It might be one of the most unique covers of a Green Day hit you’ll ever hear: young, at-risk girls from an Indian shelter singing Boulevard of Broken Dreams. But that is what Music Basti has brought into their lives. Watch this video to know what music can do.
(Click on this link if you can’t see the video below)
“Many of these children have been abused or have suffered trauma. Music helps to engage them, it helps them to relax,” Faith Gonsalves, the founder of Music Basti, says.
Music Basti provides at-risk children in India with the chance to experience the magic of music.
Volunteers from the non-profit help give the girls a musical voice as a means of giving them a confident and creative voice of their own.
Music Basti’s work has given the children a better sense of self-worth.
“What we also do is to organise performances for these children, and through performance it helps to build their confidence and self-worth,” Gonsalves adds.
Music helps some of these kids who have suffered trauma or abuse relax
Says 14-year-old Jasmine Sheikh:
I love music, singing and playing instruments. When we are here, it feels like it’s something different.
So far, Music Basti has worked with more than 400 children and 500 volunteers in Delhi, often in shelters such as Kushi Home, where Jasmine and her Green Day-singing friends live.
Spending time at Music Basti gives these kids a chance to do something other than study.
Gonsalves hopes to develop the programme further by making it easy for others to set up similar initiatives across the country.