Manisha
Some plants grow themselves and some need to be nurtured. Manisha has to be nurtured. Manisha was a slow learner and does not act like the other children. Termed as ‘pagal’ by her peers in the village, Manisha used to stand for hours in line to fill buckets of water and everyone pushed her away, giggled and laughed at her.
But like the Japanese flower Wisteria, Manisha took a long time to grow, but when she blossomed, she filled her surroundings with beauty. Manisha has been in Protsahan for 3 years now. Initially, she was an introvert, afraid to express herself and could barely understand what was happening in the class. With the help of the teachers at Protsahan, she started focusing on her studies. Her new friends at Protsahan helped her participate in all the workshops held at Protsahan and she started feeling a sense of belonging. Manisha started to open up to the other girls. She was losing her fear of rejection and participated in the activities around.
Manisha is 13 yrs old and has 2 little sisters whom she loves. Manisha loves painting and many of her paintings capture the images of women walking with buckets of water and women plucking flowers, some memories of her past.
Weekends for Manisha is her sleep time when she likes to laze around all day. She loves playing Kho-Kho. She wants to become a doctor and cure one of her friend’s affected leg.
At Protsahan, Manisha now feels a sense of belonging. Protsahan is her window to express her thoughts and emotions.
We wish she becomes a doctor one day and proves that disability cannot kill your spirits.
