A selfie that does not have your face? Sounds odd but made possible through a new campaign, which appeals to give up one's face on social media to create awareness about acid attack survivors.
The innovative two month long 'DonateAFace' campaign scheduled to kickstart online tomorrow aims to generate funds for rehabilitation of acid attack survivors in the country.
"We have come up with innovative ideas to be self-dependent and for rehabilitation of the acid attack survivors," says Ashish Shukla, member of Stop Acid Attack, a group which works for acid attack victims.
The group has launched the campaign in association with Cheil India, a creative agency.
The core idea is to 'give up one's vanity during the campaign period' by taking a faceless selfie.
Participants are required to write 'DonateAFace' on a white paper, cover their face with that and take a selfie and share the profile picture on social media with a hashtag #donateaface. Participants are also encouraged to nominate their friends to take up the challenge.
"The campaign idea arises from the fact in India there are at least three acid attacks in a week. The monetary compensation of Rs 3 lakhs given to the survivors isn't sufficient for the multiple rounds of surgery the survivors need to undergo. The money thus raised would be used for the surgeries of the survivors," says Shukla.
Nima D T Namchu, Chief Creative Officer of Cheil Southwest Asia HQ says the campaign will put the spotlight on the problems faced by the survivors - the expensive medical procedures, the lack of judicial support or any specific laws for perpetrators; and the fact that the compensation given by the government is simply not enough.
"It is based on the insight of how much people love to take selfies; and turns it into an engagement idea to raise funds for hundreds of survivors. It is an activity that involves giving up on one's face on social media, going to the site and contributing to the cause," says Shukla.
People can upload the selfies to spread awareness and at the same time generate funds from donations.
"At our events people watch our members abnormally. Unknowingly they even pass some remarks that hurt our members. So we want to involve people to create awareness about the consequences of acid attack - the medical and social trauma one encounters" says Alok Dikshit, co-founder, Stop Acid Attacks.
Leading bloggers and celebrities are expected to support the campaign.
