imagination!Events like rangoli, pot painting and face painting unleashed the creativity of these wonderful kids in a rich and exuberant fashion. Their mind-blowing artistry with articles normally found in the trash was something that stood out; it was indeed ‘junk art’. The children floored the judges in the other art events as well – fabric art, collage and clay modelling. Meanwhile, the language-savvy kids battled it out with their peers in the literary events, which included Shipwreck, Adzap and spelling bee. From extempore elocutions to the brain-testing memory game, the general-knowledge quiz to the mixed bag event aka Potpourri, the kids thought, spoke, wrote, enacted, guessed, ooh-ed and aah-ed their way to glory.

The cultural events were a class apart. Be it the chorus in the group song, the coordination in group dance, the individual brilliance at Adaptunes or the timing and dialogue delivery at the Tamil skit, the talent on offer left every one of us – the judges, volunteers and audience–gasping for breath. It was inspiring to see the children take every opportunity to showcase their versatile talents, and Ms. and Mr. Siragugal was the perfect example of this. Cinema-loving kids not only proved their mettle in mimicry and film dub but also made these events memorable for the coordinators. And, of course, the kids always wanted more. So, we had a series of informal events to keep the kids engaged round the clock.The magic created by the kids at the pottery workshop and their priceless expressions at the story-telling workshop proved to be the perfect icing on the cake. The day became extra special by the presence of talented guests like, Mr. Karthik, Ms. A.R.Reihana, Mr. Lakshmipathy Balaji and many others. The kids were enthralled by their speeches and performances and thoroughly enjoyed their presence.

Day 2: Arts, Literary and Cultural Competitions

Home Ramakrishna Mission Students’ Home 5 2 -Sevalaya 4 3 1Share and Care Children Welfare Society 3 2 3Seva Samajam Children’s Home 3 1 -Siragu Home 3 - 5Good Life Centre 3 - -Karunai Illam 2 3 -Government Children’s Home 2 2 3Indian Council for Child Welfare 2 1 3Avvai Home 2 1 -Bala Mandir Kamraj Trust 1 3 4St. George’s Children’s Home 1 2 3Leo Correya Home 1 1 -Chennapuri Annadana Samajam 1 - 1Ebenezer Children’s Home 1 - -SISTWA 1 - -Anandha Illam – CHES - 6 -Christian Mission Service Children’s Home - 2 3Nalmanam - 2 -SEED - 1 1St. Thomas Orphanage - 1 1Webbs Memorial Children’s Home - 1 1Jeeva Jyothi - 1 -Annai Anbalaya - - 1Bethal Children’s Home - - 1Child - - 1Padma Adarsh Home - - 1Push Trust - - 1Roshini Home - - 1

14Winners on Day 2

SILVERGOLD BRONZE

Children from Ramakrishna Mission Students Home were the proud overall winners on Day 2. Sevalaya came second, while the children from Share and Care Children Welfare Society stood third.

The other homes that participated were Gracious Home, Maranatha Children’s Home, Mottukal, P. V. Rao Children’s Home and Swami Charitable Trust.

“The amount of

creativity we witnessed was just unimaginable.

I will cherish the happiness I saw on those children’s faces.

One child who caught our atten-tion had painted

symmetric fish on either side of his team mate’s face.” – Rajan

Sampath and Sangeetha Ganesan, Face

Painting

“I remember a girl who competed

alone even though 3 participants were allowed

per team. She went on to the finals, beating almost 10-12

teams!! I was amazed to witness this; it was inspiring to

see her stand alone with confidence and take her

school to the finals.” – Praveen Lawrence,

Quiz

“Many of the clay models

resembled professional works of art. Some of these

remain etched in my memory – like the one depicting a

village scene with a woman carrying water from a well and the one with a bird’s

nest on a tree.” Madhumitha B, Clay

Modelling

“Even those who weren’t

familiar with collage showed enthusiasm

after they got the basic idea and unleashed

their creativity.” – Bhooma

Madhavan, Collage

“One of the kids told me, ‘We

have never experienced anything

like this before, and we are happy to be here

Anna’.” – Thamotharkannan

N, Mimicry

“We were amazed to

see so many kids choosing the Siragugal logo as their theme, and

some of them really succeeded in recreating it. As I saw the kids

work on their masterpieces I felt motivated to consider taking up organizing next

year!” – Lavanya Umapathy, Pot

Painting 15

Comments from Bhumians who coordinated the Events

“I was very

impressed by the realistic clay models and was surprised by the eye

for detail that the kids showed. Judging such fine

works of art was quite a tough job.” –

Ms. Anuradha Niketh, Clay Modelling

“We’re so happy to see these

kids perform. Many of the kids performed, not to win but to prove their

talent. “- Mr. Karthik and Mr. Ilavarasu,

Group Dance

Comments of the Judges

16“I was quite

impressed by their artistic sense. I got to see many interesting, imaginative and clean depictions of the topic

Nature” – Ms. N.R Yamuna, Collage

“I was inspired by the rangoli done

by two differently-abled artists. They had a bold

theme of freedom that almost gave us goosebumps. The

second place was won by a simple rangoli with mild colors

but a great hand-painting technique.”

Mr. V.Raguprasad, Kalakshetra,

Rangoli

“It is great to see such a platform

for the development of young talent. My time at

Siragugal is unforgettable for the sheer brilliance I

witnessed at this event.” – Mr. Shiva Guru,

Adaptunes

POTTERY Workshop

Siragugal featured a pottery workshop conducted by artisans from the Madras Craft Foundation, DakshinaChitra. This was another workshop that the children enjoyed immensely. The artisans had brought a potter’s wheel and lots of clay, and the workshop started with demonstrations on how to make small cups, pots, etc. Later the kids had the chance to create their own pots to take home, and they were simply overjoyed with this activity. This workshop was mainly attended by the Senior and Super Senior children, and they were excited to make clay creations on their own.

The storytelling workshop was conducted by an eminent storyteller, Ms. Jeeva Raghunath. Even though the kids were sceptical about being asked to sit inside a classroom during Siragugal, their faces lit up the minute Jeeva started telling her first story. They were simply enchanted, and this workshop proved to be an unforgettable one.There was singing and dancing, and the kids told stories along with Jeeva. The kids were more com-fortable with the Tamil stories, but eventually enjoyed the English story as well, a funny one about a goat, and this eventually turned out to be their favourite.The children loved it, and they all went to hug Jeeva and shake her hand at the end of the session.

The karate workshop on Day 1 at Siragugal was conducted by instructors from the Gurukulam Shito Ryu Karate, a non-profit organisation which conducts classes in martial arts and meditation.This unique experience thrilled the children, and the session proved to be informative and enjoyable for them. The workshop venue was overflowing in no time, and the instructors were pleased with the response and enthusiasm shown by the kids. It was a rewarding experience for everyone present, particularly the instructors and coordinators, who were pleased at making the kids smile and have fun.

KARATE Workshop

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STORY TELLING Workshop

Siragugal 2011, Day 2 - A SNAPSHOT

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Start, Camera, Rolling!! – Media coverage of Bhumi and Siragugal 2011

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“It is not an easy task to put a smile on a kid's face. I strongly believe that Siragugal 2011 accomplished more than this. I’ve never seen so many happy faces before.” – Shree Janani Sundararajan

“The weekend was brimming with talent, fun and enthusiasm. A true show of how a bunch of enthusiastic volunteers can spread over a thousand smiles” Sangeetha Ganesan

“It was overwhelming to spend time with hundreds of talented children. Seeing them participate with a wide grin has filled my heart with unforgettable memories. We appreciate Bhumi’s efforts for making this event a grand success.” Siddharthan E, Infosys Sneham

Siragugal is the synonym of happy faces. It brought immense joy and lots of smiles. This was my first Siragugal, and I am extremely grateful to have been part of this happening, well-planned and excellently carried out event. I believe Siragugal 2011 would have made it to many people's unforgettable list just as it has to mine! Priyadharcini. S

“The uniqueness of such an event would energize even the laziest souls who usually rise up only to think but never act! My experience at Siragugal even inspired me to write my first poem. The very act of satisfying both the volunteers and kids at the end of the day is an achievement for Siragugal.” – Uma Shunmuganathan

“Siragugal showed how people from different backgrounds can come together to share a beautiful cause. It gave me new insights, new friends, intellectual satisfaction and a great joy of accomplishment!” – Maheedhar Raman

Volunteers’ Feedback

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“Like every year’s edition of the fest, Siragugal 2011

provided our children with a unique platform to display

their talents. Good assistance from the volunteers, quality food and refreshments and comfortable transport were

provided by Bhumi.” - Ramakrishna

Mission Students’ Home

“We are very happy to share that

this was our third consecutive year at Siragu-gal and our children have done us proud by winning

prizes this year too. Siragugal was intellectually stimulating and exciting and has given us immense satisfaction.

We hope to be back next year too.”

- SISTWA

“When the children left the venue after the

events, they believed that they were now the ‘Siragugal’ or

wings of Bhumi.” – Karunai Illam“Through

Siragugal, we realised the true potential of our

children! To see so many children under

one roof was gratifying.” – Love

Foundation

Wardens’ Feedback

21Children’s Feedback

“Participating in Siragugal gave us a lot of happiness, and we

felt motivated by the speeches of the chief guests. It was very encouraging to

compete with children of our age.” - Karunai Illam

“We are eagerly waiting to participate and meet the other children in Siragugal 2012.”

- Love Foundation

“Siragugal was a good platform to display our talents, and we thank the Bhumi team for giving us this opportunity.” - Ramakrishna Mission Students’ Home

“The Annas and Akkas from Bhumi took

good care of us. They joined us in cheering for our friends who partici-

pated in the events. Participating in so many events was immensely satisfying.”

Ebenezer Children’s Home

“All of us, our friends and the new friends we made at Siragugal – we all had the same look on our faces, the one that spelt ‘Happiness’.” Gracious Home

“Each event was a platform to showcase our talent, and we thoroughly enjoyed

our experience at Siragugal.” Jeeva Jothi

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Start, Camera, Rolling!! – Media coverage of Bhumi and Siragugal 2011

Start, Camera, Rolling!! – Media coverage of Bhumi and Siragugal 2011

Siragugal 2010 flashback

The second edition of Bhumi’s Siragugal was held on 11 July 2010 at Bhavan’s Rajaji Vidyas-haram, Chennai.

The day proved true to the spirit of Siragugal with over 915 children from 37 homes show-casing their talents through 22 arts, cultural and literary events.

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