The Aga Khan Foundation ( AKF ) is a private, not-for-profit international development agency , which was founded in 1967 by Shah Karim Al Hussaini, Aga Khan IV , the 49th Hereditary Imam of the Shia Ismaili Muslims . AKF seeks to provide long-term solutions to problems of poverty , hunger , illiteracy and ill health in the poorest parts of South and Central Asia , Eastern and Western Africa , and the Middle East . In these regions, the needs of rural communities in mountainous, coastal and resource poor areas are given particular attention. The Foundation's activities often reinforce the work of other sister agencies within the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN). While these agencies are guided by different mandates pertaining to their respective fields of expertise (the environment, culture, microfinance, health, education, architecture, rural development), their activities are often coordinated with one another in order to "multiply" the overall effect that the Network has in any given place or community. AKF also collaborates with local, national and international partners in order to bring about sustainable improvements of life in the 14 countries in which it implements programmes. The Foundation's head office is located in Geneva , Switzerland .
16-473: Lushin Dubey is an Indian stage actor and director. She has directed, acted and scripted many drama productions for over 20 years. Lushin is also known for her solo plays like Untitled and Pinki Virani 's Bitter Chocolate with theatre director Arvind Gaur . She has acted in films like Partition (2007), Murder Unveiled (2005) — for which she won 2006 Gemini Award for Best Performance by an Actress in
32-558: A 52-minute documentary, produced by the PSBT , titled Passive Euthanasia: Kahaani Karuna Ki . Theatre director Arvind Gaur scripted and directed it as solo play Aruna's Story . Solo act performed by Lushin Dubey Bitter Chocolate is about child sexual abuse in India. A solo play based on this book was scripted-directed by Arvind Gaur and performed by Lushin Dubey. Once Was Bombay
48-719: A Featured Supporting Role in a Dramatic Program or Mini-Series — and Perfect Husband . Lushin was born in a Sindhi Hindu family and her maiden name was Lushin Keswani. Her father, Govind Keswani, was an engineer with the Indian Railways , and her mother, Leela, was a gynaecologist who worked with the Indian Army . She was named by her father after the Russian aircraft Ilyushin . Lushin studied M.Sc. in Childhood and Special Education in
64-638: A petition in Supreme Court of India on behalf of Aruna Shanbaug, a nurse working at the KEM Hospital in Mumbai on 27 November 1973 when she was sexually assaulted by a sweeper. During the attack, Shanbaug was strangled with a chain, and the deprivation of oxygen left her in a vegetative state. She was treated at KEM following the incident and was kept alive by a feeding tube for 42 years, until her death of pneumonia in 2015. In Virani's 2009 petition, she argued that
80-459: A play inspired by diplomat writer Pavan K. Varma 's very well-received book, Being Indian . Pinki Virani Pinki Virani (born 30 January 1959) is an Indian writer, journalist, human-rights activist and writer. She is the author of Once was Bombay , Aruna's Story , Bitter Chocolate: Child Sexual Abuse in India (which won the National Award), and Deaf Heaven . Her fifth book
96-519: Is a sociology book. Deaf Heaven , her first work of fiction, experiments with form and style to warn of the danger of the tipping over of a modern country into neo-fascism. In Politics Of The Womb – The Perils Of Ivf, Surrogacy & Modified Babies (2016), Virani criticises IVF and other forms of assisted reproduction when used on women in aggressively repetitive cycles and calls for a worldwide ban on commercial surrogacy and other forms of third-party assisted reproduction. In 2009, Pinki Virani filed
112-464: Is based on Pinki Virani 's book and scripted-directed by Arvind Gaur . Lushin Dubey's third solo I Will Not Cry is scripted and directed by Arvind Gaur . This play is an exceptional blend of theatre and multimedia, highlighting the issue of child survival through satire, reality and music excerpts. It brings alive the sad truth of millions of unnecessary deaths of children in India. The performance by Lushin Dubey evokes collective responsibility among
128-714: Is called Politics of the Womb -- The Perils of Ivf, Surrogacy & Modified Babies . Virani was born in Mumbai , India, 30 January 1959, to Gujarati Muslim parents. Her father owned a shop, and her mother was a teacher. She attended school in Mumbai, Pune and Mussoorie . She went to the US to study for a Masters in Journalism on the Aga Khan Foundation scholarship. She did an internship at The Sunday Times , where she reported extensively on
144-546: Is married to Shankkar Aiyar , who is a journalist and the author of Accidental India . Aga Khan Foundation The Foundation has seven areas of focus that include: early childhood development, education , health and nutrition, agriculture and food security, civil society , work and enterprise, and climate resilience. Seeking innovative approaches to complex problems, it tries to identify solutions that can be adapted to conditions in many different regions and replicated. Cross-cutting issues that are also addressed by
160-415: The "continued existence of Aruna is in violation of her right to live in dignity". The Supreme Court made its decision on 7 March 2011. It rejected the plea to discontinue Aruna's life support but issued a set of broad guidelines legalising passive euthanasia in India. The Supreme Court also refused to recognise Virani as the "next friend" of Shanbaug, a description Virani had used to file the petition. She
176-901: The Foundation include human resource development , community participation , and gender and development . The Aga Khan provides the Foundation with regular funding for administration as well as making contributions to its endowment. Grants from government, institutional and private sector partners including from the United Nations , Global Affairs Canada , USAID , the UK's FCDO , the German Federal Foreign Office , Agence Française de Développement and others represent substantial sources of funding. The Ismaili community also contributes financial resources as well as volunteers, time, and professional services. Among other recognition for its work,
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#1732891123550192-823: The Foundation received the 2005 Award for Most Innovative Development Project from the Global Development Network for the Aga Khan Rural Support Programme (AKRSP). The AKRSP has successfully been replicated to form the Rural Support Programmes Network in Pakistan . The Aga Khan Foundation has a presence in 17 countries globally, implementing programmes in 14 of those including in: Eastern Africa (Kenya, Madagascar, Mozambique, Tanzania and Uganda); Central & South Asia (Afghanistan, India, Kyrgyz Republic, Pakistan and Tajikistan);
208-576: The US, after a Masters in History from the Lady Shri Ram College for Women (LSR), University of Delhi , India. Lushin is married and has two daughters, Ilina and Tara. Her sister Lillete and niece Ira are also actresses. She also has a brother named Patanjali. Her husband Pradeep Dubey is a Professor of Economics at Stony Brook University and adjunct professor at Yale . In her college days she acted with Barry John . Lushin's first solo play
224-609: The audience to be a part of social change. The play has been performed in Delhi , Mumbai, Kolkata, Jaipur and Lucknow in collaboration of Save The Children . Her fourth solo play with Theatre director Arvind Gaur is 'Aruna's Story' based on Pinki Virani 's book on Aruna Shanbaug case . Gaur scripted it as solo play. She has directed the play Life of Gautam Budda , Mushkan . She acted with Alyque Padamsee in William Shakespeare 's Macbeth . In 2009 she directed Salam India ,
240-473: The race riots in Britain. She started working as a typist at the age of 18. When she returned to India after her scholarship, she worked as a reporter and went on to become India's first woman editor of an evening paper. She moved from daily journalism when she published her first book. Virani is the author of five books. Aruna's Story is about the rape of a nurse that left her in a coma. The book forms part of
256-532: Was called Untitled which was directed and scripted by Arvind Gaur , traveled to the US, UK and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Untitled has completed more than 200 shows. Some of the cities have been Boston , Chicago , Rochester, New York, Dallas, Houston, Washington, D.C., and Palo Alto. It has been staged at the Smithsonian Institution and at Harvard. Her second solo Bitter Chocolate
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