A short time after the birth of a little boy in Jalandhar in 2003, a Pandit had told his father, “Your son won’t survive too long.” Today, that little boy is a 22-year-old youth, making his father proud and making the world sway to his dance moves and yoga asanas.
Manish Aggarwal, a doting father of 22-year-old Bhavnish Aggarwal, says, “My son keeps the childhood alive in my family and the spring in my step.” A teacher at Doaba Khalsa School on Ladowali Road, Manish Aggarwal was blessed with his son Bhavnish in 2003. Bhavnish, who is specially-abled and has Down syndrome, has grown into an inspiring young man who teaches yoga and performs dance, earning appreciation across the country for his expressive and energetic performances. Their father-son bond is now seen as an example of positivity and resilience, inspiring many parents of specially-abled children.
Manish Aggarwal says, “Bhavnish was born in 2003. His medical documents bore the words Down syndrome, which I knew little about then. A doctor told us, ‘ye zindagi mein kuch nahi kar paega’ (he won’t be able to do anything in life). For us, it was a complete shock. Due to our ignorance, we were told by some to host havans and religious ceremonies as solutions, which we did. Finding cures in pandits, we were also duped into spending exorbitant amounts of money. But after exhausting the religious ‘solutions’, I began realising the answer lay not in pandits, but elsewhere. Meeting disability activist Amarjit Singh Anand in 2011 brought a sea change in my approach. Since then, I’ve never looked back.”
Out of the initial struggles of parenthood emerged a resilient activist and advocate for the rights of specially-abled individuals, who is now encouraging and transforming the lives of many other parents. Apart from being a teacher, Manish Aggarwal is secretary of the Chanan Association for MR Children, secretary of the Ma Bharti Sewa Sangh, joint secretary of the disability organisation Saksham and secretary of the Punjab Aided Schools and Colleges Association.
Manish adds, “Today I can proudly say my son is my life’s greatest gift and now people identify me through his name. After guidance from wise colleagues, we took him to India’s best institute for Down syndrome in Chennai and back home, he began taking dance classes at the Sakshi Feet Up Institute of Dance, which altered his life course. Today he goes with me to my school almost daily and trains students in yoga. He has won countless dance contests even during the pandemic and during Covid he even earned accolades from actor Hema Malini for his dance moves during an online contest.”
On World Yoga Day tomorrow, the father and son will also attend a yoga session at Vidya Dham in Jalandhar. Since childhood, Manish has been taking his son to school, events, programmes, NGOs, etc. Manish Aggarwal says, “If he skips school, we get numerous calls asking about him. On a normal day too, he gets more calls than I do. His wit wins people over. At home, he pushes his mother to dance ‘Zumba’ with him to shed those extra kilos, and he has made a dancer out of a non-dancer like me too. It’s like the dialogue in the film ‘Sitare Zameen Par’ — ‘Hamare bacche ghar mein bachpan ko hamesha zinda rakhte hain’ (Our kids keep the childhood always alive at our homes).” Manish’s favourite activity is conversing with his son after a day’s work and going on vacations with Bhavnish and his family — high school topper daughter Akshra and wife Bindu Aggarwal. The family has recently travelled to Jibhi and Manali and earlier to Nainital and Kashmir.
Speaking on passing on the baton to other parents, Manish says, “Sensitivity on these issues begins from doctors themselves. These days they are diligent and aware, but in our times they weren’t. So we have held countless seminars and awareness sessions among medical professionals too. Even securing my son’s medical certificate was a chore. There are parents in our own area who hide their specially-abled wards and don’t take them out. We are trying to reach out to as many people as we can.” Manish adds, “My son cares about me much more than I can. When we are sick, he doesn’t leave our side. He’s my friend, companion and I take him everywhere. People love him. There’s no other way I’m meant to bring him up. That is what I would say to other parents.”
