Free Spirit Festival
The eighteenth Free Spirit Award was given in 2021 to Tibetan Cancer Society
Free Spirit Award 2021 is presented to Tibetan Cancer Society for their unfaltering care and compassion in tending to a large number of people during the Coronavirus pandemic, keeping them safe and secure. The Award is in appreciation for their selfless efforts and services to the community. It was given at Norbu House, in McLeod Ganj, India, on 6 November 2021.
On behalf of the Society, its President Tsultrim Dorje received the award, along with 10,000 rupees donated by Kunga Guest House.
The Tibetan Cancer Society is a non-government organization, started by Tsultrim Dorje in 2014, and registered in Karnataka state in 2015. It was established with the aim to educate people about the causes and the prevention of this killer disease. The Society is a member of the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC), Genève, Switzerland, since 2019. Over the years the Society has helped many people with their medical expenses and care at their homes.
Since the outbreak of the Coronavirus pandemic, the Society has been actively engaged as the first responders, helped hundreds of people infected with Covid-19 in giving them care, or those unfortunate ones who died with burial services.
The Society has 15 fully-paid staff members, with volunteers working around India. The main office is at Majnu ka Tilla in Delhi, and a branch office is in Mysore. They feed the poor and needy everyday with donations coming from around the world. Their main focus now is to be prepared themselves for a possible hit by Covid-19 on a large scale for a third round.
The Free Spirit Festival took a break starting from the year 2005. Since the festival gave birth to a few major events such as the Miss Tibet pageant, Tibetan Music Awards and the Free Spirit Film Festival, the logistics became the obvious problem to hold and incorporate all the events in the festival itself.
All the major events are now separated and are organised independently. Miss Tibet pageant will be held every year, and the events such as Tibetan Music Awards, the Tibetan Film Festival, and others that are being planned, will be held every other year or when announced.
The Free Spirit Festival will come back in the near future.
The Festival has been paid for mostly by the Producer and the Director, Lobsang Wangyal, himself over the years. He has been fortunate to be able to do this through his career in photojournalism, although funding for this year's festival still remains a problem with the producer. Any assistance that you may be able to offer in this regard would be appreciated. Please contact Lobsang Wangyal.