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CreativeSaathi

SuperSaturday by CreativeSaathis: blog 1

1. CreativeSaathi – Pranjal Mishra , 25 years

Artwork details:

Title: The Lighthouse

Message: The painting conveys a sense of strength and stability in the face of the wild and unpredictable elements of nature. It is a testament to bravery and resilience of people who have built and maintained lighthouses throughout history, and a celebration of the beauty and power of the sea.

Size of the artwork: 987 X 552

Medium used: Digital artwork on MS Paint

Digital Artwork by CreativeSaathi
Pranjal Mishra

Pranjal Mishra is a Graduate in Sociology from IGNOU, is well versed with MS Office and does data entry in Excel. He likes to sing songs and play music on the keyboard. He has recently won the 1st prize in the Online Adyatma Talent Contest 2022 for playing his keyboard. He has also interned at Saamarthya foundation and AMBA for Life. This year i.e. in 2023, Pranjal made a calendar from his digital art which was launched at the Vizag Steel Plant New Year function.
You can reach out to him at mishrapranjal2409@gmail.com

2. CreativeSaathi – GOMATHI SHANKAR, 25 years

Title – Nature my passion

Message:  In nature, nothing is perfect and everything is perfect. Trees can be contorted, bent in weird ways, and they’re still beautiful. –Alice Walker

So, is with humans! Noone is perfect, some are differently abled and perfect in weird ways but they are still beautiful and are dear to God.


Size of the artwork – A 4 sheet
Medium – acrylic, water colour and oil pastel.

Artwork by CreativeSaathi
GOMATHI SHANKAR

Gomathi Shankar is an artist and practice lots of water colour, acrylic colour, colour pencils and also pastel colours. She has got interest in art, craft and also stitching. She does cutting and cooking. She loves nature and walking is her passion. Whenever she feels low, she goes for a walk. She also contributes by making and selling newspaper bag for disposing used sanitary pads. Her art work is selected for sunrise calendar for the year 2021, 2022 and 2023.

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CreativeSaathi

Welcome post for our new CreativeSaathis

We are thrilled to announce the incorporation of new CreativeSaathis into our team of Specialsaathi! As an organization committed to supporting children with special needs, we recognize the incredible talent and hard work of budding artists, and we are proud to welcome fresh talent into our team.

We believe that every child deserves the opportunity to express themselves creatively and explore their passions. Our CreativeSaathi program provides an unique and supportive environment for children with special needs to engage in various artistic activities, including painting, drawing, and digital artwork.

Through the program, our CreativeSaathis will learn to polish and develop their skills further, while also enjoying the many benefits of creative expression. We have seen firsthand how art can help children with special needs improve their communication, fine motor skills, and overall well-being.

We are also proud to recognize the important role that parents play in supporting their children’s artistic pursuits. We understand that it can be challenging to find opportunities for children with special needs to engage in creative activities, and we want to thank parents for their hard work and dedication in helping their children pursue their passions.

At Specialsaathi, we are committed to providing a supportive community for children with special needs and their families. We believe that everyone deserves to live a fulfilling and joyful life, and we are honored to be a part of our CreativeSaathis’ journeys as they continue to grow and thrive.

We extend a warm welcome to our new CreativeSaathis and look forward to seeing all the wonderful things they will create!

Join us in welcoming CreativeSaathis-

Gomathi Shankar – 25 years

Pranjal Misra- 25 years

Muskaan Surie- 16 years, Noida

Joanne Rodrigues- 15years, Mumbai

PRRIYAM BANERJII – 14 years

Prajakta Dey – 12 years Mysore

Tanisha Saxena- 11 years, Noida

Lavanya Iyer- 9 years, Gurgaon

B Gunin Khushi – 9 years

Sarvagya Lohia- 8 years, Delhi

B Sushil Khushi- 7 years

Congratulations all the amazing talent! SpecialSaathi is glad to incorporate you all in our team.

[Please note – The category of CreativeSaathi Junior doesn’t exist anymore.]

Our CreativeSaathi team is now compromised of 19 super-duper talented budding neurodivergent artists.

–>8 CreativeSaathi associates- Ansh Batra, Vinayak Raj, kabir Vernal, Morpheus Nag, Dhrov Tikoo, Dhairya Pal, Shubh Pathak, Nikhil Thotam

–> 11 new CreativeSaathis- the names are mentioned above.

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BloggerSaathi

The Story of Vivekananda – The TAHD Way

RASA Day 2023

RASA (Ramana Sunritya Aalaya) teaches theater arts to individuals with different abilities. They use the Theater Arts for Holistic Development (TAHD) approach developed by Dr. Ambika Kameshwar, founder of RASA. I have been learning theater arts with RASA since 2020.

This is my second performance for RASA Day and my third drama performance with the Ramana Sunritya Aalaya (RASA) theater group. The previous two plays (Jatayu Moksham and Krihna Dootam) were in Tamil. But this play is in English with a Hindi song!

Thank You CreativeSaathi Morpheus Nag for the beautiful portrait of Swami Vivekananda.

Now, I am familiar with how RASA theater productions work. When I did my first play, it was much harder because I had no idea how the process worked. I also did not know anyone in

RASA. I was an online student and had not met other students. But now I go to RASA and know many of the students there.

I enjoyed RASA Day 2023. I liked hanging out with my RASA group before the performance. I also met people from the Ramana Maharshi Centre for Learning (RMCL) group. When I was with the RASA group waiting for the show, teachers from RMCL also came and said hello to everyone. I was also happy that my two grandmothers, aunt, and my mother’s cousin’s family attended the event. Some of my relatives watched the performance by livestream.

Watch the recording of RASA Day 2023. My play Swami Vivekananda starts at 2 hours and 1minute into the video.

Preparing for the performance

My aunt volunteers at the Ramakrishna Math. As soon as she knew that I was going to participate in this theater production, she got me some books about Swami Vivekananda.

I started reading the books. I also watched a video of a prior performance. I listened to the audio and learned my parts.

Imitate, Repeat, Memorize, and Improvise

This is my third drama performance. In each performance, we follow the imitate, repeat, memorize, and improvise process.

Imitate: We learn by imitating Dr. Vaishnavi Poorna, our drama teacher. We have to learn how to position ourselves on stage, how to coordinate movements with other students, and how to coordinate movements with music. We learn these elements through imitation.

Repeat: I repeat my part daily with the video. My mother helps me practice at home. Sometimes, she stands in the place of other characters to help me practice.

Memorize: As I practice, I memorize my part. I check and make sure I remember my part completely.

Improvise: Even if you are well-prepared, we have to be prepared to improvise! Things don’t go exactly as planned on stage.

Swami Vivekananda and Ramana Maharshi

Since I learn about Ramana Maharshi in my dance classes, I am curious about Swami Vivekananda and Ramana Maharshi. How were they similar? How were they different?

100 Days of Reading

After finishing this performance, I will be starting a 100 Days of Reading project. During this project, I plan to read about Ramana Maharshi and Swami Vivekananda. I also want to read the Ramayana and Mahabharata since my previous performances were from Ramayana and Mahabharatha. I will start my reading from what I have learned through Theater Arts for Holistic Development (TAHD) experiences. First, I will finish reading the books on Swami Vivekananda that I started during the play.

Books

Ray I. 2006. The Story of Vivekananda. Advaita Ashrama, Kolkata 700013. ISBN 978-81-85301-65-5

Swami Raghaveshananda. 2022. Swami Vivekananda Pictorial. Sri Ramakrishna Math, Chennai,

Theater arts is not just about performances. Once you know the tools of TAHD, you can use them in many ways. For example, I am planning to use my TAHD experiences to enrich my reading experiences. As mentioned earlier, interactions with family member and community. To learn more, join our group here.

Author Ananth Raghunandan

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BloggerSaathi

Decoding “Neurodivergence”

If you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.

There is controversy about the source of this quote. Regardless of the source, I think about this idea many times. For example, when I go to my brother’s house and see the little fish tank, I always remember this saying. The question that I think about is:

What kind of environments are right for neurodivergent individuals?

This is an important question that I will consider in other posts too. Today, I will start by describing one environment that has worked for me. HashHackCode provides inclusive tech education and mentorship. I started with HashHackCode in May 2020. Because of Covid, I started with online classes. I worked individually with the mentor. Now, I am doing an apprenticeship program with HashHackCode.

Why HashHackCode works for me?

HashHackCode (HHC) works for me because it is specifically designed for neurodivergent individuals. In the earlier courses, HHC mentors taught me step by step. Mr. Manu Sekhar and his team gave me detailed practice assignments that are easy to follow.

Now that I am in the apprenticeship program, I go to the HHC office. The office is well designed and comfortable. I work with a team of other neurodivergent coders. Some parents are also part of the team. I feel comfortable and relaxed at HHC.

Over the last two years, I have become more interested in coding. I am hoping to continue working with the HHC team in the future. 

I had tried other coding programs before, but they did not spark my interest. I have become more interested after joining HHC.

My HHC Journey

First, I did ten levels of Creative Coding. Then, I did a course on professional web development.  During this course, I built the first version of the LIFESMART website.  Then I did the Datawhiz course.  After learning basics of mobile application development with flutter, we started working on web development.

Glad I did it!

I am glad that I decided to join HashHackCode. It is not just a coding program. Mr. Manu Sekar creates the right environment for his students. I did not have the right environments for me when I was going to school, so we homeschooled.  I could learn at my own pace and homeschooling was right for me. But now I need environments that are right for me.  HachHackCode is one such environment. 

In addition to classes, we have events such as the Christmas party in 2022.  We also volunteered at a TechDiva event designed to encourage women into coding careers.

I hope to work with neurodivergent coders and others as a team on projects in the community soon.

What kind of environments work for your son or daughter?  Join the conversation here.

Creative representation for this blog is done by our extremely talented CreativeSaathi associate Morpheus Nag

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bloggersaathi Junior

“Special like stars….” – the journey of Sitaara crafts

An interview with the Founders Sitaara crafts – Tarini Kashyap, 14 and Muskaan Surie, 16


Sitaara Crafts, a platform for children with disability to showcase their crafts, took shape on 17 January, 2022 exactly an year back with the launch of its Instagram page by Tarini Kashyap, 14 years, and Muskaan Surie, 16 years, both kids with special needs. Read on to know more about the genesis, achievements, heartbreaks, and the road ahead for Sitaara. We hope you will share their story widely.


Q: So how did Sitaara come about?
Tarini: I had been asking my parents for some time to help me start an initiative as I was bored in COVID. I wanted to do something for other kids with disability. My mom agreed to support me, and she suggested the name “Sitaara” because it means star, or starlight, and my own name is so much like it. She chose the name “Sitaara” simply because it implies that all children with special needs are special like stars. My younger brother, Aadyant, 11 years, designed our logo. My great grandmother was born on 17 January, and we decided to launch on the auspicious day of her birth anniversary. We were soon joined by Muskaan. Muskaan and I were excited to get our stickers and visiting cards printed!


Q: Thank you. That’s interesting. Now may I ask Muskaan to tell us what all Sitaara showcases? What are your bestsellers and how did this evolve?
Muskaan: We try making crafts from waste or recycled materials. We want to make cloth totes fashionable for people. I have decorated so many white tote bags which have been a great hit on different festivals. My mom has scraps of cloth which we repurpose into small totes which people have loved to carry their books in!
Tarini: We also make jute coiled coasters on cut outs of old cardboard. These have been our bestsellers too. Also, when we receive an order, we use only recycled packaging – my mom has a ton of old Amazon and Myntra packets which we decorate and paint on to make them look different. We also make newspaper bags and paint them for our exhibitions.


Q: Wonderful. So tell us about your experience selling on Instagram, and also exhibitions. What challenges did you face?
Tarini: Selling through Instagram has been a wonderful experience. It is exciting to get orders. We have shipped to 20 states and 2 UTs in only the last one year. We use speed post which is economical and reliable. We have had hardly any cases when a packet did not reach, and even then, it comes back to us. On the challenges through social media, there are cases where people have canceled orders after we shipped, and 1-2 rare cases when they were not satisfied with the quality. So, we now try as much as possible to take advance payments because we now have a fair idea of shipping costs to almost all states! For the cases they were unhappy, we simply refunded. We want all our customers to be happy.
Muskaan: Our first exhibit was in October at my house society grounds. I felt so excited when our totes were picked up so fast, it was like they were flying off the table! At exhibitions we get to interact with people and tell them about us. But then exhibitions can get tiring and you need to stand for long so we try and choose wisely which ones Sitaara will take part in, and our moms help us decide.


Q: Your experience in both selling through IG and directly sounds awesome, that too at such a young age. Tell us what you think your biggest achievement is, so far?
Tarini: I think the fact that we have such a large and satisfied clientele all over India already.
Muskaan: That we got more than 150 orders, many of them repeat orders, in our very first year.


Q: Do you have other children collaborators too? How does one collaborate?
Muskaan: We have another young adult named Sunny who is hearing impaired. Bhaiya makes beautiful rakhis, origami products, and envelopes. We have a classmate Harshita who makes amazing hand-made rakhis and painted dupattas. We are open to more children and young adults with disability joining hands with us. They can simply send us pictures of their work, which we upload. When there is a sale, we arrange to collect and deliver the products. We then pay them either immediately or month end.


Q: So how is the work divided between you two?
Tarini: I take care of the social media marketing, I enjoy interacting with customers online. Where I have a doubt about what to reply, I ask mom.
Muskaan: I supply most of the products, the totes, which mom helps get stitched and then I paint them, or readymade totes which I love to paint. I have also created and decorated bookmarks, tags and envelopes. Tarini too creates things whenever she feels like, but her main job is marketing and for me it’s design, so our jobs are cut out.


Q: That’s super. We wish you both great luck as you move ahead. Any exciting plans for 2023?
Tarini: Thank you. We are excitedly looking at opportunities for exhibitions, and also keep trying for a collaboration and doing hands on work with some of the bigger NGOs. We would love to go there, spend time with people with disability, and help them.
Muskaan: We are so excited to get an opportunity to showcase Sitaara on ‘Satviki’, the SpecialSaathi online shop. I think they are doing great work reaching a wider audience of those who want to support children like us. We hope we will be able to bring our products to more people who will enjoy them.


Thank you Muskaan and Tarini. Wish you all the best as you try and reach further for the stars. God Bless!


Muskaan with her mum Divya Surie and Tarini with her mum Rashi Grover Kashyap.


Sitaara’s first exhibit – October 2022 Sitaara visiting cards

By Rashi Grover & Divya Surie

The featured artwork for this blog is done by our extremely talented CreativeSaathi associate Nikhil Thotam.