‘Wings of Fire’: How deaf & dumb Kashmiri youth turned adversity into opportunity

Baramulla, Dec 7 : He may be speech and hearing impaired but he dares to dream. For 25-year-old Faizan Nadroo, physical disabilities never came in the way of his goals. In fact, he turned adversity into opportunity and passed Master’s in Computer Applications (MCA) with flying colours.

A resident of Baramulla town, Faizan has become the first speech and hearing impaired from Kashmir to have completed MCA.

And this is just the beginning. He is now preparing for his National Eligibility Test.

Javeed Tak, a Padma Shri award recipient and disability activist said Faizan’s story is an inspiration for the lakhs of disabled people in J&K.

“He is an inspiration for all of us. He has shown that with the support of parents, there is no looking back for children with disabilities,” Tak said.

Faizan’s journey has not been a cakewalk for him or his family, but it is all about dedication, perseverance, and commitment.

“ Faizan is the only one in the family with such a disability. His younger brother is pursuing MBBS,” said Faizan’s father Fayaz Ahmed, who runs a medical store in the town.

Right from his schooling to MCA, Faizan ensured to excel in academics. He passed his MCA from Patel Institute of Management and Technology Rajpura Punjab with over 90 percent marks in August this year.

While all credit goes to Faizan, his family, especially his mother Shamima, has been instrumental in his success in life so far.

“ My wife who was a private school teacher left the job when Faizan was only four years old,” said Fayaz.

“She dedicated herself to his son all these years. She escorted him all these years everywhere so that he could succeed in life,” ,” said Fayaz.

Faizan did his initial schooling in Baramulla’s Saint Joseph school and later passed his class IX and X from Baramulla Higher Secondary School. He would only get admission after a lot of effort as everyone would consider that he wouldn’t be able to study in a normal school.

“The teachers in school did not know how to teach kids like Faizan. No special attention was provided to him whatsoever,” recalls Shamima about earlier schooling.

But the family didn’t succumb to these things.

“ As there were no separate classes for such students at Baramulla, he got admission to Speaking Hands Institute for Deaf at Rajpora Patiala Punjab and he was the first Kashmiri student to get admission in that institute. He passed his class XI and XII under the National Institute of Open Schooling. He passed his BCA at Speaking Hands under Lovely Professional University Jalandhar,” his father said.

He also participated in several sports activities like the national T20 Cricket Championship for the deaf at Agra which was organised by the Indian Deaf Cricket Association in New Delhi.

When asked what his aim was now, his mother acting as an interpreter said he wanted to help the differently abled children so that the way he faced challenges, they shouldn’t.

“I want to dedicate my life to these abled people,” he said with a lot of confidence.