This article delves into Dr. Rao’s inspiring journey and the impact of Margika’s work towards societal change for special children in India.
Dr. Neena Rao’s life narrative is one of tenacity, fortitude, and compassion. Dr. Rao, a twenty-year veteran in the academic and development fields, gave up her work to care for her Asperger’s son. She left India due to a lack of resources and assistance and returned to the US, where her son’s health significantly improved. As a result of this experience, she established “Margika,” a nonprofit organisation in India that works to increase awareness of the need for mental health services for kids with disabilities. Margika works to reduce stigma surrounding special needs children and facilitate their integration into society through advocacy, training, education, and capacity building. This article explores Margika’s contribution to societal transformation for unique kids and Dr. Rao’s inspirational journey.
‘Margika’ for special children in India
Neena Rao’s journey from being a successful international academic and development professional for 20 years with a doctorate in environmental policies, to giving it all up for her boy with Asperger’s and founding ‘Margika’ to work towards mental health awareness and opening a network for Training & Capacity Building for the Care of Children with Mental and Developmental Disorders, is as exceptional as it is inspiring.
Neena and the inspiration behind starting Margika
It all started when twelve-year-old Harshvardhan Rao was unceremoniously suspended from his adept school and the family’s world fell apart. The helplessness Neena faced was compounded by the fact that she knew almost nothing about her child’s condition. Being unable to find proper facilities for her son, the family moved back to the US. There, her child’s health improved within months so much so that he received awards for being the most improved kid. It was then that Neena realized how Western countries are 15-20 years ahead of India regarding caring for kids with special needs. She then felt determined to bring in the best practices from around the world and spread awareness about child mental health care in India.
The guidance and learnings
Neuroscientist Dr. Matcheri Keshavan’s guidance, her training in leadership and mental health at NGO Sangath in Goa, and also her struggles and learnings as a mother of a special child helped her to launch Margrika in July 2017 to work in the education sector in Telangana, Maharashtra, Gujarat, and Assam.
Destigmatizing special children
Dedicated to raising awareness, empathy and destigmatizing special children, Margika provides advocacy, training, education, and capacity building to caregivers in order to include special children in the mainstream.
Response during the Covid-19 pandemic
“When COVID happened, we trained 800 special educators on how to take care of these children, the parents, even themselves, and their social and emotional regulation,” she recollects. And through these special educators, Margika reached out to 8000 special children and their families of the poorest strata of society through mobile phones during the lockdown. This was when the digital gap was increasing and the poorest had no access to laptops and smartphones to switch to online education.
Art and creativity for special-needs individuals
Neena affirms, “Art and creativity serve as a medium for special-needs individuals to express themselves and connect with their own emotions, helping them reduce their anxiety and stress.” During the Covid-19 pandemic, her team also organized a virtual talent show called ‘Meraki’ to boost the morale of the children. In October 2020, participants from across India, showcased music and dance performances and a digital exhibition of paintings, essays, and poetry.
‘Meraki’ – Margika’s virtual talent show
Meraki’ showcased the self-expression of individuals with special needs to allow the essence of their being to blossom. The entries received an overwhelming response with numerous attendees logging in from India, North America, and Europe to watch it. Spontaneous compliments abounded, thus adding to the joy and excitement of the children and their parents and teachers.
This inspired Neena to work on ‘Mindscapes: Canvas of Emotions in a Special World‘, India’s first coffee table book on autistic children’s artwork and heartfelt stories written by them and their caregivers. With a foreword by none other than the Dalai Lama, the beautifully designed and illustrated book, with colorful paintings and photographs interspersed with biographies and verses by Mumbai-based law student Palomi Vatsayan and Hyderabad-based special educator Afroze Fatima, is bound to be a hit with readers and will surely change their perception of special children.
India’s first coffee table book on autistic children’s artwork
In the first chapter titled ‘Art, Brain and Healing’ accompanied by sketches, Dr. Matcheri Keshavan, head of Harvard Medical School, explains how art is an effective tool to heal and for non-verbal expression. Chapters on care, strength, optimism, passion, and inspiration follow.
Mission to transform the lives of children
Neena Rao has one mission in mind. Transforming the lives of those children afflicted with mental and developmental disorders. She hopes to witness a huge shift in mainstream society’s mindset to ensure these children can progress from surviving to thriving in India.
(Copy Right @ India CSR)
