'We For India:' Over 100 Bollywood and Hollywood stars join hands for COVID-19 relief funds

Some of the biggest names in Bollywood and Hollywood, including Arab music icon Nancy Ajram, Steven Spielberg, Ed Sheeran, Mick Jagger and A.R. Rahman, among many other personalities, are coming together for a global fundraiser on Facebook on India Independence Day.

The three-hour event, called "We For India:" Saving Lives, Protecting Livelihoods, will take place on Sunday (Aug.15), and will be live-streamed globally over Facebook. The event, which hopes to raise donations upward of $3.5 million (Dhs12.8m), will be hosted by Indian actor Rajkummar Rao, the star of the Oscar and BAFTA-nominated film "The White Tiger." The show will also feature medical professionals who will share their experiences and urgent requirements to keep India safe.

The three-hour event, called We For India: Saving Lives, Protecting Livelihoods, will take place on Sunday, 15 August, and will be live-streamed globally over Facebook.

The event, which hopes to raise donations upward of $3.5 million (£ 2.5m), will be hosted by Indian actor Rajkummar Rao, the star of the Oscar and BAFTA-nominated film The White Tiger.

According to a press release: “All the donations will be allocated to post COVID-19 pandemic missions and provide vital preventative measures against future waves.”

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The funds will also provide “critical facilities such as oxygen concentrators, cylinders, ventilators, and essential medicines as well as ICU units.”

The celebrity participants will express solidarity and support for saving lives and livelihoods in India after the devastation caused by the second wave of the pandemic. All proceeds from the mega event will be utilised by GiveIndia to provide both humanitarian aid and strengthen healthcare infrastructure.

 A combo image of Sara Ali Khan.

This three-hour videothon will feature more than 100 artistes, including leading Bollywood filmmakers Rajkumar Hirani, Karan Johar, Imtiaz Ali, Farah Khan, Vikramaditya Motwane, Vikram Bhatt and Ribhu Dasgupta.

Several interesting interactions will also be seen with stars such as Ajay Devgn, Saif Ali Khan, Akkineni Nagarjuna, R. Madhavan, Farhan Akhtar, Shreyas Talpade, Tusshar Kapoor, Prosenjit Chatterjee and Pratik Gandhi. The show will be hosted by the dapper Rajkummar Rao.

The list of artistes/celebrities participating in the 'We for India' concert: A.R. Rahman, Adah Sharma, Aditi Rao Hydari, Ajay Devgn, Ajit Mohan, Akkineni Nagarjuna, Alaya F, Amit Mishra, Amit Tandon, Ananya Panday, Ankur Tewari, Annie Lennox, Arjun Kapoor, Arjun Mathur, Atul Satija, Bickram Ghosh, Dia Mirza, Dina Shihabi, Divyenndu Sharma, Dr Ankesh Sahetya, Dr Himanshu Mehta, Dr Sanjay Arora, Dr Tanu Singhal, Ed Sheeran, Farah Khan, Farhan Akhtar, Guru Randhawa, Harmeet Singh, Harrdy Sandhu, Hrishitaa Bhatt, Imtiaz Ali, Ini Dima-Okojie, Jaaved Jaaferi, Javed Akhtar, Jay Shetty, Jeeveshu Ahluwalia, Johnny Lever, Kabir Khan, Kalki Koechlin, Kanika Kapoor, Karan Johar, Karan Wahi, Kirti Kulhari, Lisa Mishra, Lola Lennox, Mahesh Bhupathi, Malaika Arora, Manish Malhotra, Manjari Fadnnis, Manmeet Singh, Meezaan, Mick Jagger, Mira Kapoor, Mithoon, Nakuul Mehta, Nancy Ajram, Natasha Mudhar, Nikhita Gandhi, Nile Rodgers, Nushrratt Bharuccha, Parampara Tandon, Parineeti Chopra, Prabhudeva, Pragya Jaiswal, Prakriti Kakar, Pratik Gandhi, Prosenjit Chatterjee, Purab Kohli, R. Madhavan, Rahul Bose, Rajkumar Hirani, Rajkummar Rao, Rakul Preet Singh, Rannvijay Singha, Remo D'Souza, Ribhu Dasgupta, Rohit Saraf, Sachet Tandon, Saif Ali Khan, Salim Merchant, Sanjana Sanghi, Sanya Malhotra, Sapan Verma, Saqib Saleem, Sara Ali Khan, Shankar Mahadevan, Shantanu Moitra, Sharad Kelkar, Shekhar Ravjiani, Shibasish Sarkar, Shilpa Rao, Shilpa Shetty Kundra, Shreyas Talpade, Siddhant Chaturvedi, Siddhanth Kapoor, Sidharth Malhotra, Sister Sledge ft Sledgendary, Sonakshi Sinha, Sonu Sood, Steven Spielberg, Sukriti Kakar, Sulaiman Merchant, Swanand Kirkire, Tanya Maniktala, Tisca Chopra, Tusshar Kapoor, Usha Uthup, Varun Sharma, Vidya Balan, Vikram Bhatt, Vikramaditya Motwane and Vishal Dadlani.

Singer Ed Sheeran poses for a photograph. File / AP

“The world has been stunned by stories of families torn apart by the loss of loved ones and businesses forced to close, plunging thousands into poverty,” the founder of The World We Want, Natasha Mudhar says.

She added: “This is one of the largest coordinated efforts to raise support to address the impact of the pandemic. Together, we can prevent this health crisis from having a lasting impact, including extreme poverty and hunger. We For India is a clarion call that we are all with India – side by side.”