450 women to walk the ramp for cancer awareness

A ramp walk is soon set to steer the conversation towards cancer awareness in the city. Titled Aal Paathi Aadai Paathi, the fashion show will see cancer survivors and doctors from Chennai taking part in spreading awareness on the deadly disease so as to aid in early detection of it.

Being organised by city-based fashion director Vasanth Subburaj, along with his friends Vinodhini and Aravindhan, the event, to be held on June 1, is also aiming to set a Guinness World Record for the most number of models walking the ramp for a social cause.

“A total of 450 women, including cancer survivors, students, research scholars and doctors, will be walking the ramp. The idea is to have a conversation on cancer — how to detect it early, and how to maintain a healthy lifestyle. We realised that even among urban population, the awareness on cancer is very low. We have also identified 200 people who are willing to donate their hair as part of the event,” Vasanth tells us.

With fashion having a wide reach in its ability to capture people’s attention, the organisers say they chose a ramp walk to highlight the issue. “We want the cancer survivors to be able to walk boldly and share their stories with people. We believe it is not just the costume, but also the attitude towards that determines beauty. Besides the ramp walk, we will also have doctors holding seminars for women on the kind of nutrition and lifestyle they can adopt in order to stay healthy,” he adds.

Over 250 designers from National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT), Chennai, and Dream Zone, among others, will be coming together for this one-of-its-kind fashion show. “Girl students from Women’s Christian College, Stella Maris, and a few others, will also be taking part in the ramp walk. We want this event to be empowering for women, while also helping them speak up and learn about cancer,” asserts Vasanth. The organisers are also holding a fundraiser on the crowdfunding platform, Milaap, so as to support the cancer survivors. “Our motto is to equip everyone with enough knowledge on cancer so that they can care for their health,” he adds.