1000 Bhopal

What changed the future of the many lives in the city of Bhopal on December 3 has left an indelible stain on the minds of the people till date. To commomerate the 24th Anniversary of one of India's worst industrial disasters, a group of youth had organised a concert titled No More Bhopals back in December 2008, kick-starting a series called Justice Rocks, exposing the youth to issues of social justice through different genres of music.

The success and the reach has now made the group who call themselves Youth for Social Change, to organise a second concert in the series titled 1000 Bhopals, a fund-raiser programme, that will be held on Februrary 7 and 8 at the YMCA ground at Nandanam, Chennai. The proceeds are being handed over the victims of the gas tragedy, who will present for the concerts.

The 1000 Bhopal concert is aimed to take the issue of the Bhopal tragedy, one step forward, by putting forth the message that Bhopal is not just one city where such a dire incident had altered the life of the people of Bhopal forever, but there are also other places including Cuddalore and Mettur that are toxic hotspots, where industries poison the people and the environment in the name of industrial development but can end up being another Bhopal. The concert will also celebrate those struggles waged by these pollution-impacted communities for justice.

The two-day concert will see the 15 of the best college and schools bands perform, besides two popular professional bands — Rainbow Bridge, Yodhaka and Karnatriix. Bringing together a range of genres that include jazz, rock, classical, fusion, Tamil folk and many more, the evenings will also entertain the youth with punctuated street plays and other small performances like road plays that can pass the message of the evening in few seconds