A Gala Evening For The Differently-Abled : Trivandrum

                                       Let The World Speak

            Stage set ablaze by ‘Mantra’ and Sristi, the blind dancer



A Sunday evening when dark rain clouds were threatening to spoil the party, ‘Sahridaya’ run by a group of young brigades and ‘Jyothirgamaya’, an NGO for Blind, organised an International community sensitization program regarding the issues faced by disabled at the Shangumukham beach.


In his inaugural address chief guest Rishiraj Singh said, “There is just one doctor for every 10 lakh blind people and only 25,000 eye donations in the country every year. This is not enough and is a grave situation that needs to be dealt with. Same applies to organ donations. More donations needs to happen”. He reminded the audience about how helpful such events were for the society and appreciated the organisers.

The aim of the event was to sensitise people from all walks of life on the challenges faced by the disabled ones in different parts of the world and to create a general attitudinal change so as to help the unfortunate souls. According to Aneesh, a member of ‘Sahridaya’, “The aim is to make people, not just people of one particular place, from different places take part in this program. In fact, we chose Shangumukham because we can find all sorts of people here in large numbers.”

Many students of the ‘Kanthari’ institution talked about their projects for marginalized folks and how optimistic they were in making the world a better place to live in. Talking to Yentha, Carter from Zimbabwe, a ‘Kanthari’ student said, “All you need to do is believe, and then you can do whatever you desire. We have in us what it takes to do great deeds.”

In her inspirational message, Vimala Menon, the secretary of the Cheshire homes conveyed that these sort of initiatives has always been inspiring for her. She said that that there is no difference between both mainstream and marginalized groups. She accused the state governments, including the present one, for not taking the matter of differently-abled folks seriously.

Brahmanayakam Mahadevan, the recipient of the National Youth Awards, 2000 heaped praise on, ‘Sahridaya’ volunteers for organising such an event and their dedication in setting up the stage and lights even though there was heavy shower in the afternoon. The welcome address was delivered by Tiffany Brar, the project coordinator of ‘Jyothirgamaya’.

The evening was one big cultural fest. There were dance performances from Sristi, the blind dancer from Nepal who found the NGO ‘Blind Rocks’, Mantra Dance group and SCT college students. Bands, Wind Project, Dark Prophecy and Obscure Incarnation, and several other artists made it a memorable show.

On a wet dark evening, NGOs ‘Sahridaya’ and ‘Jyothirgamaya’ organised an International community sensitization program, LET THE WORLD SPEAK in view of the problems faced by people with disabilities.

The stage was set ablaze by the acrobatics of Mantra Dance company followed by Sristi, the blind dancer from Nepal, a musical fusion by ‘Wind Project’, bands ‘Obscure Incarnation’ and ‘Dark Prophecy’. There were two unplugged sessions by ‘Aathma’, Sahridhaya's official band and,  Samuel, a German national and Noel.






Source : Yentha , 30th Sep 2014