Differently-abled children to perform at magic-themed park in Thiruvananthapuram

Dressed in his gleaming suit, 18-year-old Vishnu R mesmerises the audience with his illusions at Magic Planet, a magic-based theme park run by top Kerala magician Gopinath Muthukad at Kazhakoottam. The Poojappura native pulls off a tricky card magic and tough glass penetrating acts with panache. So it comes as a surprise for the viewers that the youngster is differently-abled with only partial hearing. He, along with his friends Rahul P R, Rahul R, Parvathy, Saranya Satheesh and Sreelakshmy, keep the onlookers glued to their seats at the half-hour long performance.

Following an initiative that Muthukad undertook with the Kerala Social Security Mission and Social Justice Department, special kids will do free performances at the park’s

Different Art Centre

(

DAC

) from November 1.

Muthukad provided a free, four-month magic training camp for 23 differently-abled children in 2017. “The motivation and appreciation of the audience changed their behaviour. It seemed like a miracle both for their parents and for us. An evaluation on the impact of the camp, done by the Child Development Centre, found that the programme brought about good results in personality, communication and social development. From the 23, we shortlisted six, who are from economically and socially backward backgrounds and now they are professional magicians here who earn a monthly salary of Rs.12,000,” he says.

Speaking about the training session, Muthukad points out that magic is an art that banks on secrecy and after performing for them every day and gaining their attention, he found that the kids were quite focused and absorbed the acts quickly without making mistakes.

Deepa S, Vishnu’s mother, is visibly proud of his performance. She once considered her son’s future would be bleak, as he was a hyper child with several learning disabilities. “My son’s transformation must be a motivation for other parents who have children like him. Today, with his performance he is independent, has gained self-esteem and has become very social with other family members. Now, I am assured that my son will have a good life as through him I also got a job here at the food court. He loves playing the chenda and wishes to get a license for heavy vehicles, as he wants to buy a tourist bus to take us and his friends on trips,” says Deepa, amidst smiles and tears.
The change in the special children has motivated more parents to come forward. The DAC now trains around 100 children in music, dance and art. According to the officials of the project, the DAC will hold 30-minute performances twice a day by the trained children who will be paid with a stipend of Rs.5,000 per month.

One of the stages of DAC, Beethoven Bungalow, is resounding with the melodious group and solo music recitals of children. Their dear ‘mash’ Sreekumar R is guiding them through a new song that he has composed. But Kozhikode-native Muhammed Rabbi, a youngster with multiple disorders who is a big fan of Malayalam film music, is sitting away from the rest. He is listening to his favourite Malayalam FM station. Then his mother Suhara interrupts him and hums a popular song, he starts to sing it as a duet, in male and female voices. “He will not sing along with his friends here, but once we reach our residence arranged by the authorities here, he sings the song in the sounds of animals and birds. For him, music has changed a lot in the past month. It is happy that the special talents of these children are discovered and encouraged,” says Suhara.

Aparna who has partial hearing and visual impairment sings while roller skating. “I am an independent musician and it was a great challenge for me to familiarise myself with them,” says Sreekumar. “These kids with Down Syndrome, MR and autism surprised me with their sense of rhythm, which is more amazing than our normal children. I believe that in the coming days we will be able to give life to a music band with these children, which will be first of its kind in the world.”

Photo courtesy: Satheeshan Karicheri

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