"Aaiye, poori duniya ke saath sur mein sur milakar gayein... HIV positive logon ke saath haath se haath milaakar chalein." [Let's all come together and join hands with people living with HIV.]

That was the message delivered by Indian Idol winner Abhijeet Sawant to a crowd of thousands assembled at MG Road Walking Plaza on Sunday evening, gathered for a rally, a stage show and a candlelight vigil organised by the Wake Up Pune HIV/AIDS awareness campaign to show support for those living with and affected by HIV.

"Aur hamesha yaad rakhe, HIV/AIDS ki is jung main [always remember in the fight against HIV/AIDS]... Never give up, never forget!" added fellow Indian Idol star Amit Sana.

The spectacular show was the culmination of a week of events held in Pune to mark Global AIDS Week of Action (GAWA) 2008 from 18 to 25 May. The week started on 18 May with special outdoor awareness events at Mariplex Mall and INOX Cineplex. These were followed by a 'Positive Living and Sharing' workshop on 20 May and a rally on 22 May to support and advocate the parliamentary HIV/AIDS Bill. However, the crowning event was saved for Sunday.

The MG Road crowd was treated to a varied programme, featuring performances from Abhijeet Sawant (Indian Idol winner), Amit Sana (Indian Idol finalist) and Himani Kapoor (Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2005 finalist). There were further musical performances from Pune-based band H.I.V. and Scottish band Herman Death Willy Tail, who performed a song written specially for the Wake Up Pune campaign.

The key message for the activities throughout the week was BE HIV POSITIVE. That means:

• Positive about Education - educating ourselves and others about HIV and AIDS
• Positive about Awareness - raising awareness in our wider community
• Positive about Support - reaching out to people living with and affected by HIV and AIDS

May 18, Deep Griha volunteers along with the other Wake Up Pune volunteers - dressed in HIV Positive t-shirts - organised a series of activities at Mariplex Mall and INOX Cineplex. The staff at both places showed their support by wearing red ribbons, while shoppers and cinemagoers participated in questionnaires and games designed to raise questions about HIV transmission, knowledge and stop stigma and discrimination against people living with HIV. Puneites came forward to support and advocate the parliamentary HIV/AIDS Bill.

Volunteers performed a powerful street play on stigma and discrimination. Throughout the day shoppers were given fortune cookies containing thought provoking facts about HIV, along with red AIDS ribbons, condom info boxes, information leaflets and butter cookies. Volunteers also visited MG Road on Sunday, May 25th during the afternoon to hand out information to shoppers and stall owners.

May 25th, performances by the celebrities got the crowd going but our very own DISHA kids were not far behind. They were keen on doing better than the excellent performance last year. This year the children performed on the song Dil haara re from the film Tashan. Two weeks of rehearsals were enough to brush up their talent and make them stars on stage. Credit goes to no one else but the kids and the enthusiasm in them. The young performers impressed everyone.

Deep Griha Society's DISHA program continued their constant involvement in the campaign by having staff and local and international volunteers in charge of various events and activities throughout the week.

Full details about the activities during the Global AIDS Week of Action And Wake Up Pune campaign can be found on the website - www.wakeuppune.org