The Girl Who Made Poetry Her Forte

How far have you gone to help a friend in need? Amy Singh, a Chandigarh-based poet-theatre artiste is doing the unprecedented in helping raise funds towards the cancer treatment of fellow poet and friend, Anam Narula.

Narula was diagnosed with stage 1, Adult Acute Myeloid Leukaemia on May 24 this year. The unfortunate news hit his friends hard. Singh felt helpless initially but she refused to mull over what had happened and do something about it. Singh, who had lost her mother to cancer as well, was fully resolved to help her friend rewrite fate.

According to the reports of doctors at Christian Medical College, Ludhiana, where Narula is seeking treatment, a sum of Rs 20-25 lakh would be required for a bone marrow transplant. His parents, who are both retired, were taken aback on learning about the huge sum needed for saving their son’s life. Singh, who was between jobs when the news of the illness hit, fully knew she would not be able to fund the amount herself. But that did not stop her from resorting to Milaap, a crowdfunding platform, to raise the needed money.

Also know: A Little Champ Even After Death

Her determination inspired many other artists to be part of her initiative, like the noted Shantanu Anand, Khwaja Musadiq, Daniel Sukumar, Avleen Lamba and Janet Orlene. Before she knew it, the crowdfunding had added up to almost half the sum of the treatment.

Things took a more inspiring turn when Singh decided to sell her poems, and donate the proceedings towards Narula’s treatment. “Can poetry save life? Yes, it can,” she wrote on her social media page. When she started off, Singh though the sales of the poems would net around Rs 15,000. But the overwhelming response from friends and other poets helped raise the fund to almost Rs 2 lakh. Other artistes have also come forward to raise money towards Narula’s cause, with letter writing services, art exhibitions, and the like. Apart from selling her poems, Singh will be organising a ‘Run for Hope’ marathon to help meet the complete financial requirement.

Poetry is not just a few lines and rhymes; it has its way of crawling into hearts, and Singh shows us just how.

To know more: Margaret Atwood: Fear Is Her Forte

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