November 6th 2023.
Dr Bharat Pathak, Chairman of Lion Tarachand Bapa Hospital and Research Centre and Hon Secretary of Seva Mandal Education Society, is proud to recognize Zarna Somaia for her generous contributions to causes ranging from education to health and relief work.
Six years ago, Zarna, now 86, returned to Mumbai from Australia to attend a niece’s wedding. Unfortunately, she had to be hospitalized after a seizure. Upon returning home, she declared her intention to donate all of her wealth to various charitable causes. Her daughter, Lina Ashar, founder of Kangaroo Kids and Dreamtime Learning, remembers how her mother had always taught her and her siblings to enjoy minimalism and give back at least 10% of all their earnings to charity.
Today, Zarna is a major donor to a range of initiatives through the Zarna & Anil Somaia Family Foundation. From a hospital named after the Dalai Lama to various schools and Angel Xpress, a set of mobile STEM laboratories in Dharavi, the Lion’s Club and more have benefited from Zarna’s generous contributions.
The Somaias’ textile business in Australia also started Simba Conscious, to educate the children of workers in their Indian manufacturing units, with the objective of lifting the next generation out of hard labour. Zarna is also the first investor in Dreamtime Learning, an educational venture to give students relevant learning experiences, to discover their true passions and to love learning. All equity and profits from this initiative will go towards teaching children who cannot afford an education, specifically towards exposing them to foreign education.
In addition, Zarna has donated to a fund for education and relief work set up by Nepalese social activist Ani Choying Drolma, also known as ‘the singing nun’. She has also given up her home to the Buddhist community in Australia.
Zarna’s compassionate nature and dedication to giving back to society is something that her daughter, Lina Ashar, admires. “Growing up, I watched her with a lot of awe”, she says. We can only hope that her example serves as an inspiration to many more.
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