International Women's Day: Tales of resilience, sacrifice and selflessness

Yojana Gharat, Snehalatha Rajan, and Dr Madhuri are beacons to the society with their inspiring lives

Yojana Gharat grew up an orphan, never knowing the warmth of love, kindness, or appreciation. But today, she is a 'mother' to many.

She founded the Smit Old Age Home and Care Foundation, which gives shelter to senior citizens lost or abandoned by their own.

The people she takes in are lost souls—"Those found wandering at railway stations and bus stands, verified by the police and sent to her care. Sometimes families refuse to take back their family members after they are discharged from mental hospitals. They are also adopted by Yojana’s old age home. Some others who are adopted are court-ordered, and those who are found locked in homes,” she said.

The people rescued from streets, under bridges, and forgotten corners of society first undergo medical check-ups and police verification before they are brought into the old age home.

Here, they are called Aai (mother) and Baba (father)—titles of love and respect they were long denied.

“These are people who need physical, moral and financial dependence. They are provided accommodation, food and laundry facilities. They are given medical attention under CCTV camera surveillance,” Yojana added.

So far 15,800 people have been taken care of and empowered by Yojana and her team since she founded it in 2017.

She has arranged over 4,000 last rites, ensuring that even in death, these abandoned souls find dignity.

Through relentless compassion, Yojana has become the family they lost. And in doing so, she has rewritten her own story—from an orphan to a 'mother' of many.

Mother Courage and Her Children

Snehalatha Rajan

Snehalatha Rajan embodies the spirit of resilience—nothing short of a modern-day ‘Mother Courage’. Challenges have been a constant in her life, so much so that she said, "They’ve become a habit".

A Bengalurean hailing from Kerala, her two sons Roshan and Ritvik were born visually challenged and with cognitive difficulties. That did not stop their mother from guiding them to be musical prodigies because their only interest was in music. They soon became household names and were part of many stage and reality shows.

“Despite various challenges, Roshan completed his MA in English Literature and got married,” Snehalatha said.

Ten years back, as fate would have it, Roshan passed on. “It was very traumatic for all of us. Ritvik withdrew from music which was the only hope for him. It was a herculean task to bring him back to the stage. I could not stand on the stage without Roshan. I do not know how I mustered the courage to hold Ritvik missing Roshan,” she said.

But the mother was resilience incarnate.

As for Ritvik’s younger days, she said, “Ritvik had shown an extraordinary connection with music from the time he was just a year and a half old. He didn’t respond to questions with words. He responded only through melodies.

Formal schooling remained out of reach; there were no inclusive institutions that could accommodate his unique needs.

At nine, everything changed. That year became the turning point in Ritvik’s musical journey as he presented his first stage show.

Ritvik was born with multiple challenges: visual and cognitive impairments, tactile deficiency, and sensory processing issues. Snehalatha had to find a way to help him navigate the world.

At 10, she introduced him to Hindustani music under the Akhil Bharatiya Gandharva Mahavidyalaya. His fingers, once clenched tight, started to loosen when placed on a musical instrument. Over time, he completed three levels of tabla training. He broke barriers one taal at a time.

Academics, too, posed their own set of hurdles. But giving up was never an option. Through recorded lessons and the support of the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS), Ritvik completed his secondary education.

Snehalatha always believed in his ability to teach. She played out lessons with him, encouraged role-playing, and even allowed him to correct her when she made intentional mistakes. This taught him the power of guidance and patience.

His strongest language, however, remained music -- Hindustani classical, merged seamlessly with his love for Western vocals. He trained in rock and pop at Trinity and developed a deep passion for performing. From Kishore Kumar’s timeless classics to Farhan Akhtar’s rock anthems, Ritvick’s voice carried his dreams forward.

Today, Ritvik has spent six years teaching music at Delhi Public School North, Bangalore.

He now teaches music online and offline. A music teacher, a mentor, a symbol of perseverance.

As for Snehalatha, She never gave up. And she believes no one should. Ever!

Dr Madhuri: Lending ears to silent cries

Dr Madhuri Mehta with a patient

Dr Madhuri Mehta, Director and Head of Department ENT, N.C. Jindal Institute of Medical Sciences (N.C. JIMS), Hisar has been changing many young lives by helping them hear the voices hitherto unheard by them.

Working there for the last 30 years, she has been successfully running the cochlear implant programme for hearing-impaired children with delayed and non-developed speech, since 2015.

Most of them (around 100), after surgery and speech therapy, have joined normal schools, she said.

Madhuri, who has innumerable awards to her credit, has a message for the society and the government.

She explained how a single cochlear implantation procedure costs a patient around Rs 8 lakh on one ear, which includes the cost of a single implant (starts from Rs 6 lakh to Rs 30,000 for base model to up to Rs 20 lakh) surgery, tests, and speech therapy for at least two years.

“That makes it an unaffordable procedure for the poor or even rich people of our country. On the other hand, if, we don’t implant the patient maximum up to six years, the speech centre from the brain disappears or becomes non-functional due to non-use and these kids beyond six years cannot benefit from cochlear implant surgery. It is a wake-up call for all in power to create a state level committee in each state to pick up the right centres and right patients for dispensing free-of-cost implant. Presently, it’s being done in five states, but not in Haryana where I practise,'' she added.

A single parent with a son who is also an ENT surgeon, Madhuri has performed approximately 45,000 major ENT surgeries and has authored many publications.

Making hearing a possibility to all is a dream she lives by and works for every single day.