Veganism is not a diet or a recent fad. It is the conscious decision to live in a manner that is consistent with the deeply intrinsic human values of compassion, respect for all beings and the environment around us.

Man has a history of hunting and eating animals. However, as we “progressed”, animals have been commoditized into being factory farmed with absolute disregard for the conditions under which they live or are slaughtered. This is normalized to such an extent that we are now desensitized to their immense suffering.  A walk down any street with awareness will bring up any number of examples. Haven’t we all seen chicken crammed into tiny cages one on top of the other looking anything but vibrant with life? 

There is now a massive growing movement around the world where, as consumers become aware of what greedy businesses are doing behind walls, they are taking action. The action starts with refusing to purchase these products of cruelty and progresses to sharing this awareness with others.( Every vegan usually goes through a period of “shock” at what we have collectively been doing and feels a deep need to bring fellow humans to the same level of awareness). In addition, thanks to the efforts of many, new laws are being passed in countries around the world steadily towards reducing harm to those without a voice.

There are two other important angles to veganism. Health and Environment. It is an incredible coincidence that what is immense cruelty on another turns out to be as bad for our own health. Innumerable number of studies have shown the correlation between meat/dairy to severe epidemic levels of health impacts – from basic diabetes/cardiac conditions to cancer.  Similarly the environment is most severely impacted by the large volumes of animals that are farmed for palate pleasures. It takes 10 times the resources of land to create one kg of meat vs one kg of grain that can directly feed a human. All this is easily learnt in today’s world through any number of means. The most popular are some documentaries created by luminaries such as Leonardo DiCaprio or James Cameroon through movies such as Dominion, Cowspiracy, Earthlings, Forks Over Knives, GameChangers, What the Health and more.

The Kind Fest at Forum Neighborhood Mall is organized on March 31, 2019 by Vegan residents of the area in partnership with amazing volunteers across Bangalore, Whitefield Rising as well as the Forum Neighborhood Mall.

Objectives

1. Bring an awareness to consumers of dairy and meat about the implications of their actions to their health, the environment and to other beings.
2. Share the easy ways by which to make a change
3. Be part of a growing group of change makers

The fest will feature vendors who share easy cruelty free alternatives to what consumers are typically used to. Alternatives to milk and meat are the main game changers.  We will also do some workshops/talks which will give further insight into how to make simple switches in daily life so that those with an inclination can begin these changes in small ways. Interactions will help people understand the Protein/Calcium deficiency myths.

Over the years, the world over, we have understood that change comes from within. All we can do is to trigger that awareness. We are committed to being true to the name of our fest and share this awareness with “kindness”.  We hope that INOX will allow screenings of some popular movies so that those with interest can see them here. It also “endorses” the movement massively when establishments like INOX choose to screen these movies.  We hope we can increase footfall through radio announcements and more so that many can benefit.

Contact : nitya@whitefieldrising.org