Young stars shine bright in this camp for Sri Lankan Tamil refugees near city

If you walk down the lanes of the Sri Lankan Tamil Rehabilitation Camp in Puzhal near here, chances are you will come across young entrepreneurs, engineers, an emerging football star, a dancer and even a ‘foodpreneur’.

The camp in Kavangarai houses about 900 Sri Lankan Tamil refugees, including many talented children. K. Deloshni, a Class IX student of Don Bosco Matriculation School in Grant Lyon, Redhills, has performed for the song Ratchasa Maamaney in the film Ponniyin Selvan. “I love dancing. I am dancing for another film next week. I want to learn Bharatanatyam,” says Deloshni.

Another young talent in the camp is A. Rolexman, a 12-year-old footballer, who was selected to play for two clubs in Bengaluru. This student of Don Bosco School in Perambur has reached the sub-junior level (under 13 years).

His father S. Agastin says: “A coach from France, who watched him play, wanted to take him to France. But we could not get the passport in time.” Rolexman’s inspiration is Cristiano Ronaldo.

N. Nivetha capitalised on the two-day training that was offered by an NGO to make crafts. She, along with her friends P. Lalitha and Deepa, craft baskets using banana fibre. “These are biodegradable, and do not affect the environment. We don’t get a lot of orders; just some through word of mouth.”

On Saturday, the Southern India Chamber of Commerce And Industry (SICCI) and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees organised an exposure visit to the camp for industry leaders.

Vidhya Bhojan, Founder of Right Dots, said that the event — ‘Hope in Action’, a CSR and Industry Leaders Meet-up — brought together corporates, government, and partners to explore ways to improve refugee livelihood and integration, and foster their skills. “The event in Chennai highlighted success stories of Sri Lankan refugees, and included immersive camp visits and collaborative models for fostering resilience and sustainable inclusion,” she said.

R. Ganapathi, chairman and executive director, Trigyn Technologies, said: “Your (industry leaders) presence is a powerful signal that reflects the shared belief that refugees are not a burden, but rather an untapped resource, capable of enriching our industries, our communities, and our economy.”

Speaking at a meeting of the Partnership Forum in Chennai later in the day, R. Ganapathi, former president of SICCI, said: “This is not only an act of charity, but also a strategic investment in people, in resilience, and in inclusive growth.”