Life of dignity

These women had passed out of SPJ Sadhana School for special children,Peddar Road,where they spent five years acquiring vocational training in catering and hospitality or creative visual arts and crafts.

It was in 1991 that special educator Dr Radhike Khanna,now the vice-principal of Sadhana School and founder-cum-trustee of Om Creations,and a few parents came together to ensure employment opportunities in tandem with special education for the mentally-challenged. The Om Creations Trust was thus formed to provide gainful employment and a life of dignity for girl students of Sadhana School.

Dr Khanna says,“There is a need for such a project as we hardly have any vocational rehabilitation facilities for mentally-challenged women. For us,space constraint has been an obstacle. I wish someone could help us in that. For the past 19 years,it has been a huge struggle for us but we have succeeded in training these girls to a large extent.”

Om Creations,located in a lush green,quiet Anand Niketan on the campus of King George V memorial project at Worli,train 40 differently-abled women. It also has another Gilder Lane centre for 20 such women in Mumbai Central.

Their work includes making mobile phone covers,chiffon scarves,cloth and paper bags with bead handles,paintings,crochets and glass coasters besides painting mugs,tea cups and the like. They also make chocolates,breads,chivdas,cheese rolls,pizzas and pastas. They get a monthly stipend.

And like any other working woman,they too look forward to the first week of every month to take home their salaries,which brings to them an economic independence and happiness. Asked how she likes her work,Nilofar Shastri,40,can’t hide her excitement. “I love what I learn here,I love my work,It’s like… a dream come true.”

Vashishtha Major,22,who had passed out of Sadhana School last year,says,“I want to have an air-conditioned office of my own,where I can sit and work on Excel. I know how to make bags,paper flowers,ceramic paintings.” Sharmin Tangri (20) dreams of becoming a chef. “I make pizzas,pastas,garlic breads and chocolates. I will become a good cook one day and get a job at a big restaurant.”

A volunteer and project in-charge says they aim at bringing the mentally-challenged into the mainstream through training and employment. “These girls are not only economically independent but also take pride in their work. They are so engrossed in their work that they do it with a lot of enthusiasm. We want the society to accept them on basis of their talents… Some of our girls have been hired by ITC and Kamath restaurants for housekeeping etc. However,we are still grappling with a misconception that the differently-abled cannot prepare food hygienically. We would like those who think like that to come over and see how our girls work here.”

The message is clear: The differently-abled can be self-reliant if their talents are channelised productively. “Anyone trained with affection can have a purpose in life,these women are talented and more able than many others,” says trainer Archana Mehta.