Asha Bhavan :

Asha Bhavan – Home for Orphan and Destitute Girls

Asha Bhavan began as a response to seeing the effects of poverty and dissolution on young girls in the slums of Perambur. With either no home or an abusive one, and no one to care for them, the girls were in danger of dying from infectious diseases and being sold into prostitution. Removal from their immediate environment seemed to be the best hope, and so the home was established in Chennai in 1985.

Originally a home for 10 girls, it now houses about 100. As with the boys’ home, Arul Anbukudil, they live in Katchur on Share and Care’s campus, and attend Christ King School. Currently there is no need to go out and rescue girls—they arrive at Share and Care’s doorstep, having heard of the Home from others.

Like the boys, the girls are given shelter, food, clothing, education, medical care when necessary, and lots of love. A typical day begins at 6:00 with yoga and meditation, and goes on to include meals, play, duties, and lots of homework. By 9:00 p.m. everyone is in bed, and the home is quiet. Because many of the girls come from a very poor background, the daily vegetarian diet is especially nutritious, supplemented with one egg per week, and sweets on festival days.

When parents visit on parents’ visiting day (the second Sunday of the month), they are permitted to bring packaged food as a supplement, but no cooked food because of safety factors.

The girls enjoy several extracurricular activities; dancing is a favourite, and some become quite adept at Bharat Natyam, one of the traditional classical dance forms of India. Together with the boys they perform at village functions and for the seniors groups, who take great joy in seeing the children.