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For further development of his soft skills we got tons of educational toys, encyclopedias, books and puzzles which he began collecting but small things like time group, became active on social media and have started to fund many families with education, medication and advice. As I was a
management, routine, hygiene and wearing clothes and shoes were difficult. But I gave him independence; he would have chores to do at home, went by himself
with his brother to the bus stop and went to school in the bus. We also tried all activities like karate, football, art and therapy for 6 years music for 9 years but
something was still missing he was going great by 7 in gross motor skills but social skills and aggression had to be worked on. He had issues with people and
communication. Also he lacked friends which hurt me as much as it did him. When he turned 9 PGI finally gave us a diagnosis that he was an autistic child but a
high functioning autistic child with Asperger's syndrome. I cried the whole night I thought it would get better but I know now I had to be with my child through
everything. I was given a book on it by Tony Attwood and well that was it. No parent support, no other children, nobody knew anything but in India there
wasn't anything else about autism or mental retardation.
I started reading up, meeting people, trying my own methods to find people who could help. To add on to the problems in my life I got a stroke a paralytic one
the same year because of stress so at 39 I was bedridden with a child with asperger's syndrome and nothing but a book to help..
So my journey had to begin again, I had started a business- a salon chain and my academy for soft skills training. And here I was on bed with a double diagnosis. I
had started another level of alternative healing with reiki. And then began another journey of healing myself and my son I learnt pranic and spiritual healing and
met my now partner Bharati who was a healer psychologist and a special educator. So slowly we all began to heal and improve. With healing I was off medication
quickly and slowly began to recover and started driving and working again. Had many issues but they were getting manageable, then I started educating myself in
special education and healing therapies. Manav went through a major breakthrough, there was eye contact, he became calmer and more responsive and had
improved stability.
I put him into acting in Wings Theater Academy with Zubin Mehta. It was miraculous, Manav began conversing, he had developed a connection with his
teacher, he wanted to go out for the first time and developed a routine.
Theater helped him connect and express himself and with the exercises and improvisations he began to express himself and make friends. He became
independent. We realized he has a higher IQ and his maturity surpassed his age so he got along better with people older than him more than children of his own
age. He explored more with theater, singing in the choir, dancing in a musical, playing the Casio etc.
I got some time and realized I had to do more and work towards something larger than that so we started EmPOWER an
NGO with Bharati to spread awareness in the field of specific learning disability which include dyslexia and its forms-
ADD, ADHD and autism. I decided we should talk about it and spread awareness about ability and throughout the
journey it troubled me that people in our country don't talk about mental health and there is no awareness, only lack of
knowledge about mental retardation.
Well 23% of the world is physically or mentally challenged- deaf, dumb, blind, cerebral palsy, dyslexia, ADD, ADHD,
autism, PDD, Down Syndrome and more. Why don't we have them outside, integrated into society. Why are they not
doing jobs, why are they not going to parties or movies? So we began to hold fashion shows and carnivals. Where there
was ability that was important we brought experts in field of music, dance, theater and art to train special children. Many
celebrities, movie stars, leading models, key political figures and others walked the ramp with the children. We did a huge
conference about specific learning disability where experts from all over India were there. We started a parent support
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lawyer I began to provide legal aid to many families that needed help with financial issues and abuse. We began interacting with
many groups across India to set up an organization and to build connectivity. Started evening classes, a book club, donation
drives etc. so we can work with underprivileged people. We promote alternative healing- EFT, reiki, spiritual healing in a big
way as it creates emotional stability and opens channels for the children and their families. We have an inspirational storytelling
group where people come and talk about their life stories to inspire others. We want Govt. and CSR activities of companies to
come out and help us in a larger way so we can provide long term benefits, employment and most of all build a safe place for
them.
I would request you to share the story. If a mother can bring out a movement with limited resources and energy, we all together as
society can do much more to bring equality, special rights and focus on human potential and ability. Name: Sharmita Banerjee
Bhinder Father: Late Lt. Col. P.K. Banerjee- Army Intelligence Mother: Dr. Mukta Banerjee, Prof- English department, Punjab
University, Chandigarh Husband: Baljeet Singh Bhinder, Omni-chain-retail specialist- Jumeriah, Dubai Children: Nishaant
Singh Bhinder- Class 12, Vivek High School Manav Singh Bhinder- Class 11, Vivek High School Chandigarh
Experience: Practiced Civil and Criminal law in District and High Court Chandigarh for two years.
Soft skill trainer with accent and speech training with various corporations Ran an academy, Leaps n bounds, for 15 years for spoken English, IELTS TOEFL
and SAT training Owned and operated a chain of salons, Urbane Locks, formerly New Look, for 7 years with a total of 9 showrooms spread across Chandigarh,
Greater Mohali, Patiala and Jalandhar Experimented with various things like biochemical medicines, Reiki, Pranic healing Trained in Angel healing, Pranic and
spiritual healing Co-founded an NGO for special children as I have a special child in the autism framework with asperger's syndrome Trained in specific
learning disability and guidance and counseling Education: Loreto Convent, Tarahall, Shimla Sacred Heart High School, Chandigarh MCM DAV College,
Chandigarh Graduated from: Lady Sri Ram, New Delhi Punjab University- LLB, MA. Pol. Sc, MA. Eng.
Awards: The Lifetime Achievement award- MCM DAV College (given for the first time to an alumnus) Awarded by State, UT and tourism for excelling in the
field of spiritual healing on women's day About myself- I am a poet and a prolific blogger, writing in various languages. I'm in the process of writing and
publishing a few books. I am a leading social activist fighting for rights of women and children, against child abuse and to integrate special children into society.
We have a legal cell under the NGO which provides free guidance and fights cases for women with special children. The NGO and its members are funding
education of many special children abandoned by their families.
About EMPOWER- The NGO by is under the aegis of Joy Lal memorial educational society working for and training in specific learning disability through
workshops, setting up of resource rooms, assisted remediation, raising social awareness through programs, counseling and parenting workshops Healing
workshops and various modules of therapy We have a parent support group An inspirational and motivational storytelling group We do various talks on mental
health and awareness workshops. We have done fashion shows, carnivals and workshops where we assimilate special children into society and give them a
platform for equal opportunities. The NGO gets all the children challenged special and normal on a common platform with the idea of spreading
awareness...about specific learning disability and other needs.
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