The 6th CEOs Share a Smile Lunch fund raiser was held for the very first time in the garden city at the poolside of the ITC Windsor- Bengaluru on Saturday, September 04, 2010.

The morning started out being cloudy and showed signs of possible rain, the sun was nowhere to be seen. Suddenly at 11.45am just as the first CEO Chefs started to arrive, the golden rays of the sun touched the waters of the pool and slowly spread over the brightly decorated tables, each of which had a large bowl of white roses.

Our sponsors for the day were Kingfisher Airlines, CRI Events, ITC- Windsor Bengaluru, Bacardi Martini India and SABmiller India (Foster’s beer).

The CEO Chefs were punctual and were greeted on arrival by Prema who introduced them to each other. Our Chefs then set about donning their aprons and chefs hats, ready to put their culinary skills to the test. Armed with Bacardi cocktails and chilled Foster’s beer our Celebrity Chefs threw caution to the winds and got down to some serious cooking.

By 1pm hectic activity was seen at all food counters. Each of the CEOs were seen trying to entice the guests with their cooking. The guests enjoying the cocktails and chilled beer walked from counter to counter to check out the delicious food that was being cooked.

Gopichand Kattragadda, Sen General Manager, GE and Rekha Menon, Executive Director, Accenture ensured that the health conscious guests started their meal with a choice of Greek Salad or Caesar’s Salad with Smoked Salmon.

As we moved to the South Indian section Parvathy Omanakuttan, Genesis Foundation’s Good Will Ambassador (Miss India 2008 & 2^nd runner up Miss World 2008) was seen putting together a spicy chicken, Mirapakai Kodi. Her partner Paolo Lanzarotti, Managing Director, SABmiller India was making an innovative Chapa Vepdu (grilled fish with spices) cooked with a dash of Foster’s beer his own innovation. The dish was so popular that many of the guests suggested the ITC Windsor may like to include this variation to the Chapa Vepdu on their menu.

The live band kept everyone entertained whilst the sun continued to shine. Bacardi cocktails and the chilled Foster’s beer kept in huge bowls of ice were doing the rounds.

At the continental section Rajesh Rao, CEO, Dhruva Interactive, who by the way loves cooking , was busy making Spaghetti Bolognaise. Kanwaljit Singh, Managing Director, Helion Ventures admitted that he never realized how much he enjoyed cooking. His Andaman Prawns & Bell Pepper Brochettes were being picked up as fast as he could get them plated.

Sajai Singh, Partner, J Sagar Associates and Sandhya Vasudevan, Managing Director, Thompson Reuters were looking extremely engrossed in their work at the Indian section. Their Pomegrate Chops and Paneer Khurchan took care of the guest’s veg and non-veg requirements.

The Oriental section had Himanshu Kohli, Founder & Partner, Client Associates cooking the broth required for the very popular Khao Suey; he made sure that all the 7 garnishes were added with each serving. B J Arun, Founder & Chairman, California Digital was effortlessly making an Oriental grill which was served with a choice of 3 sauces.

Madhu Atre, President & Managing Director, Applied Materials India and Giridhar G V, CEO, Ernst & Young assigned to the Dessert section, thought they had it easy earlier in the afternoon. Suddenly they found a long queue in front of their Dessert counter, as most everyone wanted Crepe Suzette flambéed with Bacardi which was a hot favorite.

The afternoon soon came to an end with Chef Parvathy giving away the lucky dip prizes from our support sponsors; 3M, Sennheiser, PepsiCo India, Taco Bell, SABmiller and lunch vouchers and wines from the ITC-Windsor- Bengaluru. For a job well done, Bacardi Martini presented a gift to all our courageous CEOs.

The funds raised from this event will go towards the treatment of the 4 children identified by Genesis Foundation who are in need of surgery. The children are Vinod (scoliosis), Naitik (thalassemia), Ansh (cancer) and Sumit (heart). Click here  for details of the children. 

Our special thanks to Anil Chadha, General Manager, ITC Windsor Hotel and his team for the excellent arrangements and cuisine at this fund raiser.

Click to see more pictures  and  media coverage of this event.

For more information contact Miecckey Bharrucha [miecckey.bharrucha@genesis-foundation.net]

Genesis Foundation staged the English play Love on the Brink, directed by Lillete Dubey, as a fundraiser. The play premiered at Epicentre, Apparel House, Gurgaon on Sunday August 22, 2010. The event helped raise funds for 3 critically ill children suffering from cardiac disorders and  thalassemia. These children come from orphanages and under privileged homes where the family income is under Rs.5,000. For details of the children who will benefit from this support click here.

“Love on the Brink “

An absurdly comic tale about love and the pursuit of happiness  Produced and Directed by Lillete Dubey
Adapted by Sandhya Divecha (Based on the Tony Award Winning Broadway hit ‘Luv’ by Murray Schisgal)
Cast : Joy Sengupta, Kumud Mishra and Shivani Tanksale

 Synopsis :

‘ Love on the Brink ‘ is a wickedly satirical and brilliantly comic story about three people who meet unexpectedly one dark night at the edge of the sea front.

Sudipto Bandhopadhya ( Bandy), an existentialist intellectual who has sunk so low that honest existentialists would disown him. He has no future except to jump off into the sea and is about to do so, when Pankaj Chopra ( Chops) comes along and intervenes. Chops and Bandy turn out to be college classmates. Bandy, in his rags, reveals the depth of his despair, Chops a picture of prosperity, is all sympathy and then confesses that he too is full of frustration, because his wife won’t divorce him so he can marry the woman he loves.

Into this, Chops’ wife Amu appears, a beautiful and highly overeducated woman, and a triangle of the absurd ensues, that in the tradition of all great comedy revels in alienation, the loss of identity, inability to communicate, self expression and the meaninglessness of  it all. And the more their woes increase, the more we laugh, as we recognize our own lives in their incisively observed and wildly funny misadventures, as they struggle to understand life, love, success and the pursuit of happiness.

The evening started on a perfect note with a duet ‘Zubi Dubi Zubi Dubi’ performed by Shireesh Joshi, Director Marketing, Airtel accompanied by his wife Priti Joshi. “Music has been an integral part of who I am”, says Niren Chaudhary CEO, Yum Restaurants India. He gave a wonderful performance with ‘Knocking on heavens door’ and ‘Wonderwall’. Gopal Sarma, MD, Feedback Ventures, sang a toe tapping medley with ‘Forever Young’ by Bob Dylan, ‘Wish You Were Here’ and ‘Stumblin’ In’ by Smokie. Suresh Bhojwani, CMD, Bright Bros Ltd. says “Music is important to me. You cannot work all the time. You have to have a multi-dimensional personality.” Not only did Suresh give a beautiful rendition of ‘The Wonder of you’ by Elvis and ‘I can’t stop looking at you, You’re Just Too Good to Be True’, but also kept the guests thoroughly entertained with a few impromptu numbers. Dinesh Mirchandani, President India, Boyden Global Executive Search, performed magic with ‘American Pie’ by Don MacLean and ‘Sweet Caroline’ by Neil Diamond. And everybody had a marvelous time listening to Vikash Gupta, CEO, Opera Wines, sing ‘Ek Din Bik Jayega Maati Ke Mol’ by Mukesh and ‘Again and again and again’. In the beautiful voice of Geetu Verma, Head of innovation, PepsiCo India, we heard ‘Babuji Dheere Chalna’ by Geeta Dutt and the ever popular ‘Lipstick on your collar’ by Connie Francis. Ramesh Iyer, MD Financial Services, Mahindra & Mahindra, in his fantastic voice, sang ‘ Suhani Chandni Ratein Hame Sone Nahin Deyti’ by the legendary bollywood singer Mukesh and ‘Poochcho Na Kaise Maine Rain Bitayi’ by Manna Dey. And last but not the least  Ashwin Deo, Fmr CEO, South Asia Breweries India gave a fabulous performance with Begum Farida Khannum’s ‘Aaj jane ki zid na karo’ and ‘My Way’ by Frank Sinatra.  After which the floor was open to all the guests who wished to sing.

MakeMyTrip.com supported the evening by providing their band ‘The Trippers’. Throughout the evening an entertaining live performance by the band kept the mood going. Some of the CEOs were supported by Dominique on the keyboard while some strummed their own guitars.

At the end of the performance the guests at the fundraiser chose a winner through a secret ballot. The winner Ashwin Deo with his chosen partner for the evening, Genesis Foundation’s Goodwill Ambassador Parvathy Omanakuttan (Miss India 2008,runner up Miss World 2008) were served a specially crafted gourmet supper. It was an evening of great entertainment with cocktails, a live band and great food.

There were a host of lucky dip prizes sponsored by corporates supporting the event such as Reebok, PepsiCo India, Sennheiser, Client Associates, Park Hotel, Canon, Hotel Crowne Plaza Today, Kingfisher, Opera Wines and Levo. There was also a silent auction for limited Edition Grey Goose Martini glasses studded with Swarovski crystals.

The event is an ongoing effort by Genesis Foundation to facilitate critical medical care for abandoned and less privileged children.This fundraiser will support the treatment of and help save the lives of 9 special children who have cancer, require heart surgeries, bone marrow transplants for thalassemia and complex surgeries to deal with extreme deformities. To read more about the children click here.

To see more pictures of the event click here  and for media coverage click here

Genesis Foundation brings to you an exciting new event ‘CEOs Sing for their Supper’ – a fundraiser with a difference – to save the lives of  9 critically ill children who are orphans or from lesser privileged families.
 
The details of the event are given below.
Event: CEOs Sing for their Supper
Date: Saturday, July 24, 2010
Venue: Crowne Plaza Today, Gurgaon
Time: 7pm cocktails onwards

CEOs participating are:
Niren Chaudhary, CEO, Yum Restaurants
Geetu Verma, Executive Director, PepsiCo
Gopal Sarma, MD, Feedback Ventures
Vikash Gupta, CEO, Opera Wines
Shireesh Joshi, Director Marketing, Airtel
And all the way from Mumbai…..
Dinesh Mirchandani, President India, Boyden Global Executive Search
Ramesh Iyer, MD Financial Services, Mahindra & Mahindra
Ashwin Deo, Fmr CEO,  South Asia Breweries
Suresh Bhojwani, CMD, Bright Brothers Ltd.

The guests will judge their performance and the winner will select a partner to join him/her in a grand Supper. Genesis Foundation’s Goodwill Ambassador, Parvathy Omanakuttan, Miss India 2008 will compere the event. Cocktails with live band and a dance floor promises an evening full of entertainment.

A fun evening to raise funds to save the lives of 9 special children who have cancer, require heart surgeries, bone marrow transplants for thalassemia and complex surgeries to deal with extreme deformities. Click here for details of children

Support our cause: Over 100 people have bought a place at the table. You can buy a table for Rs.90,000 OR buy a a seat for Rs. 10,000 each. OR click here to DONATE 

Genesis Foundation is covered under 80G of the Income Tax Act of 1961 (50% of donations made are exempt from Income Tax)

For more information and booking seats contact Dolly Malvai 
email: dolly.malvai@genesis-foundation.net   Mob: 9811268189

‘CEOs Sing for their Supper’ - CEOs will sing to compete and the winner will be judged by a seceret ballot by the audience.  The winning CEO will choose his partner and will be seated on a dais and will enjoy a 5 course meal served by the chef . The chef  will give a commentary to the guests, on each course served. Guests  at the event will buy seats at the table. The proceeds of the event will go towards children identified for support.

‘Love on The Brink’  – The play is based on the Tony Award winning smash Broadway hit ‘Luv’ by Murray Schisgal. It is a comic story about three people who meet unexpectedly one dark night at the edge of the sea front. The play is a delightfully funny, wickedly insightful, and searingly honest look at love, marriage and the pursuit of happiness.
Cast : Joy Sengupta, Kumud Mishra and Shivani Tanksale

‘CEO Chefs Share-a-Smile Lunch’ - Ten enthusiastic CEOs  cook up a feast for those buying a seat at the table.  Motivated CEOs  will be focused on providing our guests with flavour-full dishes.  The guests have the opportunity to sample their creations and even do a performance appraisal!  The CEO who receives the best appraisal is awarded with a stunning reward.

‘Run to Save a Life‘ – To raise funds for kids awaiting treatment Runningandliving.com will support Genesis Foundation in organising this run. The run will be supported by children from schools in Gurgaon, Delhi and corporates will support the run through sponsorships.

‘Wine & Cheese Evening’ - The event will be preceded by an auction of items donated by well wishers. The auction will be carried out in a unique way,  wherein guests at the event will undertake an open bidding. At the close of the bidding the person with the highest open  bid will walk away with the item. Over coffee and cookies  auctioning of high value items will be undertaken under the hammer.

Art Shows and Galleries – Partnerships with artists and galleries  help us raise funds. The artist/gallery donates a percentage of their sales to GF.

Saturday, February 27, 2010 saw residents of DLF Aralias and Friends of Genesis Foundation support the Grey Goose Cocktail Evening whilst savoring exciting cocktails. The proceeds from the event which was supported by Bacardi Martini India, Client Associates and DLF Aralias Club went towards 2 critically ill children . 

Arijit Bose (better known as Shorty), Grey Goose Brand Ambassador, delighted the crowd by giving a live demonstration of  four different cocktails, Grey Goose Classic Martini, Grey Goose Pomegranate, Grey Goose Jalapeno Drop and Grey Goose Cosmopolitan. Volunteers were selected from the audience to help make, shake and sample the cocktails which were then served to all the guests. 

The Grey Goose Jalapeno Drop was voted the most popular cocktail of the evening. Dominique’s live band kept feet tapping and many guests took to the floor to shake a leg. 

After much drinking and dancing the evening was concluded with Prema taking the mike to inform everyone on the work undertaken by the Foundation and to thank the guests for their interest and support. 

At the end of the event, all guests were delighted to recieve minature Grey Goose bottles along with a receipe booklet of the cocktails served.

Students of AES with Friends, Trustees, and Volunteers of Genesis Foundation

During Diwali 2009 parents of Indian children at American Embassy School (AES) led by Arvind Mathur had organized an event. In order that children learn about the importance of charity the surplus funds raised of Rs.10,000 was to be given to an identified NGO.

Genesis Foundation which deals with medical & financial support to critically ill children was identified as the recipient of this donation. Children from AES donned in GF caps presented the donation amount to Prema Sagar, Founder Trustee Genesis Foundation on February 4, 2010.

Aadi Sharma at CEO Chefs Share A Smile Lunch 2010

After a dismal week of foggy days, finally the sun shone brightly on Saturday, January 16, 2010 when we held our fifth CEO Chefs Share-a-Smile lunch fund-raiser at Crowne Plaza Today Gurgaon. The venue was the Petal Garden which looked radiant in the sunshine. The blue and white theme colour of ‘Grey Goose’ was everywhere on the tables and the umbrellas and the red flowers on every table added cheer to the event.

Our main sponsor for the event was Bacardi Martini India Ltd. Their ‘Grey Goose’ brand has always been associated with supporting social causes at local and international levels. They were happy to be associated with the Genesis-Foundation for this unique event again and went out of their way to make the event a huge success. Our second sponsor T and T Motors India displayed their swanky latest E-350 Model Mercedes for all to admire and aspire for.

Dragging themselves from their busy schedules, eight leading CEO’s arrived on time, each with a big smile and lots of good cheer. They were welcomed by volunteers of Genesis Foundation who helped them don their aprons and chef hats and were then introduced to their hotel counterparts and their work stations. By then Bacardi had set up a wonderful bar with invigorating cocktails, breezer’s and whatever could enthrall the soul and the spirit. Our donor guests who had contributed towards buying seats at the event were also welcomed and were suitably taken care of to set the mood for the afternoon.

Genesis Foundation Founder/Trustee Prema Sagar

We were all now set to start the event. Magandeep Singh, India’s first French-certified Sommelier, our chief MC engaged the audience and Dominique’s band played foot tapping music of the 70’s. Our CEO Chefs were taking their job seriously and tickled everyone’s palettes with a variety of delicacies. The Indian station had Parvathy Omanakuttan participated whole heartedly as a chef for this event and gathered many admirers around her station while making Meen Varuval and Jehangir Pocha , Managing Director, INX News competed with Paneer Chettinad. At the Continental corner Deepak Mukarji, Country Head, Corp Affairs-Shell India made Enchiladas and Chetan Seth, CMD, Chemon Group thoroughly enjoyed himself tossing Italian Pasta. Manoj Gopalakrishna, MD, Becton Dickenson and Deep Kalra, Founder and CEO, Makemytrip.com had people eating out of their hands for Mushroom and Spinach Wantons and Salt& Pepper Calamari at the Chinese corner. The Thai counter had Arun Seth, Chairman, British Telecom and Niren Chaudhary, Managing Director, Yum Restaurant offering Satays and Pad Thai Noodles. Besides all this delectable food the Dessert counter were tossing out Crepe Suzette Flambe’s with Grey Goose, Guava Tiramisu and Chocolate Éclairs and many other mouth watering sweets.

Genesis Foundation Goodwill Ambassador Parvathy Omanakuttan

Twelve-year old Aadi Sharma, our Junior Ambassador who demonstrated his power of oratory spoke about the critically ill children that Genesis Foundation helps and specifically those who would benefit from the money raised from this event. Haran Kumar, a photographer par excellence, was busy cataloging the event capturing stunning moments that will keep these moments alive (click here to see them). Media love covering this event and despite the long trek to Gurgaon they found it worthwhile (click here to see the coverage)

MC Magan with the assistance of Ajit Sahgal, Chairman of the Genesis Foundation advisory board called out the names of the Lucky Dip winners. We are ever so grateful for all the gifts that were donated by our co-sponsors PepsiCo, Sony Ericsson, Gallery One, Three Sixty Degrees, Reebok, Crowne Plaza Today Gurgaon, Redd Hot Café, Canon, Jet Airways, CRI Events and Bacardi Martini India Ltd.

In particular, Genesis Foundation is extremely appreciative of all the support extended by Shaun Langdon, General Manager and Area General Manager-NCR, Crowne Plaza Today Gurgaon. The success of the event goes to Executive Chef Vikas Oswal and the wonderful team that worked quietly behind the scene to make this a great success. A very special thanks to all those who bought seats at the table – Client Associates, Bacardi, Genesis Burson-Marsteller, Jyoti Sagar, Nipun Sahni, Merrill Lynch, Rita Duggal, Saurav Srivastava, Vimal Mahendru, Vinay Jha, Malti Nehru and many other individuals – helped Genesis Foundation to raise the required funds. We could not have done it without your help. Have a great 2010. See more photos of the event here.

Genesis Foundation organised its very first play Brief Candle, the story dealt with cancer which is one of our areas of focus. It seemed appropriate as many of the children we have treated are afflicted with cancer. The fund raiser was very well received in both Delhi and Gurgaon.

Brief Candle is an English play written by Mahesh Dattani’s and produced and directed by Lillete Dubey. It is a poignant tale …tragic, humorous, farcical and finally elevating with a star cast of Suchitra Pillai, Joy Sengupta, Amar Talwar, Zafar Karachiwala, Satchit Puranik and Manasi Parekh.

The play is a farce with some extremely funny situations revolving around a hotel room near the airport. As the characters in the play await their departures, they end up in comic situations as they entangle themselves in surreptitious dalliances and complicated love affairs. The metaphor of arrivals and departures for life and death leaves them with a reflection of their own struggles and needs.

The play was premiered by GF on October 24th and 25th at Kamani Auditorium, Delhi and Epicentre, Apparel House, Gurgaon respectively. On each day there were 2 shows held. Our main sponsor was Aircel. other support sponsors were Max Foundation, Client Associates, SpiceJet, Red FM and HSBC.

The play within a play involves Jeevan Jyoti, a hospital and hospice for cancer and terminally ill patients. The founders have requested a cultural event on founder’s day. Dr Dave, Shanti and some of the terminally ill patients feel that a play written by an inmate who died of Aids related cancer will be an ideal choice.

The total proceeds of the play went towards saving the lives of more than 12 children in need of critical medical and financial support. The 2 shows held in Gurgaon where sold out as the Gurgaonites are very keen on theatre, art and culture.

Gurgaon. Sunday, April 5, 2009

If there ever was a place to witness the right spirit for giving life a chance, then the Genesis Foundation organised “Corporate Gurgaon Runs for a Cause” provided it in plenty.

The run on the second day of the GF Annual Street Festival was organised together with the support of ‘Running and Living’ and ‘I am Gurgaon’ to Give Life a Chance.

Corporate Gurgaon gathered at Leisure Valley early on Sunday morning to extend their support. All proceeds of the run went towards supporting the treatment of the thalassemic children.

As early as 6am the crowds started collecting at the venue, ready to either participate in the 10 Km or the 5 Km run. The Genesis Foundation staff at the SmilesStore was overwhelmed by the number of participants who lined up to purchase the running kit of white T-shirts and caps, sporting the GF logo.

The old and young alike warmed up for the run with some spot jogging and warm up stretch exercises. Rahul Verghese, who spearheads the Running and Living movement, addressed the crowd, giving them details on the run and the route to be followed. With a get set, ready and go, the runners took off for the 10 Km run at 6.30am and the 5 Km run at 7am.

Many ran the entire distance, while others chose to walk and run. It was wonderful to see children, some as young as 5 to 6 years old, complete the 5 Km run. A group of 12 children as part of a congregation of a Delhi church also successfully completed the run. It was a delightful sight, as father’s carried their tiny tots on their shoulders and mother’s encouraged their young ones to move forward enticing them with a bumper breakfast that awaited them at the end of the run.

More than 700 people of all ages took part in the run. A sumptuous All American Breakfast was then organized by Epicentre of waffles & pancakes with maple syrup. Part of the proceeds of the breakfast went towards the cause.

Genesis Foundation is overwhelmed by the support extended by all through their presence at the run.

Click here to see more Photographs.