User:Sunita Budhiraja

Sunita Budhiraja
http://kindlewoodcommunications.in/https://m.facebook.com/groups/124183454586761

About
Sunita Budhiraja is a well -known Hindi author, poet, anchor and senior communications professional with over four decades of experienceand is Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Kindlewood Communications.

Sunita has 11 books to her credit that include her major work on personalities and legendary musicians, poetry, coffee table books, social subjects like adult education and environment.

She is the author of recently launchedand authorized biography of SangeetMartandPadma VibhushanPtJasraj titled ‘Rasraj :PanditJasraj’ and was recently launched in New York, USA.The book is published by VaniPrakashan.

Recent Work
Her other recent work on India’s legendary musicians, namely – UstadBismillah Khan, Pt KishanMaharaj, Pt Jasraj, Dr M Balamuralikrishna, Pt Shiv Kumar Sharma, Pt BirjuMaharaj and Pt HariprasadChaurasia have been published and applauded in numerous reading sessions in Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore and New York. The collection has been published as – ‘SaatSuronKe Beech’ based on Sunita’s informal interactions with the artistes conducted over a period of more than a decade.

Campaign- Six Yards and 365 Days
Sunita Budhiraja always drapes handloom sarees and was concerned with the plight of Indian weavers whose younger generations were taking on to better paying avenues than weaving. Inspired by the Digital India call by the Honorable Prime Minister of India ShriNarendraModiji, she started a Facebook campaign – Six Yards and 365 Days a little over three years ago. She added three members to create the group. The journey of Six Yards and 365 Days, which began with just three members, now has become a movement with more than 30,000 members worldwide and is the only Facebook campaign that encourages only handloom sarees.

These members are from different walks of life – high profile artistes and artists, authors, theatre persons, educationists, entrepreneurs, doctors, NGO workers, communication professionals to house wives and weavers who come from underpaid, middle and low income groups. They are in the age group of 20 to 85 years and above, and come from every nook and corner of India besides several members from USA, Canada, UK, Australia, Russia, Europe, Middle East, Far East and parts of Asia including Pakistan. (nearly 60 countries)

Another achievement was that women have come out of their virtual world to a real world. Sunita Budhiraja has been receiving ladies who come to meet her with tears in their eyes and share their grievances, that they were never appreciated by anyone in their family, but after joining this group, they get compliments from the co - members and their self esteem is coming back. To say it briefly, the saree has become a reason of empowerment and inculcating a sense of pride and self esteem in women. Sunita has created regional chapters where meets of ladies clad in their handloom sarees take place and issues related with handlooms and weaving arediscussed.

When Sunita started this campaign, she was not aware that it could actually touch the soul of women who are participating, the core idea was to support weavers, but it has gone beyond that objective, it has created a community of women, who join hands to support each other emotionally.

On a daily basis on an average above 21,000 people visit the page. With 30,000 members buying just about 10 sarees in a year they are buying about 3,00,000 sarees in a year, helping the handloom sector.

The Group has touched the life of nearly 2 crore people through this campaign since each handloom saree that we buy supports 70 persons on an average.

Six Yards and 365 Days is the only Facebook campaign, which has not become just an album of pretty women in their inexpensive or expensive sarees, but a group that has worked with a thought to save saree from getting extinct and supports the weaving community. In the past nearly three years of its existence members have posted more than 200 varieties of hand woven sarees many of them we do not usually see. The group does not allow to post any synthetic or power loom sarees. This is to support the handloom sector.

Six Yards and 365 Days has also become a knowledge sharing group in which members write about each and every saree, its intricacies, weave, and story behind it as they believe that every saree has a story to tell.

Sunita Budhiraja is currently working on musicology based on her interactions with several other senior artistes from the world of classical music. She is a known anchor and conducts music concerts. She was associated with Swami Haridas Music Festival – Vrindavan for over three decades, Pt Motiram and Pt ManiramSangeetSamaroh – Hyderabad, for over two decades. She conducts Vedic Heritage’s – New York – Annual Music and Dance Festival for over a decade.

Work- Poems,Books and Documentary
Her first collection of poems – ‘AadhiDhoop’ - was translated in Telugu and received much appreciation. ‘Anuttar’ was her second collection of poems, many of the poems were award winning.

‘PrashnaPanchali’ – her work of poetry written around Draupadi, a powerful character from Mahabharata, was adapted into a stage play by renowned actor director Dinesh Thakur and received rave reviews. Multiple shows of PrashnaPanchali have been held in Mumbai, Delhi, Ajmer, Vrindavanand Jodhpur.

‘Tees Ka Safar’ is Sunita’s work based on long interviews of women of substance. The book was translated in Telugu.

Sunita’s articles and poems have been published in Dharmayug, Saptahik Hindustan, Kadambini, Sangana – quarterly publication of SangeetNatak Academy, Pahal, Gyanodaya, Hindustan Times, Hindustan, Navneet, Eenadu, Andhra Jyothi, Business Standard, amongst others. She has been featured in publications like Femina, Eenadu, India Today, Business Today, Sunday Standard, Rashtriya Sahara, Jansatta, The Week, etc.

Sunita Budhiraja has conceived, edited and published coffee table books highlighting architecture, people, flora & fauna, art & craft of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka States. ‘Andhra Pradesh – Through the Eyes of the Spirit’ is a coffee table book she produced for the Govt of Andhra Pradesh. ‘Cheluva Kannada Nadu’,coffee table book conceived and edited by her has extensive articles and interviews on multiple aspects of Karnataka.

Sunita has conceived and edited a coffee table book on the life of Dr Vijay Mallya, chairman of the UB Group titled ‘Fifty’. The book was much talked about as it had articles and personal accounts from Dr Mallya’s friends and foes both.

Sunita has produced a documentary on the life of author and her mother Dr Raj Budhiraja.

Media and PR Sector
Sunita’s was a known face on Doordarshan during the 70’s to 90’s.

Well known in media circles, Sunita has led large and medium sized communications teams both in Public and Private Sectors. She has worked as the Corporate Communications Head for public sector organizations like MMTC and RashtriyaIspat Nigam-Vizag Steel Plant, where she spearheaded Communication campaigns including effective crisis or issues management that resulted in reputation and perceptional change of the concerned organizations. She headed communication teams at Shaw Wallace, UB Group, Nagarjuna Group and Ozone Group.

Languages
Sunita Budhiraja writes in Hindi and English. She can converse in Bengali and Punjabi other than in Hindi and English.