200 million women in India have a poor understanding of menstrual hygiene.

47% of Indian girls are married before the age of 18.

70% of Indian women face domestic abuse.

This is the ground reality for adolescent girls in India today. Wealthy donors in New York are aware of these issues but to them, these are mere statistics. We had to find a way to reach out to them and make them feel the reality; and also show them that their contribution can help rewrite innumerable stories. This could be achieved only through direct marketing.

On the 9 days leading up to the event, we sent excerpts from Surjo’s diary to the potential donors through a microsite. On the day of the event, the pages of the diary were displayed. We asked the HNIs to view these pages through an iPad and use Augmented Reality to Augment her Reality. On this iPad, they saw a different diary – one where the NGOs had reached out to Surjo’s family, where Surjo was still in school and had the opportunities she needed to realize her potential. In this way, the campaign allowed the HNIs to experience early wins, hence further motivating them to make a meaningful contribution. The activity was true to Dasra’s philosophy and beliefs that these girls, if given a chance can achieve wonders and contribute to society at large. The HNIs were also sent the new diary entries once the activity was over.

The activity was very well received by the HNIs as well as leading members of NGOs that were present at the event. There was a marked increase in awareness and donor interest as downloads of Dasra reports on menstrual health/ child marriage/ domestic abuse increased by 50% in the months after the activity. This raised awareness led to a rise in donations and thus helped the adolescent girls get one step closer to their possibilities.