Tamil Nadu   

Japanese actor pays a visit to tsunami rehabilitation areas

Ramya Kannan

She is impressed with the way people have recovered from the disaster

CHENNAI: When Japanese actor Miki Sakai talks of her recent experiences to her people, they will get to know more about India than just Rajnikant as the `Dancing Maharaja.'

Ms. Sakai is talking in glorious terms about her first visit to India, particularly to the tsunami-hit areas of Tamil Nadu. She came as a Goodwill Ambassador of World Vision Japan. "Actually the pace of recovery has been quicker than I imagined it would be," she said.

"I felt relieved as I saw the smiles on people's faces and that they have actually recovered from the tsunami's devastation." To her it was a good sign that the homes "look strong."

"I thought providing comfortable places for people is very important as they can also be confident they have been resettled in a good environment."

Ms. Sakai is a film and television actor, made popular in Japan by her film, `Love Letter' and her role in the TV series `Hakusen Nagashi.' She had nothing to do with helping the socially underprivileged or the tsunami till a while ago, when she met an 11-year old girl in the Philippines. That turned out to be her moment of epiphany: "I realised that there are many children in this world who are forced to live in poverty. Since then, I wondered if there was anything I could do." She signed up with World Vision's child sponsorship programme, and as the cliche goes, there was no looking back!

Warm reception

At the tsunami projects in Chennai and Cuddalore, the actor did not get the red carpet she is probably used to. In the resettlement area in Thuraipakkam, Chennai, it was a humble reception, but full of warmth as the children of the slums sang songs and danced for her.

She was so touched, she thinks the memories of that encounter will stay with her forever.

The kids also told her of their dreams and even their plans for their own community, excited at the prospect of meeting a foreigner who had come all the way to meet them. "I am moved by the fact that the children are so aware of what is happening in the slum," she said.

When they told her tales about how the slum was years ago and indicated how it had grown, she seemed to agree, "I can see that change. What I have seen during my visit is that people are starting to stand on their own feet."

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