Anil Kapoor fights against human trafficking

Sep 20, 2011 IANS

Mumbai, Sep 20 (IANS) Actor Anil Kapoor has teamed up with CNN for Trapped By Tradition; A CNN Freedom Project Documentary, about human trafficking, and says education is the prime solution for the problem.

As a special contributor to the CNN Freedom Project, Anil visited Bharatpur, where families apparently sell young girls and women as a tradition.

"I feel that this practice continued over generations only due to lack of education. They are not exposed to the world. They are not exposed to what is happening around. Educating them and educating the parents can bring this practice to extinction," said the 51-year-old actor, who became an international name post- Oscar winning film "Slumdog Millionaire".

He feels his celebrity status can help in propelling the project.

"Being celebrity does help in mobilizing such a cause. I can pick up a phone and call whomever I want to. Like I called CNN to get associated with Plan India. I could speak to the Police Commissioner of Bharatpur directly and make things moving. We can definitely make people listen to us," Kapoor told reporters at the unveiling of the documentary here Monday.

Kapoor is involved in the fight against human trafficking for the past several years through Plan India, an organization that's working on the frontlines to protect children against abuses and exploitation.

Sharing his shooting experience for the documentary, Anil said: "When I went there and started speaking to people I thought people would not open up, I thought the cops would not open up, I thought the elders wouldn't open up.

"But they were comfortable with them. I went there and spoke to the children, their families, I could make them feel that I am part of their family. This is the power of the films we do, the characters we play."

And the actor won't mind being a part of any commercial film on human trafficking and said: "I would love to do a film on human trafficking on which not much film has been made. I am open to it.

"It's such a sensitive subject that it has to be done correctly and aesthetically and, of course, I would want to do a film which is much more mainstream. A film with a mainstream actor and director attached to it would make lot of difference."