All for a cause: Women to hit the highway

Four accomplished women are set to leave on November 3, from Mumbai, and hit the road to undertake a journey that aims to make a difference to the lives of children suffering from paediatric cancer across India.

• Proportion of childhood cancer up to 5 percent of all cases in country
• Care Car aims to raise funds for NGOs annually
• Group has been in touch with Tata Memorial Hospital and Impacct Foundation

The Care Car expedition is the brainchild of porcelain artist and homemaker Rina Valecha, serial entrepreneur Hansu Pardiwala, psychoanalyst Maneck Bhatia and HR consultant Chitra Hiremath. The drive, which will start from Mumbai, will cover 4,800km and wing by several cities, including Indore, Gwalior, Lucknow, Varanasi, Bodhgaya, Bhubaneswar, Visakhapatnam and Hyderabad. Their automobile of choice for the expedition is a Hyundai Creta.

“Cancer is the leading cause of death worldwide. While it is generally considered a disease that afflicts adults, India has a huge burden of cases among children less than 15 years of age,” says Rina. “The proportion of childhood cancers can be up to 5 percent of all cancer burden in the country.”

Rina and her friends have known each other for years. “Hansu and I were in college together and Maneck and Chitra go back a long way as well. But it’s only recently that we discovered a shared passion for road-tripping,” says Valecha. Earlier this year, Rina, Hansu and Chitra went on a nine-day trip to Kutch.

“But this road trip is different and it will set the template for further such annual activities,” says Rina. “With Care Car, we aim to raise funds for different NGOs annually. This year we’re working — and driving — to raise funds for the Helping Hands Foundation.”

The Mumbai-based NGO works with children diagnosed with cancer, and funds generated by the Care Car drive will go towards providing accommodation for children and their families during treatment and regular testing and rehabilitation of those who beat cancer.

“The Care Car team has been in touch with Tata Memorial Hospital and the Impacct Foundation, the paediatric foundation of the hospital, with pitstops along the way including visits to their centres in Varanasi and Visakhapatnam,” Rina said. The Car Care team is also scheduled to visit the paediatric department of a medical college in Gwalior and a hospice in Hyderabad. The drive will end in Mumbai on December 1. A passion for road-tripping always brings people together, and in the case of the Care Car drive, it also marries it with a worthy cause. Follow the girls on Instagram @the_care_car.

MURALI MENON