Not a plastic girl

Every time a six is hit during an IPL match at the Eden Gardens by the KKR or any other IPL team,.it will not just mean six more runs to the team, but one more tree in the City of Joy — Kolkata, thanks to Juhi Chawla’s initiative ‘Plant a 6’. The actress has started a bigger programme ‘Citizens for Tomorrow’  to “have a match without trash” after reading about the horrors of all the plastic being used and the damage it causes. Juhi has started the initiative under Shah Rukh Khan’s Red Chillies umbrella. “There’s roughly 800 kg of trash after every match at Eden Gardens! The harm that we are doing not just to the planet but ourselves and future generations is just alarming,” says Juhi.

Juhi put all her contacts and resources together and came up with this tree plantation idea. “So far we have already vowed to plant over 50 trees and we are hoping to reach at least 70 by the end of the season.” So, come 14 May, Juhi and her crew would be planting trees at various spots all over Kolkata.

This is not where the buck stops. Juhi plans to use the whole year till the next IPL to come up with a plan to minimise the use of plastic during matches to as little as possible. Right from water cups to even the water cooler, the actress wants the grounds to be as eco-friendly as possible. “Not just the matches, I’m trying to get film production houses to join this movement of sorts too. I already have Karan Johar and Dharma Productions’ support.” Just like charity, change also begins at home for Juhi. She has ditched all the plastic in her kitchen and replaced bottles and utensils with either glass or steel. “It was proving to be difficult to get my staff to comply. So, I have come up with a diktat to fine anyone who uses plastic in the house. I have already collected Rs 50 and this has had a positive effect. I don’t see plastic bags around in my house any more,” she laughs.