Using art to mainstream children with special needs

A few weeks ago, she flagged off a walkathon for children with autism at the Besant Nagar beach by rendering a song. “I have known such children for the last 15 years and they are very gifted, especially when it comes to music. Many of my students teach them music, and it is something I am very happy to supervise,” says Jayashri.

“It is time we accepted that part of the society that we dismiss or ignore,” she adds. Pointing out that it is very easy for all of us to get on with our comfortable lives, Jayashri says special children enrich our lives. 

“We call them special, but honestly speaking, we do very little for these children who are gifted artistes, painters, musicians and poets,” she adds. “We all say improve green cover, plant more trees; we have walkathons for everything. But we do not do enough to bring special children into mainstream. We need to create that space for them in our daily lives,” says Jayashri. 

The musician is taking a step forward herself. On Saturday, under the auspices of her Hitham Trust, she is organising Sanmathi on July 29 at the Madras School of Economics. The by-invitation event is a forum to share the journey over the last few years, reaching out to children with autism, through the power of music. 

A number of speakers will share their experiences on working with children with autism, some of the work being done with other art forms, as well as their attempt to bring in technology in this space. 

Some of the speakers include theatre practitioner Dr Parasuram Ramamoorthi, artist and activist Raja Krishnamoorthy, and award-winning singer Kavitha Krishnamoorthy among others. Nature is pushing the envelope in its own way, feels Jayashri. 

“Autism is one way nature pushes the envelope on the brain. However, since a growing number of children are born with autism spectrum disorder, there is a need to engage in discussions on how art and music work wonders with such children,” she finishes.