On February 20, 2015, Vanity Fair and L’Oreal Paris, along with the actress Freida Pinto, hosted a star-studded event in West Hollywood to announce the launch of a Girl Rising campaign in India, one that will include the new Hindi version of the film: Girl Rising India. Milken Institute School of Public Health Professor Amita Vyas participated in the Pre-Oscar launch as the producer of Girl Rising India and the chair of the campaign’s US Advisory Board.
Since its release in 2013, the feature film Girl Rising has grown into a thriving global movement with thousands of grassroots supporters in over 150 countries leading change for girls around the world. Now, a new production, the film Girl Rising India harnesses the talents of Bollywood’s biggest stars in a Hindi version of the original film. In a first-of-its kind collaboration, Bollywood stars are coming together, joining forces with corporate leaders and government, in a national movement to raise awareness about the importance of educating and valuing girls. Through powerful storytelling and visible advocacy, Girl Rising’s India campaign is designed to spark grassroots, community-led change on this issue.
Vyas served as the producer of the Hindi version of the film, which will be released in India later this year. At Milken Institute SPH she directs the Maternal and Child Health Program in the Department of Prevention and Community Health. She says that millions of girls in India, and around the world, fail to reach their full potential because of a lack of education, poor health and other factors. Vyas is hoping to change that by leading engagement on this issue from Hollywood to Washington, DC.
To that end, she and other members of the Girl Rising team attended an event at the White House for the recent launch of the Let Girls Learn Initiative, in which the Obama Administration has partnered with the Peace Corps to take on the challenge of keeping girls in school. More than 62 million girls across the globe still do not receive an education and the Let Girls Learn initiative aims to provide the support to help keep girls in school.
Learn more about the Girl Rising global campaign and watch the Girl Rising India film trailer.