Tag: Disability | Varta Trust

Quote: The value of oral histories is especially significant for socially marginalized communities whose stories are often silenced, distorted, or wiped out by the dominant groups. The very act of remembering and narrating can be seen as an act of defiance against silencing. We need to do more and more of oral histories – narrate, record, disseminate, and even re-narrate our stories far and wide. When a story becomes like a living organism, the task of silencing becomes more difficult for those who want only one narrative to survive.

Vartanama Mar '25

Memory works

By Pawan Dhall

Pawan Dhall on the many hues of remembering – personal, political, accepting imperfections and more

The photograph shows a close-up shot of a large collection of clocks with wooden casings in different shapes and sizes. There are large wall clocks, much smaller table clocks, and many sizes in between. Most clocks are round, while some are square or hexagonal. Some of the clocks have ornate hour and minute hands. The clock faces show different times, but all the clocks seem to be dysfunctional, discarded, and piled up in a container, which is not visible in the photograph. Photo credit: Jon Tyson on Unsplash

Poetry, Vartanama Feb '25

The 51st winter

By Rajib Chakrabarti

Rajib Chakrabarti has no qualms about accepting the severity of old age

The graphic shows a charcoal grey flag bisected diagonally from the top left corner to the lower right corner by five parallel stripes in red, pale gold, pale grey, light blue, and green, with each element symbolizing different aspects of the disability experience. All six standard flag colours imply that disability spans borders between states and nations; the black field stands for mourning for victims of ableist violence and abuse; the diagonal band implies cutting across the walls and barriers that separate disabled people from society; the red stripe stands for physical disabilities; the gold one for cognitive disabilities; the white stripe for invisible and undiagnosed disabilities; the blue stripe for psychiatric disabilities; and the green stripe for sensory disabilities. The graphic shows the visually safe Disability Pride Flag, an evolution of the ‘lightning bolt’ Disability Pride Flag. The redesigned flag is safer for people with visually-triggered disabilities and more accessible to people with colour blindness. Flag design credit: Ann Magill

Poetry Feb '25

On disabled resistance and community

By Nu Misra

Disabled persons do not need to be pathologized, patronized or pitied, says Nu Misra

This photograph shows a close-up shot of some of the books mentioned by the author in the accompanying article. One lot of five books are kept in a not-so-neat vertical pile on the author’s study table. These include T. J. Klune’s ‘In the Lives of Puppets’, ‘The House in the Cerulean Sea’ and ‘Somewhere Beyond the Sea’, Aiden Thomas’ ‘Cemetery Boys’, and Mason Deaver’s ‘Wish You All the Best’ right on top of the pile. Lex Croucher’s ‘Gwen & Art Are Not in Love’ is placed reclining on the pile on the right- hand side. To the pile’s left is the cover page of Andrew Joseph White’s ‘Hell Followed with Us’ visible on a Kindle e-reader. An open laptop, pen stand, and photo frame can be seen crowding the same study table as the books. In the background are two almirahs and a door ajar. Photo credit: Mihir Seth

Printed Word, Vartanama Jan '25

Notes on hoping taken from teenage queer fiction

By Mihir Seth

Mihir Seth finds the strength to go on in queer stories of trials, tribulations and hope

This illustration is a combination of a photograph and text extracted from the accompanying article. The photograph shows a scene from a media conference held at the Press Club Kolkata on December 3, 2024 to disseminate the findings of a survey of the one stop crisis centres running in the four states of Bihar, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, and West Bengal. The survey was conducted by the Women Gaining Ground consortium. The author and two other speakers Chitrita Bandpadhyay and Jhuma Sen can be seen sitting behind a table and addressing the audience. Behind the speakers, a flex banner mounted on the wall, reads “Sruti Disability Rights Centre invites you to sharing of survey report of one stop crisis centres from four states”. The event date and venue are mentioned below this text. The logos of Women Gaining Ground and Sruti Disability Rights Centre are placed at the lower right corner of the flex. The text extract says: “There are two major concerns that came forth from the survey. First, not a single OSCC addresses the concerns of women with disabilities. The buildings are not barrier-free, and no support persons like sign language interpreters or trauma-informed psychologists have been recruited. The staff of the centres seem completely unaware of the needs of women with disabilities. None of the centres is connected to the National Tele Mental Health Programme of India.” Photograph courtesy Sruti Disability Rights Centre

Insight Dec '24

Crisis in crisis intervention centres for women?

By Shampa Sengupta

How equipped are the government-run one stop crisis centres for women to carry out crisis intervention? Shampa Sengupta shares insight from a recent survey of the centres in four states...

Quote: It was said at the conference that sexual behaviour is ‘down there’, while sexual identity is ‘up there’. But the general perception seems to be: Never mind how much grey matter’s up there, down there it had better be big. Perhaps saying so is being unnecessarily pessimistic. Even so, in many minds the size fetish evokes a very real fear – a fear of inadequacy, of being unattractive, of being unwanted. This fear can only hinder the progress towards a healthier existence.

From the Archives, Vartanama Jan '24

Better fallible than supreme

By Pawan Dhall

There’s still time to make New Year resolutions that don’t celebrate excess, big size or Pyrrhic standards of perfection, says Pawan Dhall

This photograph shows a close-up daytime shot of dazzling white flowers growing on a slender stalk on the forest floor. The plant is surrounded with diverse green foliage growing on the wet soil. The whiteness of the flowers clearly stands out against the green and brown of the surroundings. The photograph was taken at the Karlapat Sanctuary Range near Bhawanipatna in Odisha in 2017. Photo credit: Pawan Dhall

Vartanama Dec '23

My anger narrative is white hot

By Pawan Dhall

Coming to terms with your anger can be a creative approach to welcoming the New Year, says Pawan Dhall

This photograph is an example of fine-art photography, consisting of several intersecting frames within an overall frame created by the unpainted red-brown brick walls of a poor household, lit up only with daylight from outside. To the left of the photograph is a woman dressed in a patterned cotton saree, worn in a style common in Bengal, wearing ‘shankha-pola’ in her hands, and leaning against a wall, which seems to be at the entrance of her house. She is looking down at the camera as the photographer seems to be seated on the floor. Her face is shrouded in half-light and she seems to have a grim demeanour. A younger person is seated on the floor next to her holding up a vertically rectangular frame that seems to be made of glass. The person is not visible, only a part of their head and hands holding up the frame are visible in the photograph. The frame shows the portion of an open window with an ornate grill design. Greenery is visible outside the window. Inside, just below the window and next to an unpainted brick wall, food is cooking in a pan placed on a mud ‘chulha’. A ladle is placed in the pan. Next to the ‘chulha’ seems to be a pile of twigs and wood shavings, possibly for use in the ‘chulha’. An interesting interplay of light, shadow and subdued colours dominates the photograph. Photo credit: Debalina

Insight, Policy Matters Nov '23

Domestic violence and disabled women – reflections from the field

By Dr. Nandini Ghosh

Domestic violence and lack of access to legal redress still pose serious challenges to the wellbeing of disabled women in India, says Dr. Nandini Ghosh

Quote: Somewhere amid all these positives, I also expect queer people with disabilities to be more visible, do well in life, and not be silenced in both queer and disability communities. Homophobic, transphobic and ableist people will still be around, but they may well be pushed to the fringes. A decade hence we may sit down and compare the predictions made by various authors on the pages of Varta and calculate the percentage of those that have come true.

My Story Aug '23

Cautious predictions for 2033 CE

By Rajib Chakrabarti

On ‘Varta’ webzine completing 10 years, Rajib Chakrabarti writes about the changes he expects to see for queer people and persons with disabilities a decade from now

Vartanama Jul '23

Tensions of the past and future

By Pawan Dhall

An imperfect digest of ‘Varta’ webzine’s journey through a decade of climaxes, anti-climaxes, and explorations for a social G-spot

This illustration shows a close-range photograph of a smiling and bespectacled Shampa Sengupta looking at the camera. She is seated on a wooden chair, with a wall behind her. The photograph is in black and white and seems to have been taken outdoors during the daytime. Text accompanying the photograph says: “If we’re talking about a wider network of support, friends have a huge role to play. For instance, I know some children with disabilities who went to mainstream schools. There they received a lot of support from their friends. Mainstream schools are so exclusionary and it’s hard to manage on your own. That’s where non-disabled persons as friends can step in and help . . . Wheeling someone with a disability around the school campus, taking notes for them, helping them with homework and studies, just being around in general. Going out for movies, other recreational activities, things like that. Things that are not necessities in the strictest sense but are important nonetheless.” Photo courtesy Shampa Sengupta

Insight May '23

On disability, friendship and caregiving

By Diksha Sanyal

Diksha Sanyal examines the role of friendship in caregiving for persons with disabilities, and how far the law recognizes this role

This is a group photograph taken at the end of an event organized at Deshaj Café and Store on June 4, 2022 to mark the completion of 100 monthly issues of ‘Varta’ webzine in April 2022. The photograph shows 13 individuals standing or sitting in three rows, smiling and facing the camera. The individuals include Varta Trustees, members, staff members, and well-wishers, representing a mix of different genders and sexualities. In the background can be seen the café’s book racks, wall hangings and a wall-mounted television set. In the forefront, to the right edge of the photograph, a few pieces of the cake cut on the occasion can be seen kept on a side table. Photo credit: Swati Das

Happenings, Insight Aug '22

Words and art from the heart

By Swati Das

A round-up of events organized to mark 100 monthly issues of ‘Varta’ webzine by Swati Das

This illustration is a combination of a photograph of Karthik, a Bangalore-based software developer and the interviewee in the accompanying article, and a quote attributed to him in the article. The photograph shows a bespectacled Karthik smiling cheerfully at the camera. He is wearing a white t-shirt with a stylized rainbow-coloured image of a clenched human fist. The image is accompanied with text that says #PRIDE, also in rainbow colours. Karthik is holding on to a crutch with his right hand. The background behind Karthik shows a blurred office environment. The accompanying quote says: “This is called ‘inspiration porn’ in the disabled community. People have set the bar so slow, just because they have disabilities it doesn’t mean they’re doing great things by just living their lives. The name comes from the fact that people try to derive inspiration from people with disabilities without understanding basic problems like lack of resources and support that is preventing us from doing extra stuff. We won’t have inspiration porn if there are more narratives about disabled people just living their lives.” Photo courtesy Karthik

Insight, People Mar '22

Disability, representation and pride

By Eishita

Karthik, a Bangalore-based software developer, opens up to Eishita on disability, sexuality and queer pride

This image is a combination of two photographs or panels, one placed above the other. At the forefront (in the lower panel) is a large white plate with a brown border. There are two green triangular ‘dosas’ stacked on a banana leaf placed on the plate. Four small brass bowls can be seen arranged around the periphery of the plate, with each bowl filled with a different chutney or condiment. A used fork and knife are kept on a side plate. Both the plates, along with a brass tumbler of water, are placed on a round white marble tabletop, with part of a wicker chair visible on one side. The tabletop and chair seem to be placed overlooking the front windshield of a car (upper panel), with the wipers visible through the glass from inside the car. The delicacies on the tabletop seem to overlook an endless highway lined with rows of coconut trees and shrubs on either side, eventually merging into the horizon. The two photographs combined in this manner highlight the key themes of the article – food and travel. The lower panel shows spinach-infused ‘neer dosas’ at Go Native restaurant in Bangalore. The upper panel shows a daytime scene of a road journey undertaken by the author from Hassan to Bangalore. Photo credits: Pawan Dhall

Travel Travel, Vartanama Feb '22

Movements that move you

By Pawan Dhall

Pawan Dhall was on the move in Karnataka (and Andhra Pradesh) taking in the sights and foods, both rustic and urban

Advice - Disability, Insight Jan '22

Is horizontal reservation ensuring jobs efficiently for the disabled?

By Amrita Chanda

Amrita Chanda elaborates on the situation of horizontal reservation for persons with disabilities in public sector employment

The graphic shows a multi-coloured word cloud formed with key terms and expressions used in the accompanying article. For example: Mental health, disability, caregiving, autism, coronavirus, pandemic, anxiety, panic attack, counselling, support group, stress and so on. The word cloud does not form any particular shape or does not carry any particular symbolism. It is contained in a rectangle with a deep blue background that helps the words stand out. Graphic credit: Pawan Dhall

Happenings Jun '21

Stress management for caregivers during COVID-19 pandemic

By Amrita Chanda

Amrita Chanda reports on a recent online interaction on the mental health needs of the caregivers of persons with disabilities during the COVID-19 pandemic

Tagged Under: Disability

Memory works

The 51st winter

On disabled resistance and community

Notes on hoping taken from teenage queer fiction

Crisis in crisis intervention centres for women?

Better fallible than supreme

My anger narrative is white hot

Domestic violence and disabled women – reflections from the field

Cautious predictions for 2033 CE

Tensions of the past and future

On disability, friendship and caregiving

Words and art from the heart

Disability, representation and pride

Movements that move you

Is horizontal reservation ensuring jobs efficiently for the disabled?

Stress management for caregivers during COVID-19 pandemic

Queer Friendly Resources

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