By Azim Saiyed
The Sangeet Foundation has organised Hues of Happiness, an event to celebrate a two in one Holi and International World Happiness Day this Sunday (MAR20) at the Y theatre in Leicester.
The charity’s main aim is to raise mental health awareness by holding discussions and live musical performances.
There are many sponsors for the event but the main co-partner is De Montfort University (DMU) and there will be a few professors attending to discuss mental health awareness.
The founders of Sangeet Foundation are Jayanta Ray and his wife, Sutapa Ray.
Jayanta said: “Our motto is happiness through music and the arts.
“Mental health is just as important as physical health, otherwise it can spiral out of control but we believe in using music and arts as a mechanism to help those in need of mental support.
“In the south Asian community, people may not be comfortable to talk about mental health and that’s why this is a great opportunity to change that.”
The charity was established in 2015 because of his family’s personal mental health experiences and since then he has spread the importance and awareness of mental health.
The word Sangeet translates to ‘music’ in English from the traditional Indian Sanskrit language.
The organisation was hindered during COVID-19 lockdown restrictions because it was unable to provide live shows and events.
Jayanta said: “During lockdown, we did more than 100 online shows and we addressed the whole world, not just the UK.
“Although we could not celebrate the 2020 international world happiness day in person, we did so online as we partnered up with De Montfort University.
“Because of this, our growth actually accelerated.
“Oh yes, Leicester is going to be a great success, and even if Sangeet Foundation can help save one life, I will be more than happy.”
The event has lined up a live traditional western classical symphony in Indian format with the popular Samadipta headlining the event.
This will be the first of its kind ever to be performed in the UK.
The tickets will cost £10, £15, £25 and the donors will receive VIP tickets as well a £5 discounted ticket price for DMU students.
If you would like to buy a ticket or more information on the event, then please visit: https://www.anytickets.co.uk/index.php?lbuy&sid=b9i8cd33u30ine2t16i2c9jku3
