Sunday, October 26, 2014

Pappu

Pappu is my friend from our village Rajapur in Bhadohi (also called a carpet city, a town in the state of Uttar Pradesh). I meet him every time I visit Rajapur, rather he makes it a point to meet me whenever he knows that I am in Rajapur. He can't speak or hear, he was not born with these disabilities, but he lost his hearing ability (and hence speech also) because of some serious illness during his early childhood. People from the village also say that if he had received proper treatment on time, he would have regained these abilities, but it didn't happen due to the lack of resources and knowledge. He is more than 30 years old now, and he is physically very strong and does most of the physically demanding work. He has his own method of communicating with people around him. Because of his condition, he couldn't go to school, there is no separate school for people with special abilities near my village and other schools don't admit students who are not "normal" according to them. Therefore, he couldn't take any formal education in any school this is the reason he also doesn't know the sign language which people like him use all over the world but this didn't stop him from inventing his own sign language which he can use to communicate with others. I don't understand his sign language but most people (even small kids) from the village can understand this special sign language and can have normal conversations with him. I need an interpreter who can explain his gestures and then translate back what I say to him. Fortunately, I always find someone willing to do this job happily for me. My interaction with him is always interesting.

His desire and ability to communicate with others are amazing, he can talk on almost every subject from politics, family disputes, and village gossip. As mentioned, he mostly does physically demanding work like farm work, taking care of cattle, cleaning the home, etc. Many families from the village call him to perform some tasks like milking a cow which has some temper issues, or help with lifting heavy objects. Maybe they call him because they think it is not safe for people from their own families to engage in these tasks and as Pappu is used to doing these types of jobs he readily agrees to do these things. But his sign language is very specific to our village and anyone from outside our village cannot understand it. He can manage to communicate well with people from our village but he can't do the same with anyone who doesn't belong to our village. I feel bad because his life is confined to this small village, and he is confined to performing certain types of jobs. It is not that there are no facilities in India where people like him can get proper training to overcome any disabilities and live their life like any other person but these things are not accessible to everyone, especially in villages there is a lack of awareness about these resources. This situation persists even today in many parts of rural India and I hope it changes very soon.

Pappu is living his life to the best of his abilities, he is trying to make the best of whatever society has offered to him but he still has a desire to get married and have a family like many people of his age around him. He got married once but his wife died recently because of hepatitis. He was not happy with his marriage as his wife was also with some disability and he thought he deserved a "normal" wife like everyone else around him. Even today he expresses his desire to get remarry and most people around him don't think it is going to happen. Pappu also doesn't want to marry a girl who is not "normal" he was not happy with his first wife, maybe he thinks that his kids also won't be "normal" kids if his wife is not "normal." This is such flawed and outdated thinking but he learned these things from people around him. People like him don't need sympathy but they need fair treatment and equal opportunity. They are often considered "abnormal" by people around them and this should stop. There are many examples all over the world (including India) where people with disabilities display their capabilities and talent if given proper training and opportunities. Unfortunately, even these examples failed to change the attitude of society towards people like Pappu, still, they get a lot of sympathy but no equal treatment. Pappu doesn't need any sympathy. I find him capable enough to do any job if he is offered proper training, but he is confined to do particular tasks which he does excellently. I wish people like him were given the freedom to explore their talents like everyone else around them. I am sure there are many Pappus in our society who can not explore their true potential just because of society's attitude towards them. The situation in cities is slightly better but in villages government needs to carry out aggressive awareness campaigns like they did for girl's education. Despite all odds, people like Pappu fight and excel in whatever work they do, this shows that they have immense potential and talent. I hope that people in India change their attitude towards people with special abilities and offer them proper resources and a fair chance to explore their potential.


Thanks for reading and please share your views on this topic.

[Copyright: Vinay Thakur. Please contact the author for re-posting or publishing]

No comments:

Post a Comment