In the year 1994, the world heard the iconic words “Run, Forrest, run” for the first time, and saw a young boy run fast enough from his bullies, to break free from his leg braces, and eventually his spine disability. The movie became a worldwide phenomenon, an inspiration for all. In 2020, Bollywood actor Amir Khan decided to remake the movie as “Laal Singh Chadda”, hoping to recreate the same magic.
However, after 26 years, is this how we are still going to present disability to the masses, an easy run towards ableism? Today, an estimated 2.21 percentage population i.e., 26.8 million people of Indian society has some sort of disability. And only about 14.6 million people with disabilities have any access to basic education.
So, let’s talk about Realism. India enacted the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunity, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act in 1995 to provide recognition to the rights and special needs of the disabled in the country. The rights of persons with psychosocial disabilities are protected under the Mental Health Care Act, 2017.
Until now, the government has necessitated different acts/policies to validate, recognise, and protect those with various disabilities, as seen by the court of law. But it is not an undisclosed information that most of these decisions are enacted on a superficial level and are made by most able-bodied individuals. Management and upliftment of disabled humans is a mammoth task; the supervision of which is crucial because it depends on society, capital, and inclusiveness. The protection rights movement states that discrimination is not allowed, but fails to address the nuances of Indian society and its acceptance of disability.
In any interaction with people with disabilities, it is visible that their chronicles capture the truth of being disabled in India today- the name-calling, inaccessible public spaces, broken systems, and mis happenings that stop them from existing as should be their right. If we discuss representation, India’s popular media has always depicted negative stereotypes about disabled people, from Sajeev Kapoor’s caricaturist performance of mental health in Khilona (1970), to Tushar Kapoor’s mockery of speech disability in Golmaal (2006) and many more. People with disabilities have frequently been used as a way to provide comic relief or trigger an emotional response from the audiences. So, the question is, how do we transition to a more inclusive society?
First, there is a dire need for a better representation of disabled people in arts, humanities, mainstream media, and culture. This can be achieved by showcasing the voices of those whose lived experiences are being portrayed, and by listening to the disabled community. Second, one of the most important settings is to employ more disabled people in Public and Government sectors. Laws and policies for the disabled can only be nuanced by those who truly understand the meaning of disability. According to the Disabled Living Foundation, 80% of disabilities are between the ages of 18 and 64, that is to say the key workforce age, which implies, if more people enter private and public spaces, offices, corporates, a radical shift in social perception can be achieved.
India needs a system where the able-bodied create spaces for the disabled community. We need more inclusion in school curriculums, where children learn to embrace their disabilities as opposed to being mocked for the same. In the world of sports, disabled athletes should have access to more college scholarships, funding, and promotion.
Society’s overall cultural consciousness on how to interact with disability has to change, to understand that all humans are partners in development and administration. Most importantly, for India to reach the goal of becoming the inclusive capital of the world, people need to understand that humans with disabilities are regular humans not models of charity. If the focus shifts from their one element which is different, people will realize that it is not the disability that defines them. It is their talent, their dreams, their desires, their skills, and their motives, just like the rest.