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roman

roman
kalaivanan , puducherry

Mid shot of Roman Kalaivanan (21) in a sky-blue T-shirt next to a rose bush. The plant has light pink roses. Roman has an angular face, prominent ears and front teeth, cropped black hair and a moustache. He is bending forward and fingering the stem of a rose. To the right there is an iron gate painted blue.
Roman, wearing navy blue slim-fit jeans, a sky-blue T-shirt and light blue rubber slippers, is squatting on his haunches next to a cow. The beige-coloured cow has curly horns. There is a small heap of straw in front of it. Roman has placed his right hand on the cow’s face, between the eyes.
Roman, wearing brown shorts and a camouflage-pattern T-shirt, is sitting cross-legged on a plain, unfurnished sofa with a seat and back of varnished, broad wooden slats. He is writing in a thick notebook with a pen. In front of the book there is a blue knapsack. Behind him there is a pillow and an untidy pile of clothes. The wall behind the sofa is olive-green.
Side view of Roman, wearing a white shirt, sitting in front of a desktop computer placed on a plain table made of beige wood. His left hand rests on the side of the black keyboard and his right hand is operating a black mouse. He appears to be sitting in a room built of aluminium. Aluminium arches supported on aluminium poles span the room. Behind him there is a bench with an aluminium frame and wooden seat. Behind the table there is a pedestal fan switched on, with cream blades whirring. Next to the fan there is an aluminium bookcase with glass panes. A blue signboard saying EQUALLYABLE DIGITAL ACDEMY in block letters hangs on the aluminium wall behind the fan.
Mid shot of a beaming Roman, in a white shirt, displaying the face of a mobile held in his right hand and pointing towards it with his left forefinger and raised thumb. The backdrop has blocks of light blue and yellow. Just behind Roman’s head it says MAKE in black capitals enclosed in a black rectangle. Above it, on a circular white background, there is a grey logo next to DEF in grey capitals. Below DEF it says in red upper-lower case, Digital Empowerment Foundation.
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“I want more people to know about my digital talent”

Roman is an unusual name for a baby but when a friend of the family suggested it, his parents embraced it. (The same friend suggested the name Ruken for their younger son.) Roman, who is now 21, certainly turned out to be an unusual individual.
 
At the time of his birth the family lived with his grandparents in Karuvadikuppam, 8 km from Puducherry (Pondicherry). Kalaivanan (50) is a mason and Vasanthi (48) a housewife. The couple sensed that “something was wrong” with Roman but only found out later that he had Cerebral Palsy (CP) and a mild intellectual disability. (CP is a neurological disorder leading to limitation or loss of function and mobility.) 
 
Roman was a student at Queen Mary’s School in Puducherry till Class 4 and joined Vijayanjali School from Class 5 till Class 10. At school, his teachers treated him well but the other students would occasionally tease him for his disability. That, however, did not deter Roman, who says that he would not take to heart or feel dejected by the taunts of his schoolmates. This positive spirit is Roman’s armour that helps him navigate life with supreme self-confidence.
 
Roman says that he would understand the subjects taught at school, but his physical impairment impacted his writing skills and resulted in his scoring low marks. Presuming that their son could not cope with academics, Vasanthi and Kalaivanan wanted him to discontinue school after Class 9 but Roman was keen to continue his studies. With his teacher’s support he convinced his parents to allow him to complete high school. His request for a scribe to write the Grade 10 exam was accepted. He credits his principal Ilangovan and headmaster Suresh of Vijayanjali School for believing in him and providing the support he needed.
 
Satya Special School in Puducherry was founded in 2003 to empower children with special needs and lead the way toward inclusion in education. Roman joined Satya in 2016 and learned data entry. “I loved it,” he says. “I enjoyed working on a computer.” This affinity for computers would take him to new and exciting territory and once again, there were teachers who showed him the way.
 
With the help of Satya’s director Ms Chitra Shah and head of program management Mr P. Kamala Kannan, Roman enrolled for a web design course at Swami Vivekananda Rural Community College in Ganapathichettykulam. Meanwhile, guided by Nirmala, a teacher at Satya, Roman started visiting Makerspace twice a week.
 
Makerspace is a collaborative workspace for children and adults who wish to learn critical skills in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) fields. Its co-ordinator Sarguru Thirumoolar says, “I met Roman in December 2021. He was keen to learn Graphics Design and used to travel up and down more than 21 km to our centre. He used to stay here the whole day and work on the computer to improve his skills. Putting aside his challenges, he loves to interact and learn from others and teach children.” Concerned over his long commute, the Makerspace team allowed him to use the computer at the Digital Empowerment Foundation (DEF) office in Kuilapalayam near his home – he lives with his parents and Ruken in Edayanchavadi. He goes to DEF daily on his electric scooter which he bought through a bank loan.
 
While at Satya, Roman had registered at the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) and attempted the Grade 12 exam. He passed in four subjects – Data, Home Science, Painting and English – in two attempts, and is yet to clear Business Studies.
 
Roman designs brochures for Makerspace and invitations and birthday greetings when needed. “I am very keen to own a digital design outlet and will set it up once I learn more about graphic design,” he says. In his spare time, he waters a large garden in a private guest house near his home. He also has learned mushroom culture.
 
“Roman is passionate about life and has a keen desire to learn. His challenges do not deter him and he is confident of making a name for himself,” says Sarguru, his mentor. Roman says he wants people in Puducherry and the surrounding towns to be aware of his digital talent and talk about it. 

Photos:

Vicky Roy

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