UDUPI: Inspired by artist Ravi Katpadi, who has been presenting fantasy characters to raise funds and help children with their medical expenses during Sri Krishna Janmashtami celebrations, a group of five friends also donned the character of demons for a day during the festival.
The group included Sachin Shetty, Chethan Kumar Shetty, Nithesh Poojary, Shreyas Mangalore, and Sudeep Shetty. They managed to raise Rs 10.5 lakh which was handed over to the family of 10-year-old Saanvi from Hebri for her bone marrow transplant expenses, a week after the celebrations.
Sudeep, partner, Occasionz, an event management company, told TOI: “Though ours is a large group of friends, about five of us decided to play the character of demons (rakshasa) for Krishna Jamashtami and raise funds. Inspired by Ravi Katpady, we put on the ‘vesha’ to raise funds and help children in need.”
Among them, Sachin is a biker and digital content creator who also runs a YouTube channel Shutterbox Films. The friends decided to use this channel for the cause.
“Though it was a first for all of us, we decided to do something different not with the ‘vesha’, but in terms of reaching out to people. From getting into character to going around presenting the act and collecting funds, everything was streamed live on the YouTube channel. Once we collected the money, the counting process was also streamed live. Despite network issues, we managed to go live when handing over the money to the child. We have recorded more than a lakh views every time we went live,” Sudeep said.
It is learnt that the girl will undergo treatment for three months at a private hospital in Bengaluru. Her total medical expense is learnt to be around Rs 40 lakh. The team had collected Rs 9.17 lakh through online mode, and Rs 1.35 lakh by going around places.
Meanwhile, Ravi Katpady has managed to raise Rs 14.36 lakh, which will be handed over to the needy children on August 30.
The group included Sachin Shetty, Chethan Kumar Shetty, Nithesh Poojary, Shreyas Mangalore, and Sudeep Shetty. They managed to raise Rs 10.5 lakh which was handed over to the family of 10-year-old Saanvi from Hebri for her bone marrow transplant expenses, a week after the celebrations.
Sudeep, partner, Occasionz, an event management company, told TOI: “Though ours is a large group of friends, about five of us decided to play the character of demons (rakshasa) for Krishna Jamashtami and raise funds. Inspired by Ravi Katpady, we put on the ‘vesha’ to raise funds and help children in need.”
Among them, Sachin is a biker and digital content creator who also runs a YouTube channel Shutterbox Films. The friends decided to use this channel for the cause.
“Though it was a first for all of us, we decided to do something different not with the ‘vesha’, but in terms of reaching out to people. From getting into character to going around presenting the act and collecting funds, everything was streamed live on the YouTube channel. Once we collected the money, the counting process was also streamed live. Despite network issues, we managed to go live when handing over the money to the child. We have recorded more than a lakh views every time we went live,” Sudeep said.
It is learnt that the girl will undergo treatment for three months at a private hospital in Bengaluru. Her total medical expense is learnt to be around Rs 40 lakh. The team had collected Rs 9.17 lakh through online mode, and Rs 1.35 lakh by going around places.
Meanwhile, Ravi Katpady has managed to raise Rs 14.36 lakh, which will be handed over to the needy children on August 30.