MUMBAI: It was a fun evening alright, but it was with a good cause.
Around 35 thousand screaming youngsters joined in to watch MTV VJs, Bollywood actors and Indian music artistes to rock at the third MTV Music Summit for AIDS held on 15 November at MMRDA Grounds, Mumbai, to support life and stop the discrimination against people living with HIV/AIDS. The music summit will premiere into 80 million Indian homes at 9:30 pm on Doordarshan and 5:00 pm on MTV India on 30 November 2003.
The event boasted of attendance including likes of Dino Morea, Diya Mirza, Fardeen Khan, Gulshan Grover, Hrishita Bhatt, Isha Koppikar, Mandira Bedi, Meghna Naidu, Riya Sen, Ruby Bhatia, Zayed Khan, Abhijeet, Babul Supriyo, Baba Sehgal, DJ Aqeel, Hema Sardesai, Mika, Raghav, Suchitra K, Sunidhi Chauhan, Sukhbir, Shaswati, Shreya Ghosal, Shreekant, Vaishali Samant and Vedic Chant.
Brought in partnership with UNDP and was presented by Sony Hi-Fi, the communication partner for the music summit was TATA Indicom.
The summit was kicked off by Sahara, a group of 15-24 year olds living with HIV/AIDS, who performed their brand of music. The event was sponsored by United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Next was performance by 'Dancing Feat', a Committed Communities Development Trust (CCDT) project for children at risk to HIV/AIDS. The event was funded by Family Health International (FHI) and the kids performed on a special dance sequence choreographed by Shiamak Davar.
Besides Haath Se Haath Milaa, produced by BBC India, shot a behind-the-scene episode of the MTV Music Summit for AIDS with humsafars (a groups of teens at risk of HIV/AIDS).
Said Alex Kuruvilla, Managing Director, MTV Networks India: "At MTV, we believe awareness and education are the most effective 'vaccines' for AIDS. With the third MTV Music Summit for AIDS, we continue to raise awareness about HIV/AIDS, promote prevention and fight stigma. Providing a massive trust to this initiative, for the second year in a row, is the country's terrestrial channel - Doordarshan, who will air the MTV Music Summit for AIDS into 80 million Indian homes. "
GO 92.5 FM, the radio partner, broadcast the summit live while Doordarshan is the television partner. The ground partners were Coca-Cola, Barista, Shoppers Stop and Rotaract Club, Bombay Hills South. Intercontinental The Grand, Mumbai was the hospitality partner.
