07
JUN
2010
With a population of over 52 million, the Karnataka state government has agreed to implement the TeachAIDS materials into every government and government-aided secondary school across the state. Once developed, the state government will implement the HIV/AIDS prevention materials into more than 5,500 secondary schools across the state. India has the third-highest number of HIV/AIDS-infected people in the world, after South Africa and Nigeria. The state of Karnataka has one of the highest levels within India.

Earlier this year, the National AIDS Control Organisation of India, which operates under the division of the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, approved the TeachAIDS materials. With this approval, TeachAIDS curricula are available to all formal and informal organizations across the country for free.

In April 2010, a formal expert evaluation committee of the Karnataka office of Rashtriya Madhyamika Shiksha Abhiyana reviewed the TeachAIDS materials, examining whether the content was suitable for their government-based schools. The committee approved the TeachAIDS content and also agreed to replicate and distribute the materials to every secondary school across the state.

TeachAIDS is now fundraising and developing the animated curricula in Kannada, the language predominantly spoken in the state of Karnataka. Kannada is spoken by approximately 38 million people around the world.

Several Kannada-speaking cultural icons have generously gifted their voices to the animated works. The animations will feature the voice of Jayanthi, who will play the female doctor character. Jayanthi is a celebrated iconic figure and has starred in over 500 movies in Kannada, Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, Hindi and Marathi. The role of the female student will be played by her daughter-in-law, actress Anu Prabhakar, winner of the Kannada State Government Best Actress award and the Cinema Express Best Actress award. Actor, director, and producer Sudeep will play the main role of the male doctor. Sudeep was recognized with the Karnataka State Award for Best Actor, which is considered the highest award bestowed upon outstanding films and performers in the Kannada Film Industry by the Government of Karnataka. Sudeep is best known for his roles in Phoonk, Mussanje Maatu, and Rann, where he co-starred with Amitabh Bachchan.

After the completion of the animated tutorials, the TeachAIDS team will collaborate with the Karnataka State Project Director’s Office to train teachers and other educators in Karnataka to most effectively use the TeachAIDS materials in their classrooms.