It is an acknowledged fact that disabled people in India are under a lot of duress, especially in public life. Most of them who want to attain higher education find that there is no proper infrastructure for special assistance and they are often left to their own resources. And the condition of an artist who is disabled is that much worse.
To help at least some disabled people, a few students have come up with an initiative called IOTA — ‘I Ought To Acknowledge’. “We came up with this social start-up when we thought that it’s just a niche market. But once we interacted with some of these disabled people, we got to know the real problems they face,” Pranidhi Rawat, a third-year student of Economics at Sri Ram College of Commerce and co-founder of IOTA, tells you.
Because these artists find it difficult to display their paintings at eminent galleries, IOTA has decided to help them hold an exhibition. To raise funds for the same, they have started a crowdfunding campaign. “We saw how much people like him are struggling and thought of organising an exhibition for now, and helping as much as possible in the long run,” Pranidhi says.
The person who inspired the initiative, Neelesh Ganesh, is 24 years-old and suffers from Asperger’s Syndrome, an acute form of autism. His mother, Shanti Ganesh, tells you: “He wasn’t even able to draw a circle till he was in Class X, but still joined the art class. By Class XII, his teacher actually paid Rs 5,000 for a Buddha he painted.” Now, he is desperate to get a college level degree in fine arts, but there are no inclusive colleges available where a person like him can learn properly.”
His mother also tells you that he addresses his communication problems through his paintings. He paints on a lot of different themes like music, a series on Radha-Krishna, or anything that interests him. Apart from that, he also has a keen interest in music and has been learning keyboards for the past two years. He dreams of having a solo exhibition one day.
Another painter with IOTA is Sreekant Dubey. In a tragic accident, when he was 14 years-old, Sreekant lost his right arm when an electric pole fell on him. After that, he had to learn to use his left hand for doing everything and painting was a far cry. Now he proudly says: “After studying fine arts at university level, I have now developed my own signature style. I make figurative paintings.” Before the accident, he wanted to join the Army. Now, at 47, Sreekant paints for four-five hours every day and has been doing so for the past 21-22 years.
The popular saying ‘love has no language’ is truly embodied by deaf and mute artist Vipul Mittal and his wife, Parul Mittal. They have been married for eight years now but they still communicate through a combination of gestures, signs and facial expressions. “Vipul is very observant and he understands from my expressions what I want to say. If it is something very important, I just write it down for him,” says Parul.
She says that the fact that he is hearing impaired did not deter her at all. Rather, she thought that she could be his voice. Now, she works as a promoter for artists and wants their exploitation to end.
Vipul did his Masters in Fine Arts from Delhi College of Arts. But he was never given extra attention and was wholly dependent on his mother. “The galleries exploit people like him,” Parul says. However, he still managed to get group shows at places like India Habitat Centre. Vipul’s paintings often carry metaphors. He draws inspiration from everyday life and playing with numbers is his specialty. Being unable to explain what he observes, he paints it instead.
Artists like these are often treated as beggars by buyers looking to make profit from their hard work. It is true that many are working towards creating sensitivity but a greater push is required for the same.
There are other artists on IOTA’s roster too Sheela Sharma, a foot artist; CV Surendran who is confined to a wheelchair because of a neuromuscular disease; Amita Dutta, a deaf artist; and Shivraj Singh, a sculptor affected by polio.
Pranidhi says that in this first phase for IOTA, they focussed on getting artists who have already been working for a while and have made a name for themselves in a niche market. After this, they want to take the artists’ work online. In the long run, Pranidhi hopes that she can work full time on IOTA rather than just alongside her corporate job.