What brings together Hollywood heartthrobs Penelope Cruz, Melanie Griffith, Tom Cruise, Antonio Banderas and Latino hip-swinger Ricky Martin?

Far from the razzmatazz of showbusiness, the answer lies in the name Sabera and the pathos written on the poverty-ridden faces of the street children, especially girls, in the eastern Indian metropolis of Kolkata.

So when pop star Ricky Martin was in town last month, he dribbled past his die-hard devotees and instead shook a leg with the destitute children of the non-governmental organisation Sabera Foundation, which has been blessed by the charity of Hollywood stars.

Even as the city was gripped by Ricky mania for a glimpse of the sculpted pop star known for his pulsating hips, loose white shirt and peering belly button, he was not available for the discotheque crowd.

The singer evaded all, except the telescopic lens of a few paparazzi, to shoot a fund-raising album with the children and play football with them. The proceeds will go to helping the children looked after by Sabera Foundation, set up by Spanish singer Nacho Cano in 1999.

"These are my girls. I am here to give them as much love and affection as I can," said Ricky of the youngsters in the foundation which runs homes for street children and homeless girls.

Started with documentary

The first brick of this foundation was laid in 1999, when Nacho came to work on a documentary titled Calcutta, life at the railway station done by a Spanish NGO called El Compromiso (meaning obligation).

Says Carlos Duran, director of Sabera Foundation in India, "The documentary captured the situation of street children, the dramatic situation faced by both widows and single mothers that have been abandoned by men, as well the known problem of being born as a woman in this society.

"We had set out with the intention of creating a medical assistance centre and some projects for poor children by El Compromiso. But given the enormous generosity of the Spanish people we embarked upon a wider project: Set up schools, homes for girls, a food distribution centre, health centres and thus Sabera was born," says Carlos, the Madrid-born building constructor who as a close friend of Nacho tried to help him in the project in India.

He later decided to devote his time to philanthropic work in this adopted country.

Sabera's story

"Sabera is the name of the young girl who was living in the rubbish dump when we made our first documentary. Today she is studying in a school of Madrid and it has been her spirit and struggle to get out of the poverty which have served as the pillars upon which we have built this foundation," says Spanish pop star Nacho Cano, who was influenced by Mother Teresa and became involved with the Missionaries of Charity.

Sabera's story of Sabera perhaps is reflective of how Spanish generosity is changing the lives of such girls.

Sabera and her family used to scrounge in the garbage dump for food and beg on the streets of Kolkata, until destiny brought them in the way of Nacho in 1999.

Nacho decided to help save children like her from the streets. Sabera and her mother went to Madrid, her sister went to a shelter home in Kolkata. After a few months Sabera's mother decided to come back to India, but Sabera decided to stay back in Nacho's house.

The first girl to arrive in their home at Kalitala near Kolkata was Madhumita, whom Nacho found in one of Mother Teresa's shelters.

At a tender age, Madhumita used to work day and night in households in order to have money to buy medicine for her ailing mother in the shelter.

"When I grow up I want to dedicate my life to the foundation," says Madhumita, who now stays 109 other girls.

Hollywood beckoned

So, how did other Hollywood celebrities like Penelope Cruz and Melanie Griffith and Ricky Martin join the project?

"Penelope, now president of Sabera Foundation in the United States and Nacho, are friends while we also know Ricky and all agreed to raise funds. Penelope had come to Kolkata before too and she is sponsoring a child at Sabera. Ricky too was deeply touched during his visit and agreed to do his best to raise funds," says Duran.

Now co-president of the foundation in the United States, Griffith and actor-husband Antonio Banderas became members after a presentation hosted by Penelope Cruz and Tom Cruise in Los Angeles in September last year. Melanie and her sister Tracy have joined forces to produce a compact disc, the proceeds of which will benefit the foundation.

Says Duran, "Whenever we get a sponsor we think of new programmes to benefit the girl child. The girls are trained in education, computers, sewing lessons, gardening and business."

Sabera also runs a football academy for children. This programme started after 300 uniforms of Real Madrid were donated to a charitable organisation in Spain, which in turn gave them to Nacho. Nacho sent some of those uniforms to his foundation here, and Carlos decided to build up a football coaching centre near Kolkata.

Carlos took photographs of local boys clad in these uniforms at Kalitala, where the home for the destitute girls is located, and sent the snaps to Real Madrid with a proposal.

The idea clicked and Real Madrid Foundation member and former soccer star Michel has since supported Carlos' efforts in running the football coaching camp.

Best brand for humanity

But such programmes notwithstanding, officials say the foundation's main aim is to better the lot of women and children. "Most of the girls in our shelter are the daughters of prostitutes. We want them to live with honour and dignity in future," says Carlos.

"Two blue stripes on a white sari (referring to the garb of Mother Teresa's Missionaries of Charity nuns) are today the world's best brand for humanity, and we have drawn inspirations from them to work for the poor, particularly the children and their mothers. We are confident of getting support from more and more people in our task," he says.

"Mother Teresa had told Nacho to use his fame for the poor a few days before her death," recalls Carlos. Taking heart from that, Nacho and his friends later converted an erstwhile hotel-cum-brothel into a shelter for street children, a temple for the children of lesser gods. — IPS