Meet the young Delhiite who paints old clothes and donates them to needy children

19-year-old Aanchal Sewani recycles old clothes with art, and donates them to underprivileged children in the Capital.

What do we usually do with old clothes? Most of us discard them in a poor and tattered condition. Well, maybe we could learn from Aanchal Sewani — a 19-year-old Delhiite who cleans, mends and beautifies old clothes before donating them to the needy. “Since childhood, I have always seen poor children wearing shabby clothes. I wonder why in the name of donation, do people give tacky clothes! They also have the right to wear pretty clothes like us,” says Sewani, a 2nd year Economics student in a private university in Noida.

A child sports clothes painted and donated by 19-year-old Aanchal Sewani.

The youngster aims to change the mindset of people when it comes to donating clothes to the underprivileged. “When people donate clothes, they don’t even check whether the apparels are in a wearable condition or not. People just give away the clothes because they are of no use to them. I want to change this rude attitude and make it a point to paint the clothes and beautify them before they are donated to someone,” says Sewani.

Aanchal Sewani.

Before painting, Sewani usually asks the kids about their favourite cartoon characters. “Some pick a name from popular cartoons such as Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck, whereas others specifically mention unicorns or mermaids. I try to understand their likes and dislikes for certain characters and paint their fantasies on their clothes, to bring a smile on their faces,” she adds informing that she has donated clothes to the slum children in Begumpur, near Malviya Nagar market.

Sakshi flaunts a dupatta painted by Aanchal Sewani.

In her bid to encourage the underprivileged children to aim for a better future, Sewani works independently. “I am doing all this at my own expense, but my parents support me, at all times. I know I might not be able to make a big difference in the living conditions of these children by just giving them fancy clothes, but at least I can beautify their childhood!”

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