Shriya Saran Reveals Why She Opened A Spa With Visually Impaired Therapists

Shriya Saran once turned an unusual idea into a business with a social purpose. Years before she became associated with some of the biggest films across Hindi, Tamil, and Telugu cinema, the actor had opened a spa in Mumbai where visually impaired people worked as therapists and masseurs. 

The actor had started the spa, called Shree Spa, in Lokhandwala in 2011. The business employed trained therapists, including people who were completely blind as well as those with around 15 per cent vision. While the spa is no longer operational and was shut down during the pandemic, the idea behind it remains an interesting part of Shriya's journey.

The idea came from something Shriya had noticed much earlier in life. She had spent time at a blind school located opposite her school, DPS Mathura Road in New Delhi. She recalled seeing visually impaired children playing cricket there and gradually became more aware of the limited employment opportunities available to them.

“I spent a lot of time in the blind school which was opposite my own (DPS Mathura Road, New Delhi), where I would see the blind children playing cricket,” Shriya told Free Press Journal.

Her mother Neeraja was also involved in the discussions that eventually led to the idea of the spa. The two realised that there were very few work opportunities for visually impaired people in India. Shriya then thought of creating a workplace where their abilities could be put to use.

“It was located in Lokhandwala, and I had named it Shree Spa. We had trained therapists and masseurs, some of whom were completely blind and others who had around 15 per cent vision,” Shriya said.

For Shriya, their sense of touch was one of the reasons she felt they could do particularly well as massage therapists.

“And that's what led to the idea of the salon, as blind people have a super sense of touch, helping them to give massages which were better compared to which others would be capable of giving.”

On the work front, Shriya Saran will be next seen in Drishyam: The Conclusion, the final part of the franchise. The film, headlined by Ajay Devgn, will hit cinema screens on October 2.