You are in site section: Collections

Shane Warne's advertisement: An Indian invitation

Shane Warne's advertisement: An Indian invitation

In 1998, the Australian cricket team toured India. In the second Test, held in Calcutta, the tourists suffered a humiliating defeat, losing by an innings and 219 runs.

A daytime colour photograph of a crowd of children, seen from above. The children all wear pink-coloured shirts and are waving and smiling at the camera. They are all dark-skinned and have dark hair. To the right of the image, in amongst the children, stands a woman with fair hair and light-toned skin. Around her neck hang several garlands of flowers. She looks up at the camera and smiles. In the top left corner of the photo is a man wearing a blue shirt. He has dark hair and light-toned skin. Around his neck also hang several garlands of flowers. He too looks up at the camera and smiles.


Australian captain Steve Waugh returned to his hotel room to find a letter had been slipped under his door. It was an invitation to visit Udayan, a rehabilitation home for children whose parents suffer from leprosy.

Waugh, with a day to spare since the Test had finished earlier than expected, travelled to visit the home the next day. Waugh agreed to use his international profile as a sporting star to help raise funds to open a girls' wing for the home. Money and supplies flowed in from Australia and the new building, Nivedita House, opened in 2002.

Left: Steve and Lynette Waugh among the children of Udayan, a rehabilitation home for children whose parents suffer from leprosy. Courtesy: Nigel Wright.

A colour photograph of a man and a woman serving food to children. The man is at the right of the image, wearing a blue shirt and light-toned shorts. He sits before a large metal tub that contains yellow-coloured food. He is ladling some of the food onto a dish held by a young boy standing on the other side of the tub. The boy wears a pink shirt and has dark-toned skin and dark hair. To the man's right sits a woman wearing a green top and a dark skirt. She too is serving food to a dark-skinned boy in a pink shirt. In the background are two more women, also serving food to more boys.


Left: Steve Waugh and his wife Lynette serve a meal at Udayan alongside Shamlu Dudeja, who invited Waugh to get involved with the project. Courtesy: Nigel Wright.


More on Shane Warne's advertisement