Eyeway Conversations

In this episode of Eyeway Conversations, George Abraham speaks with Penny Melville-Brown, a British Royal Navy veteran, blind baker and winner of the Holman Prize. Penny served for 22 years in the Women's Royal Naval Service (WRNS) and Royal Navy, reaching the rank of commander. She was the first woman to hold the position of naval barrister. She was medically discharged from the Royal Navy in 1999 after her eyesight deteriorated and she created Disability Dynamics to help other people with disabilities to start a business. In 2009, she was awarded an OBE for her service to the disabled. In 2017, she was one of the three winners of the 2017 Holman prize for Blind Ambition, an international award for blind people with ambition. In 2018 she was awarded an honorary doctorate by London Middlesex University. She has an online baking project called Baking Blind where she shows people how she cooks and encourages others to test their limits even if they have disabilities.

Penny believes that disability should not be the reason to not try adventurous things, new things, or not do what everybody else does. She is in the process of publishing her book next year in which she shares her Holman Prize world tour, interleaved with her experience of blindness and her history.

Tune in to listen to her inspiring and splendid journey!

To access the podcast transcript, click on link:

https://otter.ai/u/rZ5vpThGklggmzpbBDcXL0glza4

This podcast is supported by BarrierBreak Solutions Pvt. Ltd.

In this episode of Eyeway Conversations, George Abraham speaks with Payal Kapoor from Hyderabad, India. Payal was working with the famous Oberoi group when she suffered from Meningitis at the age of 22. As a result she lost her eyesight, her hearing and her sense of smell and touch. She struggled for six years until she decided to turn things around for herself. 

After rehabilitating herself and working with an NGO for a while, Payal went back to her first love, the hospitality industry. This time as a person with blindness. In her discovery of new things, talent and a new life, she explored several new areas of work. She experimented with writing, motivational speeches, counseling, training people in using first aid equipment and of course starting her own cooking channel on YouTube. 

Listen in to find out how Payal completely turned her life around!

To access the podcast transcript, click on link:

https://otter.ai/u/k28ZJTVIqojAaKdyyEtuaTHOawU

This podcast is supported by BarrierBreak Solutions Pvt. Ltd.

In this episode of Eyeway Conversations, George Abraham speaks with Mahendra Galani who lost his eyesight at the age of 12. Mahendra was studying in a regular school at the time and he sat at home for a year and a half until his family learned about ways to educate blind children. He was then sent to Victoria Memorial School for the Blind in Mumbai, after which he pursued his degree in political science and psychology. He got his first job with Life Insurance Corporation of India, thanks to an advocacy campaign for recruitment of the disabled by National Federation for the Blind. 

At 32, he relocated to Austria, marrying his first wife. In Vienna, Mahendra had to learn German to interact with the native population. He also learnt computers which opened up job avenues for him. He worked as a telephone counselor and also wrote for local news magazines, before he joined hands with 'Dialogue in the Dark', an experiential exhibit to sensitize the able-bodied people on various aspects of life with blindness. 

Mahendra loves traveling, follows the game of cricket and plays chess for the blind. Tune in to listen to his exciting story, all the way from India to Europe.

To access the podcast transcript, click on link: 

https://otter.ai/u/RYaKwcw0oQn-j7RosRwXe8mmCDM

This podcast is supported by BarrierBreak Solutions Pvt. Ltd.

In this episode of Eyeway Conversations, George Abraham and Shilpi Kapoor speak with Lainey Feingold, an author and a disability rights lawyer from Berkeley, California. After being fired from her legal job of ten years, Lainey started her journey into accessibility for persons with disabilities. She works primarily with the blind community on technology, digital, and information access issues.

She is nationally recognized for negotiating landmark accessibility agreements without lawsuits and for pioneering the collaborative dispute resolution method known as Structured Negotiation. The American Bar Association published Lainey's book, 'Structured Negotiation: A Winning Alternative to Lawsuits' in 2016. She likes to use this strategy to bring stakeholders together on the negotiating table rather than aggressively blaming companies and filing lawsuits against the lack of access. 

Listen to an award winning lawyer who likes to talk about accessibility in terms of motivation, innovation and inclusion!

To access the podcast transcript, click on link:

https://otter.ai/u/KctO5muW80jO2X2Aku89TXDnjVI

This podcast is supported by BarrierBreak Solutions Pvt. Ltd.

In this episode of Eyeway Conversations, George Abraham speaks with Anand Kulkarni, the first and only visually impaired filmmaker in Asia. At the age of seven, Anand was diagnosed with Macular Dystrophy which led to a gradual sight loss. But he managed to study with assistive technology and a great deal of support from his family. When Anand applied for a Bachelors in Mass Media, he was rejected by most top colleges in Mumbai. 

But life had visual storytelling in store for him, and he began his journey at KC College. He calls his 36 projects in college as his 36 failures but the best lessons in life. He was enamored by the idea of creating something out of nothing and he relied on his ability to hear everything minutely, or as he calls it, 'shameless eavesdropping'! 

With over 100 Digital works to his credit across Fashion, Luxury, Music, Liquor, Home Decor, Life Style, Healthcare and Sustainability, Anand is an award winning Director preferred by leading agencies and brands.

Tune in to listen to how a blind man ended up in a visually driven industry of filmmaking.

To access the podcast transcript, click on link:

https://otter.ai/u/Rx8nYHboTFPJim5n53wVRy9hpN4

This podcast is supported by BarrierBreak Solutions Pvt. Ltd.

In this episode of Eyeway Conversations, George Abraham speaks with Divyanshu Ganatra, India's first visually impaired solo paraglider. He was 19 years old when Divyanshu lost his eyesight to glaucoma. An adventurer at heart, someone who loved trekking, cycling and exploring the outdoors, he felt trapped by the sudden vision loss. But after the initial hiccups of acceptance and adjustment, he regained his mental and physical strength. 

Apart from paragliding, he is India’s first solo blind trekker, mountaineer, scuba diver, marathoner, and the first blind pillion cyclist to ride from Manali to Khardung La, the highest motorable road in the world. Divyanshu strongly believes that sport can unite the world by bringing people with and without disabilities together in a celebration of differences. To promote disability inclusion and create opportunities for persons with disabilities, he launched the Adventure Beyond Barriers Foundation (https://abbf.in/)

An IT professional and a clinical psychologist, Divyanshu is involved in learning and development where he works with senior leadership on emotional intelligence, sensitivity training and inclusion. 

Listen to the account of an explorer who enjoys challenging stereotypes around handicap and incubating new beliefs! 

To access the podcast transcript, click on link:

https://otter.ai/u/6O6w2wEXznmnkNiGpl2IKthX6iI

This podcast is supported by BarrierBreak Solutions Pvt. Ltd.

In this episode of Eyeway Conversations, George Abraham speaks with Sadaf Khan, a Human Resources professional working with a tech company. Sadaf lost her eyesight at the tender age of three but her parents were determined to give her the best education. She studied in reputed mainstream institutions, getting a masters in Industrial Psychology. A choice that is not considered natural or easy for persons with vision impairment. 

Apart from blindness, Sadaf was also struck by rheumatoid arthritis when she was 9 , making her school years quite tough to endure. But medications helped improve the condition and she sprung back to action during her college days. 

Sadaf calls herself a 'social animal', who loves to meet new people and explore new places. Her leadership and interpersonal skills have made her the youngest and first woman president of an NGO, Blind Graduates Forum of India. 

Tune in to listen to the account of a woman who loves to accept new challenges everyday!

To access the podcast transcript, click on link:

https://otter.ai/u/VXTzuWRn2H24_qoU-zKPp8tMxAM

This podcast is supported by BarrierBreak Solutions Pvt. Ltd.

In this episode of Eyeway Conversations, George Abraham speaks with Ritika Sahni, a proclaimed Singer-Performer and a Disability Campaigner. Alongside pursuing her interest in music, Ritika was drawn towards Deaf Education. She is a trained special educator, a communication therapist and a consultant in Disability Inclusion. 

She has a vast experience of 30 years in teaching, conducting sensitizing workshops, curating content in the form of music, literature, puppet shows, brochures, radio shows and so on. Ritika created a first of its kind disability awareness campaign across four Delhi Public Schools. She is committed to work with able bodied stakeholders like parents, teachers, youth, corporates and others, in helping them celebrate diversity and not see disability as a disadvantage.

Under the banner, Trinayani, Ritika combines her love for art, music and inclusion. She also constituted a band called Pehli Baarish with all disabled participants, to promote a more tolerant society. And what she terms as one of her most exciting projects is an educational gaming kit comprising six card games, to familiarize non-disabled students and adults about various facets of disability.

Tune in to listen to an expansive account of her novel journey!

Read more about Ritika and her work here, https://www.ritikasahni.com/

To access the podcast transcript, click on link:

https://otter.ai/u/IpXpFv5XZenK_JDVuvhgQ_KTq6o

This podcast is supported by BarrierBreak Solutions Pvt. Ltd.

In this episode of Eyeway Conversations, George Abraham speaks with Poonam Vaidya, a Bangalorean who loves to read, write, travel and explore. Poonam lost her eyesight when she was in college, but unlike most people who take a long time to accept the sudden shift in existence, she was back in a week! Acknowledging her blindness, she focused on the next steps instead. 

She trained to use a white cane and computers with screen reading software but her perspective widened after a life-changing experience at the Colorado Center for the Blind. Here she learned to cook, clean, experience adventure sports, self-defense techniques, even carpentry. Skiing, rock climbing, bungee jumping, nothing was impossible for the blind residents at the Center. 

She returned confident to India, to pursue her love for words, and work as a content writer. Tune in to listen to her journey of breaking stereotypes and challenging attitudes. 

To access the podcast transcript, click on link:

https://otter.ai/u/GGwjDQlCpq1CA7y2tSDG2tnCtjU

This podcast is supported by BarrierBreak Solutions Pvt. Ltd.

In this episode of Eyeway Conversations, George Abraham speaks with Dean du Plessis, a Zimbabwean cricket commentator. He is the world's first visually impaired cricket commentator to participate in international matches.

To access the podcast transcript, click on link:

https://otter.ai/u/sl5Kyof-qKJEZ3zunQPhNZLaHW0

This podcast is supported by BarrierBreak Solutions Pvt. Ltd.