Eyeway Conversations

In this episode of Eyeway Conversations, George Abraham speaks with Vishal Kumar Jain, a Global HR Consultant at Shell in Bangalore.

Coming from a small town, Vishal had to drop out after 9th standard due to deterioration of his eyesight from retinitis pigmentosa and lack of awareness to handle it. However, his inner urge to learn brought him to Bangalore where he developed computer skills and continued his studies. He later earned an MBA from the prestigious Indian Institute of Management, Lucknow (IIM-L), and went on to work with TATA Motors.

Vishal is also an adventurous individual who enjoys mountaineering and skydiving. He completed a course at the Nehru Institute of Mountaineering and successfully scaled the Mount Everest Base Camp at an altitude of 18,200 feet in 2016.

In this podcast, he shares his journey of overcoming obstacles and getting back on his feet, along with his two siblings who also lost their eyesight. He also discusses the rigorous training he underwent to become a mountaineer. Vishal is now recognized internationally for his work in promoting inclusivity and empowering individuals with disabilities.

In addition to his many accomplishments, Vishal is also a talented musician who plays the tabla, dholak, congo, octa pad, bongo, and drums.

Tune in to listen to his journey of resilience and passion for life!

To access the podcast transcript, click on link: https://otter.ai/u/CBmlkhcZ274z5pu7YQjO0EHPglA?utm_source=copy_url

This podcast is brought to you by Score Foundation.

To support our work, kindly visit the link: ⁠https://scorefoundation.org.in/get-involved/

In this episode of Eyeway Conversations, George Abraham speaks with Akhil Paul, the Executive Director of Sense International India, an organization dedicated to improving the lives of people with deafblindness in India.

Akhil has over 30 years of experience in the disability sector, with a focus on community-based rehabilitation of people with multiple disabilities. He was awarded a scholarship from the Perkins School for the Blind to study Visual Impairment with Multiple Disabilities (VIMD). Upon returning to India, Akhil began working with people with deafblindness, leading to the establishment of Sense International in India. The organization has since played a significant role in transforming the lives of around 80,000 people with deafblindness across the country, working with grassroots organizations.

Sense International India is the only national-level organization providing specialized educational and rehabilitation services for children and adults with deafblindness. The organization has unique technical know-how and expertise in providing information, guidance, support, and training. To learn more about Sense International India, visit their website at www.senseintindia.org.

In the podcast, Akhil shares the importance of awareness of deafblindness and shares insights on how to nurture and support a deafblind child. He sheds light on the different types of schools that cater to deafblind children, the education they receive, and the various learning tools available to them.

Tune in to learn more about the remarkable work being done to improve the lives of those with deafblindness!

To access the podcast transcript, click on link: ⁠https://otter.ai/u/4CL9YtLvNMO-FrQmEZ-FmePVe_I?utm_source=copy_url

This podcast is brought to you by Score Foundation.

To support our work, kindly visit the link: ⁠https://scorefoundation.org.in/get-involved/

In this episode of Eyeway Conversations, George Abraham speaks with Nupur Joshi, a young and vibrant social worker with a Master's degree in Social Work from TISS, Mumbai, and Bachelor's degree in Psychology and Sociology from St Xaviers College.

Nupur's unwavering commitment to society is reflected in her work. She currently works with SNEHA, an organization working with women, children, and public health. This April, she will be joining TATA AIG where she will continue to dedicate herself to furthering disability inclusion in workplaces. 

Nupur's effervescent personality and passion for human interaction are evident in her podcast, "Bol Baby Bol," where she shares her experiences growing up as a visually impaired girl and navigating the world around her. She is also launching a new series where she will be engaging in conversations with regular people such as watchmen, auto drivers, waiters, and delivery agents. Through these conversations, she aims to shed light on the lives of people who are often overlooked and provide them with a platform to share their stories.

In addition to her work and podcasting, Nupur is also working on a project called "Maitri Kattaa", which is designed to offer a supportive community where women maids can share their experiences, learn new skills, and access essential services.

Besides, Nupur likes singing and dancing.

Tune in to learn more about Nupur's journey and the interesting initiatives she is spearheading.

To access the podcast transcript, click on link: ⁠https://otter.ai/u/oYPQWp8OxuXxXznn0pzJ5l1eTV0?utm_source=copy_url⁠

This podcast is brought to you by Score Foundation.

To support our work, kindly visit the link: ⁠https://scorefoundation.org.in/get-involved/

In this episode of  Eyeway Conversations, George Abraham speaks with Siddhant Shah, an Indian Heritage Architect who specializes in designing spaces that are inclusive. Siddhant is a Stavros Niarchos Scholar and completed his Master's in Heritage Management in Greece from the University of Kent.

His journey began at home when he realized the difficulties his partially-sighted mother faced when trying to visit museums and public art venues. Siddhant also won a UNESCO and Archaeological Survey of India competition to make heritage sites in India disabled-friendly. These experiences motivated him to work towards making cultural sites more accessible for people with various disabilities and later, he was also diagnosed with tunnel vision. 

After absorbing the wisdom of other countries through his study and travels, Siddhant came back to India and founded Access for All, a consultancy firm based in Mumbai that focuses on design-based solutions for Indian cultural destinations and monuments, rethinking accessibility and inclusion practices for all visitors. Siddhant has worked on several projects, including making Jaipur's City Palace more accessible. His work includes developing tactile replicas, audio descriptions, and other assistive technologies to make cultural sites more accessible to people with disabilities. He has also served as a Resource Consultant for the National Museum under the Ministry of Culture, Government of India, and continues to work with different art galleries, museums, schools, and spaces in India and abroad. 

Tune in to listen to Siddhant's quest for accessible spaces and his efforts to transform India's cultural landscape.

To access the podcast transcript, click on link: https://otter.ai/u/HSexRlR-eytdrCZIcwekIDbPKc4?utm_source=copy_url

This podcast is brought to you by Score Foundation.

To support our work, kindly visit the link: https://scorefoundation.org.in/get-involved/

In this episode of Eyeway Conversations, George Abraham speaks with Kamal Prajapati, a multi-talented Radio Journalist who dons various hats including that of a creative writer and is adept at crafting radio jingles and scripts.

Kamal's love for radio dates back to his school days at the National Institute for Visually Handicapped (NIVH) in Dehradun where he regularly participated in the All India Radio programs. After graduating in History from St. Stephens College, he pursued a Radio and Television Journalism course at the Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC). Subsequently, he worked with News Express and also as a radio presenter with a community radio called Apna Radio stationed at IIMC, New Delhi before making it to the Indian Information Service (IIS).

He is posted to All India Radio as a News Editor, where his responsibilities include preparing and supervising news content, organizing and moderating discussions, and presenting programs where he even interviews ministers and bureaucrats on his shows. He believes that his proficiency in Braille scripts, sound editing tools, and computers have stood him in good stead in his profession in radio.

Besides, Kamal is also a talented poet and musician.

Tune in to listen to his journey as a radio journalist!

This podcast is brought to you by Score Foundation.

To support our work, kindly visit the link: https://scorefoundation.org.in/get-involved/

In this episode of Eyeway Conversations, George Abraham speaks with Lois Strachan, a bestselling author, disability advocate, transformational speaker, blogger, podcaster, and a part-time rock musician.

Vision loss at the young age of 21, led Lois to discover new dreams and embrace her passion for music. Besides majoring in English Literature, she became a distinguished Toastmaster, coaching people to see new possibilities in life.

She also hosts a podcast that focuses on travel for persons with disabilities. Her curiosity about the world has led her to travel around the world and facilitate numerous diverse topics through writing and blogging. She is the author of 6 books. Her books include a series of illustrated children’s books and her memoir, “A Different Way of Seeing: A blind woman’s journey of living an ‘ordinary’ life in an extraordinary way”, which achieved best-seller status on Amazon and a book written from the viewpoint of her guide dog.

Lois lives in Cape Town, South Africa with her husband and a houseful of dogs, one of whom is her beloved guide dog, Fiji.

Tune in to hear about her extraordinary life!

To access the podcast transcript, click on link: https://otter.ai/u/20fUVkPBzHQVgbleymVCPmggXoY?utm_source=copy_url

In this episode of Eyeway Conversations, George Abraham speaks with Kartik Sawhney, a graduate from Stanford University with a B.S. and M.S. in Computer Science, focusing on artificial intelligence and human-computer interaction.

Kartik was the first blind student to pursue science education in high school in India and advocated for change in rules that now allow all blind students across the country to pursue sciences in high school.

Besides working as a software engineer at Microsoft, Kartik has also worked on several entrepreneurial ventures over the years to empower people with disabilities. His venture, StemAccess (now I-Stem) provides technical training, mentorship, and hands-on opportunities to blind math and science students across the country. I-Stem also works closely with the government, technical universities, and corporates to make their campuses and culture more inclusive.

He has been a recipient of several national and international awards and scholarships including the Queen's Young Leaders Award 2016.

Tune in to hear his inspiring journey of beating the odds and achieving his dreams!

To access the podcast transcript, click on link: https://otter.ai/u/PhiJ-VQmwJHdl4XO7EqZh6PgPIw?utm_source=copy_url

This podcast is brought to you by Score Foundation.

To support our work, kindly visit the link: https://scorefoundation.org.in/get-involved/

In this episode of Eyeway Conversations, George Abraham speaks with Taha Haaziq, Secretary, Office of the Commission for Persons with Disabilities, Goa.

Taha speaks about the recent success of Purple fest; India’s first of its kind inclusive fest that embraced and celebrated Persons With Disabilities in Goa in January in 2023 and saw large numbers of participants from across the country.

The Purple Fest was a culmination of various events and activities that was aimed to showcase ways to create a welcoming and inclusive world for everyone.

Taha started his career as a computer and music teacher in National Association for the Blind before he ventured into civil services. He is the first 100 percent visually impaired person to be selected for civil services in Goa.

Tune in to listen to Taha’s story of success and his mantra to live a well-balanced life!

To access the podcast transcript, click on link: https://otter.ai/u/2coiXsb8JEzjUly232oUUhKJUEg?utm_source=copy_url

This podcast is brought to you by Score Foundation.

To support our work, kindly visit the link: https://scorefoundation.org.in/get-involved/

In this episode of Eyeway Conversations, George Abraham speaks with Manoj Govindraj, a professional musician and the founder of Swarras School of Music located in USA.

Born blind, Manoj found his calling in music early on in life, and with the support of his parents; he began his formal training at the age of seven and parallelly completed his education from the mainstream.

A rank-holder and a gold medalist from Mumbai University, he completed his Master of Fine Arts in Hindustani Classical Vocal Music in 1999 and took up a part-time job teaching music in a school.

Manoj later moved to the USA when an opportunity to teach music came along his way. His repertoire includes Hindustani classical (Khayal), semi-classical (Thumri, Dadra), bhajans, ghazals, and film songs in Hindi, Marathi, and other languages. He has performed extensively across the United States and parts of India.

Besides his passion for music, Manoj is an ardent believer in technology.

Tune in to listen to his musical journey!

To access the podcast transcript, click on link: https://otter.ai/u/kDIg1qptiP9HeEZm-icJuh_o7VU

This podcast is brought to you by Score Foundation.

To support our work, kindly visit the link: https://scorefoundation.org.in/get-involved/

In this episode of Eyeway Conversations, George Abraham speaks with Mujtaba Merchant, fondly known as Mister Kayne. He is a Project Management Professional, an accessibility advocate, a doting father and a champion of diversity and inclusion.

Mujtaba lost his eye sight in the prime of his life. He was happily married with a child, headed for a promotion when Glaucoma threw his life off balance, putting a break on his future.

While this experience was a traumatic one, Mujtaba rose above the challenges posed by blindness and underwent rehabilitation, after which he went back to work for the same company .

In addition he actively works on Accessibility.

Tune in to hear his heartening story of pre and post blindness and how determination paves the way in every circumstance!

To access the podcast transcript, click on link: https://otter.ai/u/P7Z3go3o9AdnKV5oiKltH6ttyMo

This podcast is brought to you by Score Foundation.