An Interview with Divya Sharma, the Winner of the President's Medal for Contribution to Disability Sector and Personal Achievements
Divya Sharma: A Vision beyond Eyes
An Interview with Ankush Bharti
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Welcome to this exclusive interview with the exceptional Divya, a
talented freelance writer, disability activist, motivational speaker, and
content creator for Radio Udaan. Divya's story is truly inspiring, as she has
conquered numerous challenges and overcome obstacles to achieve her goals.
Despite being visually challenged, Divya has not only completed her education,
but has excelled in her career and has been recognized for her outstanding
contributions to the disability community. She is also a skilled Blue Belt in
Karate and hosts three weekly shows on Radio Udaan, where she inspires and
empowers people through her motivational talks. In this interview, Divya shares
her journey and experiences, motivating us to believe in ourselves and never
give up on our aspirations. So, let us delve deeper into the story of this
remarkable woman.
1. Hey Divya, tell us about yourself.
I
am a woman who happens to be visually challenged (Glaucoma). I belong to a
small city named 'Naya Nangal' in Punjab. I use screen reader software to
operate mobile and laptop. The school authorities told me to leave the school
because of my vision impairment in class 7th, and none of the schools in my
city gave me admission because of my disability. Later, I did an MA in English
from Punjab University. Currently, I am working in the freelance writing
business. I have been working in this industry for more than five years. I have
clients from across the world. I am also a disability activist, a contributor
to magazines and newspapers, a motivational speaker, a Blue Belt in Karate, and
an RJ and Content Manager of an online Radio Station named Radio Udaan. It is
run by visually challenged people and is heard in more than 115 countries. I
hold three weekly shows: 'Inspirational Wings', 'Vocabulary Dose' and 'Mystery
of 26'. The purpose of my shows is to spread optimism in the lives of people
and to empower them. My English shows help people strengthen their English.
I
have also been honored at different levels and a few of them are
like:
·
On 12th
December 2016, I received a Punjab State Award from Shri Surjit Kumar Jyani,
Cabinet Minister, Social Security and Women & Children Welfare for my
contribution towards the disability community.
·
On 14th
august 2016, I received 7th
NCPEDP-Mphasis Universal Award by Central Minister of State for Social Justice
and Empowerment Shri K P Gurjar at New Delhi.
·
Received Award of Honour from
National Fertilizers Limited for my achievements in August 2016 etc.
2. What
challenges have you faced as a person with a disability during your childhood?
As I am visually challenged,
life has not been easy. Until class 7th, I went to a mainstream school with my
twin sister. I was permitted to sit in a classroom and pass every class based
on a verbal test of some chapters. In class 8th, I had to leave the school, and
no other school in the city gave me admission. No school knew how to deal with
a person with a disability. I appeared in class 10th board exams as a private
candidate and scored 80% marks. When I was distributing sweets at that time,
there were some people who, instead of praising the good marks, said thank God
You at least passed the exam. This type of mindset has always been a great
disappointment. I have observed society looking upon us with sympathy at every
stage of my life. Even when I visited my extended relatives, they used to greet
my sister and brother but behaved as if I was not even there. Such kind of
indirect humiliation always pinched me.
I appeared in all future
exams correspondingly and finally did MA English from Punjab University. At
that time, books were not readily available online. I had to scan entire books
to access them on the laptop and study them with my Screen reader. During my
graduation and post-graduation, I worked hard on my technology skills without
formal training. I learnt about screen reader software JAWS and later on
talkback on my own. From working effectively on the laptop to managing
websites, posting blogs and writing for magazines, I did everything in my small
town, Naya Nangal.
3. Tell us a bit about your family.
We are a middle class family
of six people. My parents have always been excellent support. They never stopped
me from trying anything. They brought me up like a normal child. My siblings
always tried their best to help me in any possible way. Since I grew up with my
twin sister, I learnt many important personality and body language traits that,
generally, persons with disabilities miss out on. My mom retired from the
academic field (National Fertilizer Limited Nangal Unit school) in 2020, and my
father has been in the finance line (private sector). The sixth member of my
family has always been a pet dog. Initially, I had a Pomeranian, then a
Labrador and currently a lemon beagle. My pets have always been a great source
of strength for me. Since my siblings went to bigger cities for their
education, my parents were primarily outdoors for work; I was home alone studying
and working on myself. In such times, my pet dogs proved to be comforting and
compassionate companions for me. They never discriminated against me because of
my disability.
4.
What
inspired you to post your journey through social media?
Awareness is important. If a
person gets to know the opportunities, possibilities and other essential things
in time, they can do wonders. For example, in my case, the school authorities
didn't know how to deal with visually challenged persons, so I had to go
through the trauma of being denied admission to the school because of their
ignorance. If I spread my story through social media, people will know how
persons with disabilities work and can carve a niche for themselves. Hence,
this awareness will spread further, and if even a single person gets positively
impacted by my story, it will fulfill my purpose.
5.
Could
you please share your activities as an activist? How do you promote awareness
regarding disabilities?
Well, when school authorities
told me to leave in class 8th, I decided to bring a change in the society. I
made up my mind to bring a change in the mindset of people. When I was doing my
graduation correspondingly from Himachal Pradesh university, I was invited by
an NGO' Umang Foundation' to address a press conference at Shimla in
April 2014. They wanted to spread the word in the state about the possibilities
of technological advancements taking place. I talked about my life and how I
perform my tasks with the help of screen readers (assistive technology). The event
received prominent coverage both by print and electronic media. The impact of
that conference was such that many visually challenged students in Himachal
Pradesh enrolled themselves in educational institutions.
Next, with the vision to
sensitize society, in 2015, I took a personal initiative and started visiting
different mainstream schools to create awareness among students and faculty
members about PWDs. During my visits, I used to give a demo about assistive
technology/screen readers, talked about how visually challenged people work and
interacted with the students & faculty members in the assembly. After my
visits, these schools admitted students with disabilities without hesitation.
The latest is one of the schools that has given admission to visually
challenged and maimed students. I receive calls from parents/relatives/friends
of students regarding disabilities. About vision impairment, I guide them, and
for other disabilities, I associate them with the concerned professionals. As a
speaker, I have also attended many college, corporate and institutional events
and shared my thoughts about accessibility and inclusion.
During the covid19 pandemic,
I couldn't pursue my physical visits to institutions for awareness sessions.
But I didn't stop there; I attended online events. Corporate organizations also
called me for zoom talks and sessions as a guest and speaker. My baby project
has been visiting different educational and corporate institutions for
sensitization sessions. I started it to ensure nobody has to go through the
same trauma of being denied admission as I did.
6.
What
are your hobbies?
I have a bouquet of
hobbies/interests. I like music and playing the harmonium, tabla, guitar and
ukulele. Playing music, especially guitar and ukulele, helps me detox and feel
relaxed. I also have a taste for cooking and exploring new
software/applications.
7.
You
are a financially independent young woman. Tell us more about your profession.
I have done an MA in English,
and I didn’t want to get into the government sector. The field of teaching
didn’t excite me much. Writing has been close to my heart. I explored
opportunities in the writing field and one day came across a content writing
opportunity. I gave an interview online and submitted my samples to the
company. They took my interview online, and I started working with them right
from home. Of course, there were some accessibility challenges, but I made my
way through them all. When the pandemic started, the company went down, and the
salaries were not on time. So, I started working with a company in the US. But
after working with them for six months, one fine day, they told me to use
specific software for my content. The software was not accessible. I told them
it was not accessible and my screen reader was not reading it. The software
procedure was just five minutes, but they refused to help. They said they could
not help me with that. The head told me that you are excellent at your work,
but you have to put in your papers because of the software's inaccessibility.
It was a devastating time for me. It was the company that initially told me
that they are inclusive and they believe in it. But when the time came, they
stepped back.
Then, I ventured into a
full-time freelance writing business. I thought it would be safe and wiser not
to keep all my eggs in a single basket. I started working with multiple
clients, both from India and abroad. I have both b2b and b2c clients. Yes,
there are accessibility challenges even today. There are many websites that I
go through every day for research work, and they need to be made available.
Sometimes, I lose clients because of inaccessibility, but there is some peace
of mind that I have other clients with me. But yet, it is stressful and
fluctuating, and I have to prove myself daily in this work. There is no off on
Sunday or republic day. If I take a day off, I don't make money that day. In
one line, I love this full-time freelance writing business despite all the
hiccups I experience sometimes. I have been pursuing this career from my small
city Naya Nangal. I approach my clients through LinkedIn and word of
mouth.
8.
What
are the main challenges faced by people with disabilities today?
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On the other hand, since new
application updates emerge every other week, the accessibility goes for a toss.
For an average person, it is exciting to find new updates, but for a visually
challenged person like me, updates mean again inaccessibility mostly. Since
companies have to make apps or software accessible from the grassroots, they
don't put much effort there. With new updates, they neglect the accessibility
part.
9.
What
advice would you give to someone starting in the field of disability
activism?
Everyone has a different way
of spreading the word, creating awareness and standing for others. To be in the
world of disability activism, you must first become empathetic. Talk to people,
learn about their struggles and do what you can do with all your heart.
10.
How has your experience with hobbies helped you in your other
pursuits?
My hobbies have been a great
support system for me. There are always times when you feel alone; you feel
disappointed, discouraged or disheartened. In such times, hobbies lift you and
keep you going.
11. What inspired you to pursue a career in writing, radio, and motivational speaking?
I have always loved to write,
so I ventured into this line. I also have a personal blog wherein I share my
personal experiences. Talking about RJ's journey is a voluntary thing I have
been doing since 2014. My purpose was to enlighten people, help others and
become a part of the change in the lives of PWDs.
Motivational speaking is not
what I chose; it came to me. Many people asked me to deliver talks on different
occasions. I even did a motivational session at the first International Film
Festival for Persons with Disabilities held in New Delhi in December 2015 with
actor Tom Alter. There have been innumerable places I have given motivational
talks. I always speak my heart, and the world takes it as motivational.
However, I always try to motivate others because I know how it feels to
experience setbacks and feel alone in the world of show-offs and perfections.
12.
What
are the most important things for people with disabilities to focus on when
achieving their goals?
It is your self-belief, never
giving up attitude and consistency. You have to keep on doing what you feel is
right. Please don't listen to others, or you may become a victim of their
thinking. You have to accept yourself and work on yourself. Financial
independence is a must. I still remember a well-renowned person who told me
once during a conference call that I am double disabled. He said, first, you
are a woman and then disabled. At that moment, I laughed it out. So, the point
is you work on yourself. Otherwise, comments like these will never let you
grow.
13.
How
have you seen attitudes towards people with disabilities change over the
years?
The attitudes towards persons
with disabilities are changing gradually. Though more people are now engaging
with PWDs and trying to understand their ways, still a large portion of the
population hardly cares. I feel it is a long road.
14.
What
advice would you give someone interested in pursuing a career in your
profession?
Just be confident, work on
your skills, stay updated and try to expand your network as much as you can. To
be in the freelance business, you must work on cementing links and approaching
new clients. You must always be ready with your samples and stay consistent.
There are no free lunches!
15.
Who
is your role model?
I appreciate the traits and
habits of some people that encourage me. Everyone has some or the other trait
to learn from. Even then, if I had to name one person, it would be my mother.
16.
Tell
us about your daily schedule.
My routine is quite the same.
I start my day with work and end it by early evening. Then I do my workout,
which spans a minimum of 1 hour or so. Some days, I work on my radio show at
night, while on other days I spend some time playing guitar or ukulele. In
between, I play with my pet dog 'Magic' too. Indeed, there are variations off
and on, but it is mostly how my routine unfolds.
17.
You
are into fitness. What is your advice to young girls who want to be physically fit?
Fitness is one thing that
everyone should work on. Being a woman with a disability, I strongly believe in
staying fit no matter what. I promote disability and fitness. I have attained
five belts; the most recent is the blue belt in karate (martial arts). I seek
to gain a black belt someday to teach it to other visually challenged women and
men. I also do cardio and weightlifting practice at home. Currently, after the
pandemic, I don't have a karate coach, but I practice all that I have learnt so
far. I believe in a fitness routine. My advice is to spare at least forty
minutes, if not an hour, in a day for yourself. Do some physical activity like
walking, jogging, yoga and so on.
18.
Could
you please shine some light on your life as an RJ? What should a person do if
they want to be an RJ?
We started Radio Udaan in
February 2014. It is an online radio station run by visually challenged people
and is heard in more than 115 countries. We started it, but we were neither
professionals in this line and nor had degrees in it. We started it for
inclusion and to offer a platform for persons with disabilities to showcase
their talents and participate.
My experience so far has been
phenomenal. It is voluntary for me, and I don't earn anything from it. But I
feel good when I make an impact on so many lives. Practice makes you better at
everything. Anyone who wants to be an RJ should be confident and sound with
their communication skills and creativity. Staying informed is also critical.
19.
How
was your childhood?
My childhood was good, full
of fun, learning and excitement. I spent most of my time with my family,
siblings, and pet dog. Of course, challenges were there because of my vision
impairment, but those made me stronger.
20.
How
did you incorporate AI into your everyday life?
Well, I don't know which
perspective you mean by AI. But if you talk about technology, it has become a
backbone for me. Not just me for every visually challenged person. I know
braille, but it is no longer an advanced way to study or work. I use screen
readers, namely JAWS (job access with speech), NVDA (non-visual desktop access)
and talkback. I also use bone conduction headphones so that my ears don't hurt
because of consistent hearing. Bone conduction headphones send the sound
through our cheekbone instead of our ears.
21.
Your
message to our readers.
It is okay to feel the pain
and get disappointed and discouraged. But it is not okay to give up and make
the opinions of others the reality of your life. Be you, work on yourself and
try to do whatever you can. If you are a person with a disability, don't feel
bad. It is just a part of your life, not you as a whole!
22.
Your
message to people who feel low by failures.
Failures are a part of our life. We can fail once, thrice and even more than ten times, but If we stop trying, that is an absolute failure. Pat on your back that you are not giving up and staying strong. The never giving up attitude defines you and not your failures.
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