September 20 1999 http://www.outlookindia.com/article/shorewala-teaches-braille-to-the-sighted-so-they-can-help-the-blind/208107 FANASWADI in Mumbai is a suffocating human hive which a Hollywood film director might perhaps use someday to capture Third World urban pathos. People, market, dogs, and more people. A chaos made worse by an independent candidate’s election rally.
But it’s an unfolding anarchy that 25-year-old Vikas Shorewala cannot see. He wades peacefully through this deluge of humans who, unlike water, somehow never drain off. Despite his white cane, he seems to walk with a purpose. To those willing to learn, Shorewala says, "I have time. I don’t watch TV." For the past two months, ever since he advertised in a local daily that he would teach Braille to people who can see, he has been getting calls. "Some are just curious, others want to learn," he says. He wants to teach Braille to a few good people who in turn can help the blind. "I don’t charge. All I want is that these people go out and volunteer to help the blind without expecting any money. But I know I cannot control it. If some people want to make a profession out of it, I cannot help it." Shorewala doesn’t have a headcount of how many people he has taught. "But people have been trickling in. Some are house-wives, others students. I tell them if they’re just curious to know what it’s all about they should read a book or find some other source. I want to teach them Braille in depth so that they can master it, not just know something about it. It takes time and I think a lot of people don’t have time. I get very happy when I meet a few who are committed to mastering Braille." It takes at least two sittings a week lasting for about two hours each over a period of two or three months, depending on the individual’s learning capacity. Shorewala had earlier given ads asking for volunteers who would read books out to him. "A lot of people responded. Then I thought if there are so many people who want to help, why don’t I too be of some use? That’s when I decided to teach Braille." Once a student finds him, Shorewala starts patiently with explaining who Louis Braille was and the rest of its history. Then he teaches writing on the Braille slate and typing on the Braille typewriter. He is a natural teacher, gifted with a systematic approach that helps him categorise the whole into parts. He continues to advertise every week and waits for calls from people with what he calls a "social mentality". Sometimes the volunteers are not regular and dole out excuses like "there was traffic on the road or that there was a marriage or something", but Shorewala can see through all that. It is difficult to fool him, and it’s an important virtue for a pedagogue. His disability doesn’t stop Shorewala from being an impatient young man characterised by the idealism that’s characteristic of pople like he. When he receives a response to his ad over the phone, he briefs the prospective volunteer on why learning Braille is not exactly a great way to while away time but that he’s looking for committed people who promise to be regular. Of late, he has also been amused by the visually gifted. He is entertained by the luxury of inaccuracy that sighted folks can afford. So, when you meet him he may give you a scale which is a component of the Braille slate, and ask you to count the cells. If you think there are 36 cells, his face will light up because that’s the right answer. But his face will light up even if you are wrong. In the middle of all this, this sociology graduate is also looking for a job. "Any job." But even if he finds one, he will continue to spare time to teach people who want to learn. "I have time. I don’t watch TV," he says. To contact him, write to: Vikas Shorewala, 143, Dhemka Bhavan, 1st Floor, Block No. 2, Fanaswadi, Opp Sitaram Poddar School, Sitaram Poddar Marg, Mumbai 400 002, or call 2018989, 2065870. -- Avinash Shahi Doctoral student at Centre for Law and Governance JNU Register at the dedicated AccessIndia list for discussing accessibility of mobile phones / Tabs on: http://mail.accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/mobile.accessindia_accessindia.org.in Search for old postings at: http://www.mail-archive.com/accessindia@accessindia.org.in/ To unsubscribe send a message to accessindia-requ...@accessindia.org.in with the subject unsubscribe. To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, please visit the list home page at http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in Disclaimer: 1. Contents of the mails, factual, or otherwise, reflect the thinking of the person sending the mail and AI in no way relates itself to its veracity; 2. AI cannot be held liable for any commission/omission based on the mails sent through this mailing list..
