Kerala taxi driver Nasar Tootha opens free 'wedding dress bank' for poor brides

 

-Tootha has already helped over 300  underprivileged brides so far by giving them a wedding dress free of cost.

-The 44-year-old Saudi Arabia returnee Indian taxi driver Nasar Tootha started requesting people to pass on their idle wedding dresses for the cause.

-Apart from the dress bank, Thootha also runs a taxi and ambulance service.

The philanthropist says he started the 'dress bank' on the experimental basis in April 2020(Courtesy:Nasar Tootha)

Every parent has a dream to buy a beautiful bridal dress for their daughter at the time of her wedding to make, but for many families their financial conditions and low resources restrict them to do the same.

A 44-year-old  taxi driver based in Thootha village in Malappuram district of India’s southern state of Kerala, Nasar Tootha  has helped over 300 poor brides by providing them a free wedding gown through his unique kind of 'Wedding Dress Bank', to look beautiful on their wedding day.

Nasar, a father of four, had previously worked in Saudi Arabia, and upon his return to India, he worked with state organisations to rehabilitate the underprivileged and homeless. During this time, he met some families who couldn’t afford to buy their daughters’ wedding gowns.

Tootha folds a bridal gown at his 'dress bank' in Tootha village Malappuram district in India's southern Kerala state (Courtesy: Nasar Tootha)

In 2020, Thootha decided to start a 'Dress Bank' for underprivileged families, to fulfil the objective he  began asking wealthier families to donate their unwanted wedding gowns. Many individuals contributed their bridal gowns, and Thootha got dozens of hefty packets which were delivered to his door.

Last year, using WhatsApp and Facebook, Tootha started requesting people to pass on their idle wedding dresses for the cause. Now he  distributes saris, ankle-length skirts, and gowns that have been donated by privileged families to ladies of low resources.

Thootha tells the media, “Wedding attires are all about vanity. They are worn for a few hours and then never come out of the cupboards. Realising this, many families came forward to support our cause.”

“With God’s grace, I personally don’t have to invest any money in running the dress bank. I am just a channel through which women who need them most receive them from kind donors.” said Thootha, who worked for a food supermarket in Riyadh for more than 10 years before returning to India eight years ago.

The donated dresses are collected from different locations across Kerala through charity organisations and friends. After dry-cleaning, they are wrapped in airtight packets and stocked neatly in racks in Thootha’s humble rural abode.

Over time, contributions have started coming in not only from all over Kerala but also from neighbouring Karnataka and Tamil Nadu states, as well as from the non-resident Indian (NRI) community in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.

The brides contacted him over Facebook and then went to the bank to select a dress. His dress bank currently includes 800 wedding suits, including sarees, lehengas, and gowns, ranging in price from Rs 5,000 to Rs 50,000, suitable for Hindu, Muslim, and Christian weddings. Till now,  more than 300 struggling families across India  got bridal dresses from Tootha's commendable charity initiative, called 'Wedding Dress Bank',  now more donors offer him to support the initiative.

Dresses are usually transported by volunteers or bus drivers whose routes go through the destinations where the brides live. The garments are returned the same way.

“Local people support me and appreciate my charity work, and I also find pleasure in doing this,” he said.

“It makes me happy to bring smiles to the faces of new brides.”

Apart from his taxi, Thootha also runs an ambulance service. Here too, he tries to help as many people as he can. He makes the rides free for those who cannot afford them.

“During the pandemic, I helped many poor families transport their dead relatives to the crematorium free of cost. Generally, I charge only those who can afford the ambulance. Some good-hearted people also donate petrol or maintenance money for my ambulance.”

Does he have plans to stock grooms’ dresses also? After all, men also want to look dapper on their big day. “Well, we have not received any requests for the bridegroom's outfits so far. Only brides. If we get such inquiries, we can consider stocking them as well”- Tootha laughed and said. (Source:Al Jazeera)