Fair & Lovely Foundation's Interview Round of the 11th Edition of its Scholarship Programme

Hyderabad. 17th March. 2015: With education, comes the strength to achieve and conquer dreams and Fair & Lovely Foundation since its inception in 2003 has worked towards the same direction. For the last 10 editions, the foundation conferred scholarships to more than 1000 girls to help them break the socio-economic barriers and head towards self-reliance and economic empowerment.

The Fair & Lovely Foundation is an initiative by Fair & Lovely, a brand from Hindustan Unilever Limited; and for more than a decade it has been successfully transforming the lives of deserving girls by awarding them with scholarships up to rupees one lakh and highlighting the need of self- reliance and economic empowerment.

Fair & Lovely Foundation currently in its 11th edition, has reached the critical phase of its country¬wide candidate interview round with Hyderabad today. These interviews were held in four / five other locations- Kolfcata, Lucknow, Bangalore & Mumbai. Through this scholarship initiative, the Fair and Lovely Foundation strives to empower women and give them the opportunity to pursue higher education, vocational training as well enable women to build their small enterprises.

Fair & Lovely Scholarships are awarded to women with aptitude, a strong drive to succeed and to those who want to build an identity for themselves. Scholarships of up to Rs. 1,00,000 is awarded to these deserving young girls from across the country. This year the foundation saw an overwhelming response from more than 10000 girls from various parts of the country.

Talking about the Fair & Lovely Foundation Scholarship program Mr.Srinandan Sundaram, Vice President Skincare & Makeup, Hindustan Unilever Ltd. says, "Fair & Lovely Foundation is our initiative to economically empower women to pursue their dreams and reach their true potential. It gives me immense joy to be committed towards this cause, and see the magnitude of this programme increase manifold each year. This time we will extended the scholarship to candidates seeking vocational training and seed fund apart from higher education." Adding more about the interview round, he said, "On behalf of Fair & Lovely Foundation, we would like to express our heartfelt gratitude to all the dignitaries, who had taken time out from their busy schedule and helped us in our endeavour to select the candidates."

The esteemed panel consisting of Mr.S.Dass (Helpage India), Kiran Damle (Celebrity Trainer), Aruna iyoti (Nirman Organization), Anjali Parvati Koda, Ratna Shekhar Reddy (Founder of Samhaara) amongst other helped the foundation interview the candidates and will also aid in selecting the finalists.

Every girl who came for the interview had a spark in their eye and hope in their heart to make it big. Each of them wanted to be self-sufficient and were confident that through the efforts of Fair & Lovely foundation they could move a step closer in achieving their goals.

Commenting on the initiative one of the panellists, Gautam Sinha, Co-founder Myfirstcheque.com said, p am happy to be associated with the Fair and Lovely Foundation's initiate of helping women become entrepreneurs by providing them with encouragement, connections and seed capital .1 hope this is a first in a series of initiatives to help create more 'Job creators' as compared to 'Job takers'."

Charulata Ravi Kumar, CEO of Razorfish, also part of the esteemed panel believes, “Indian women today are dreaming big and daring to achieve. And FAL Foundation is making it possible for those with highly limited means but a soaring spirit I am proud to be associated with the Foundation's efforts to empower and impact one of the most important yardsticks of a nation's development; and also humbled by the courage of these women. Their stories tell you that they are out there to leave their impression in this world. And to make it a more fair and a lovelier place to live," says

With the end to the interview round, Fair & Lovely Foundation will now get ready to reward the selected candidates with a grand convocation ceremony in Mumbai.

About Fair & Lovely Foundation:
Fair & Lovely Foundation is an HUL initiative that aims to empower the women of India through education and career development. The foundation identifies academically exceptional girls from financially challenged backgrounds and offers scholarships up to Rs. 1, 00,000 per candidate. To maintain integrity and fairness the selection is done by a panel of eminent personalities from diverse fields. As the foundation enters its 11th year of inception Fair & Lovely intends to take forward the spirit of this endeavour.
About Hindustan Unilever Limited:

Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) is India's largest Fast Moving Consumer Goods Company touching the lives of two out of three Indians. HUL works to create a better future every day. We help people feel good, look good and get more out of life with brands and services that are good for them and goo for others.