The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Celebrating with a difference

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Nov 10, 2007
ePaper

Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Celebrating with a difference

Staff Reporter

Memorable Outing: Children of Christel House India at the restaurant, Roomali with a View, in Bangalore.

BANGALORE: The festive mood is in the air with Deepavali celebrations still continuing all around. For children, the occasion is all about sweets and crackers. However, for our underprivileged youngsters, Deepavali may not have special meaning at all.

The restaurant, Roomali with a View, decided to make the festival different for the less fortunate children earlier in the week. At its second outlet at Marathahalli, the children of Christel House India, an international NGO, were treated to a feast of classic north Indian cuisine, including sweets such as moong dal halwa, gulab jamun and, of course, ice-cream.

Around 80 children, all sixth and seventh graders, guided themselves quite comfortably through the different courses of the menu, complete with table manners and etiquette. In fact, the lunch was a surprise to them.

After lunch, there were more surprises waiting for them as sparklers and balloons were handed over to them. Durgani, a seventh grader said: “The food is different here. We really enjoyed ourselves today.”

Her friend Bharti added: “We were very excited when our teachers told us that we were coming for lunch here. We got to know of this only today morning.” Mini Elias, Head-Development & PR of Christel House India, said: “We take them out every year somewhere or the other. But this year, coming here was something different.”

Sanjeev Makin, Director of Roomali, said: “We have always believed in giving back to society and have always provided for a social cause. With this in mind, we decided to start our second outlet here by lighting up the smiles of the children at Christel House.”

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Karnataka