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Sugandha Sukrutaraj talks about AMBA, a powerful, sustainable answer to the socio-economic needs of Indians challenged by autism.
What is a sustainable model that can help 35 million Indians lead empowered lives? Sugandha Sukrutaraj talks about AMBA, a powerful answer to the needs of India’s intellectually challenged.
AMBA is a business that employs over 60 intellectually challenged people to do back office work for other large businesses. It was founded with a vision to train, employ, and financially empower people with intellectual disabilities. And it has made a brilliant start in this direction, thanks to the Founder, Sugandha Sukrutaraj.
A typical working day at the AMBA office starts at 10 am, with the sound of phones ringing, keyboards ticking, and people talking. But what makes this organization truly unique is the fact that all of AMBA’s employees are intellectually challenged, i.e., every member of staff, barring the top two in the management, suffer from autism spectrum disorder.
Most people find it hard to believe that 3% of India’s population is intellectually disabled. For the most part, this is an ignored and disempowered section amongst us that depends on the immediate family, on institutions that care for them until they are 18 and on society’s charity thereafter. What we fail to recognize is that this population is ‘differently abled’, i.e., there are some things they can do and that they can do these things very well. In fact, the woman who trains the team at AMBA is someone with an intellectual disability.
What’s amazing about AMBA is that not only is it applying mainstream thinking to empowering people with disabilities, it is particularly focused on those within this community who have a lower ability. AMBA isn’t just an organization, it is the start of a sustainable model that can benefit 35 million Indians, if replicated right. Here’s a video from Chai with Lakshmi, where you get to see AMBA at work and hear Sugandha sharing about her pursuit. She is an amazing woman, watch her speak here!
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People say that women are the greatest enemies of women. I vehemently disagree. It is the patriarchal mindset that makes women believe in the wrong ideology.
The entire world celebrates International Women’s Day on March 8, 2024. It should be a joyful day, but unfortunately, not all women are entitled to this privilege, as violence against women is at its peak. The experience of oppression pushes many women to choose freedom. As far as patriotism is concerned, feminism is not a cup of tea in this society.
What happens when a woman decides to stand up for herself? Does this world easily accept the decisions of women in this society? What inspires them to be free of the clutches of the oppression that women have faced for ages? Most of the time, women do not get the chance to decide for themselves. Their lives are always at the mercy of someone, which can be their parents, siblings, husband, or children.
In some cases, women do not feel the need to make any decisions. They are taught to obey the patriarchal system, which makes them believe that they are right. In my family, I was never taught to make decisions on my own. It was always my parents who bought dresses and all that I needed.
14 years after her last feature film Dhobi Ghat, storyteller extraordinaire comes up with her new film, Laapataa Ladies, a must watch.
*Some spoilers alert*
Every religion around the world dictates terms to women. The onus is always on women to be ‘modest’ and cover their faces and bodies so men can’t be “tempted”, rather than on men to keep their eyes where they belong and behave like civilized beings. So much so that even rape has been excused on the grounds of women eating chowmein or ‘men will be men’. I think the best Hindi movie retort to this unwanted advice on ‘akeli ladki khuli tijori ki tarah hoti hai’ (an alone woman is like an open jewellery box) came from Geet in Jab We Met – Kya aap gyan dene ke paise lete hain kyonki chillar nahin hain mere paas.
The premise of Laapataa Ladies is beautifully simple – two brides clad in the ghunghat that covers their identity get mixed up on a train. Within this Russian Doll, you get a comedy of errors, a story of getting lost, a commentary on patriarchy’s attitude towards women, a mystery, and a tale of finding oneself, all in one. Done with a mostly light touch that has you laughing and nodding along.
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