Shabana to plead for food at the UN

Mumbai, Sep 19 (IANS) Bollywood actress and social activist Shabana Azmi will join several eminent activists from across the world at the UN headquarters in New York, Sep 22-26, to plead for food for the entire globe.

The activists include the Brazilian prime minister and a Nigerian actor.

'It's very simple, really. Food needs to be put on everyone's plate. In the UN General Assembly they had promised that by 2015 they'd remove hunger from the world. They haven't even achieved 50 percent of that target. So all of us from across the world will have just one chant - put food on everyone's plate.' Shabana told IANS.

'How can we think of making progress, when everyone doesn't get enough to eat? In fact, people are still dying of hunger. After I finish at the UN General Assembly, I'm going to Yale for a panel discussion.

'Finally, I'll be doing another discussion on the BBC, on India's 60 years of independence.' She added.

Shabana spends more time outside than she does at home these days.

'My home is being renovated and is in a shambles. On my birthday Sep 18, all my friends huddled in one corner of the house,' said Shabana, whose social work is not limited to poor people.

Last week at STAR television's music contest 'Voice Of India', was a special occasion for her. Shabana brought about a rapprochement between the estranged musician brothers Jatin and Lalit.

'Trust me, it wasn't planned or orchestrated. It happened spontaneously because of the electrifying atmosphere. That evening I realised how sentimental we Indians are.'

Despite her busy schedule, the actress spent some time to celebrate her birthday with husband Javed Akhtar. The two of them watched the Shah Rukh Khan starrer super hit 'Chak De! India' at a suburban theatre on Sep 18.

'Would you believe, we hadn't seen the film yet. People were clapping and whistling. Lovely film. There were only the two of us. The girls are so spontaneous. Shah Rukh Khan is a revelation. My respect for Aditya Chopra has shot up manifold. To convince the producer to put money into something so removed from the norm isn't easy.'