Ambassador of the less privileged

Let me give you
Both my hands
Please give me
Your self-confidence.

You are not a mere firefly
But a bolt of lightning
…..

some lines of the 10 stanzas of a painting-poem.
Remarkable in many ways.

It is written by an artist for another.
One a life prisoner
The other an adolescent…
One all emotions
The other all serenity…
Both imprisoned in flesh
But liberated in spirit.

Not all can compose verses or paint as Adi has done. This is but a remarkable example of the impact young Jana-Janardhanan- has on those who come in his life.
My first meeting with the Kesavan family is a little formal. Not surprising considering that the family has been in the media glare since 2002(?). while the father holds a discussion with a group of men, I share a bench with Jana. Seeing on the one hand the extent of the damage his body has suffered-an amputated left forearm, a completely amputated right arm, an artificial left leg and huge patches of grafted skin all over his body-and the quietness of the boy on the other, I am stuck for words, leave alone questions. Is he perhaps dejected beyond words? Or is this just another routine interview for him? Somehow it even feels foolish to ask him ‘so ..tell me your story’.
But as he calmly proceeds to describe the horror of what he underwent as a child of 8, my apprehensions are gone. All I feel is awe…
It was the 4th of March in the millennium year. The day dawned for everyone as usual in Chennai but not for young Janarthanan, a mischievous little boy of 8 years studying in third standard who went to school as usual. He returned from school and threw his bag in one corner of the house, and the shoes in the other corner, like every other child does. He then rushed to the terrace of his building to play.On reaching the terrace, he started playing with his friends. Suddenly fate had brawled with him in the form of an iron rod, seven feet in length. The rod fascinated little Jana and he took the rod to rotate it like a hero. Suddenly, it came into contact with a HT Electrical line that was passing adjacent to the terrace. The electric shock waves ran through the boy's body and the transformer nearby burst into flames with a huge bang. The neighbours ran to the terrace and to their dismay saw Janarthanan half burnt. He was rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment and his parents spent nearly Rs.1.5 Lakhs within a week. Unable to bear the medical expenses, the boy was given treatment at the Government Stanley Hospital, Chennai. Under the guidance of child specialist Dr.Seeniraj, 13 specialist doctors treated him. Ultimately, the burnt organs had to be removed from his body and they amputated his right hand till his shoulders, left hand till the elbow. They also amputated his left leg till the knee and removed the toes from his right leg. It was Dr.Seeniraj who masterminded the surgeries with full confidence and the motivator for the young boy who was undergoing treatment in the hospital for six months and ignited the young mind to live life like every other child. In fact, he advised young Janarthanan to write with the help of his mouth and study further.After six months treatment and motivation, Janarthanan was admitted at a rehabilitation centre to have artificial limbs. He started practising to walk, bearing pain. But the boy was courageous enough to withstand the pain just at the recollection of the untold difficulties and mental agony his parents had undergone to save his life. Added to this, his self-confidence and motivation made him walk during the practice sessions and start writing during late nights with his mouth. This gave some happiness to young Janarthanan and his parents. Jana's father had a printing press which he sold off to treat his son, spending nearly Rs. 4 Lakhs.

This is the early part of the story of Jana, in the words of Mr. Vishwanathan who himself has a remarkable story. Suffering from acute colitis for more than a decade which made him give up many jobs, it was the story of Jana’s extraordinary grit which inspired Mr. Vishwanathan to find renewed strength. From a position of despair he rose to win several awards himself in the area of software engineering.

Back to our young hero…

After the accident and rehabilitation process when Jana went back to Vivekananda School, he was considered a liability and refused re-admission. A young friend spoke about Jana in his school and the SRNM School came forward to welcome the child in its fold. Jana has spent 6 years in the warm atmosphere of the school, doing it proud with his winning streak.
Says his mother ‘even when he was a small child, Jana showed a lot of initiative. He would offer to cut vegetables and help us in whatever way he could’. The family looks so well-knit and calm.
The first question Jana asked after taking stock of his colossally mutilated body as a child of 8 was ‘how will I go to school?’. The doctor whom he questioned was inspired enough to get Jana a notebook and pencil and paper and asked him to practice writing with his mouth. Jana was taken up by the possibility that this opened to him.
The result of his enthusiasm and grit are before me…
Quite effortlessly, pen in mouth, Jana copies down a poem for me and draws the accompanying picture without leaving out the smallest details of curved lines. But more surprising is how Jana has also learnt to use the stump of his right elbow. If it took months of painful practice, there is no evidence of it when he opens the computer, and with his stump paints a boat on sea while the sun is rising. The artist has come full circle.
Jana has his eggs of talent in other baskets too. With a nimbleness one can only associate with fingers, Jana plays the keyboard with his elbow stump. Notes do not overlap, the rhythm is not shaky, the music is melodious. Not to leave any stones unturned or potential unexplored, Jana plays football with his artificial leg. ‘I want to become a graphic designer’ says jana. The computer opens up a huge unexplored world for his creativity to bloom. Jana is also learning oil painting and hopes to become the youngest member of the International Association of Foot and Mouth Painters soon.

Jana got his first experience of success in 2000. Inspired by some students of the Social welfare College to participate in a drawing competition held at the Victoria Technical Institute, Jana learnt of his getting the first prize while he was still recuperating in hospital. Media coverage started in 2001 and inspired Jana to practice painting seriously. A spate of awards followed, culminating in two successive National awards given by the President of India: the Best Creative Child Award in December 2004 and the Balashree Award in 2005. Says Mr Kesavan “the President who was seated on the dais in the Rashtrapati Bhavan came down to meet Jana and expressed his delight in seeing him a second time within the span of a few months. He wished Jana to become a role model for the younger generation”.
It seems very likely that the limelight will only become more and more intense for young Jana. He has been singularly lucky to come across very inspiring people in life: doctors, nurses, neighbours and certainly not the least, his doting family. Mr. Kesavan, who was crushed by guilt during the accident, and later by financial burden, is an ever ready father –‘Jana just has to say what he wants to do and I make sure he gets to do it’. His mother is sometimes worried about who will take care of Jana in the future when the parents are no more.
A question all parents of children with disabilities face one day or the other.

Meanwhile Jana makes rapid strides into the adolescent world, inspired by many, inspiring many. When I tell my aunt who lives a thousand kilometers away about my meeting with Jana, she says ‘of course I have read about him’. She says she withstands her immense pain thinking of how the child must have borne his. The autorickshaw driver who takes us to the rehab centre asks me about Jana; when I give him an outline of jana’s accident, he says ‘oh yes, I have read about this brave boy’. As letters of appreciation pour in, as mails come from people who contemplated suicide and were saved in the nick of time on reading about Jana’s travails, to those who were awakened to their sense of responsibility after reading about the child’s, it is clear that here is a role model in the making. From participant to chief guest in drawing competitions, Jana’s evolution is dizzying. Giving away prizes to winners among 1500 participants in a recent inter-school drawing competition, Jana narrated his story before a spell bound audience and urged children to value their parents and respect their teachers. He stressed the value of discipline to become an achiever. The generous help Jana is receiving from many organizations and people shows how he brings to the fore the best in people. And perhaps that is the best way the cause of the disabled can be furthered.
Jana is a promising ambassador of the less privileged.