Tamil actress Trisha was made a Unicef Celebrity Advocate in Chennai on November 20, a date which has been declared World Children’s Day from this year.
The post of Celebrity Advocate will require the star to volunteer time from her acting career to engage in Unicef projects related to children’s welfare.
In her new role, Trisha will be working towards promoting children’s rights in Tamil Nadu and Kerala and address issues such as education, health, child abuse and child marriage. She is the first south Indian actress to receive this post.
Interacting with school students at the event, Trisha emphasised the importance of education, calling it “a magic bullet to eliminate child marriage and child labour.”
Stressing on the importance of extra-curricular activities, Trisha said: “I enjoyed reading and acting which made me a confident person by the time I finished school.”
Thanking Unicef for the honour, Trisha added that the cause of children was close to her heart. Quoting Mother Teresa, she said: “I can do things you cannot; you can do things I cannot; together we can do great things.”
Trisha is active on Twitter with 4.31 million followers. Referring to this, Job Zachariah, Chief of Unicef State Office for Tamil Nadu and Kerala said, “We believe that people will listen when Trisha speaks on a social issue concerning children.”
In Tamil Nadu, 50 per cent of children are anaemic. Besides affecting their health, it hampers their concentration in studies. Despite iron tablets distributed free in schools, students don’t take them.
“Trisha could educate them on benefits of iron and thus motivate them to take it regularly,” added Zachariah.
