By OUR STAFF REPORTER
Dehradun, 3 Jun: Shabnam Virmani, Sufi singer and founder of the Kabir Project, will perform at ‘Lift the Veil that Obscures the Heart – the Concert for Inclusion’, organised by the Latika Roy Foundation (LRF) in collaboration with the Dehradun Disability Forum (DDF) on 4 June at the Rose Bowl Amphitheatre of The Doon School. The free concert, open to all, is scheduled for 8 p.m.
Virmani’s search for Kabir began in 2003, when she set out into diverse socio-cultural, religious and musical landscapes, meeting with people who sing, love, quote, and revere Kabir. Over the years, Virmani and the Kabir Project team have produced musical documentary films, music CDs and books of translated poetry for reflection and healing. Their work has been awarded the Chishti Harmony Award, the Sadbhavana Award and the Special Jury Prize, 52nd National Film Awards, 2010, among several others.
Virmani has been quoted as being moved by the “amazing multiplicity in the living traditions of Kabir. He inhabits many cultures and opposing social paradigms”. She says she “began to see how (her) subtle ‘othering’ of some people was securing her ego’s sense of self, and how this ‘othering’ trapped her in dualistic ways of thinking of ‘self’ and the ‘other’”. This is closely aligned with LRF’s vision of a better world for children with disabilities through acceptance, understanding and inclusion in every aspect of community life.
LRF has been providing disability services ranging from early intervention to special education, therapy, vocational training, family counselling, home management, legal services and outreach to thousands of children and their families predominantly from low-income backgrounds, in and around Dehradun since 1995. The Foundation celebrates its silver jubilee this year. The Concert for Inclusion is the first of multiple community events planned to celebrate the occasion and life of Moy Moy Chopra (17 November 1989—30 July 2018), who inspired the founding of LRF as a profoundly disabled child.
