something just close your eyes close
your eyes now pull out your smartphone’s
pull them out and I want you to now text
somebody back home that you are having a
wonderful morning today difficult okay
you know it’s very rude not to respond
to a greeting in our culture this is
just to give you a taste of what
exclusion feels like now I want to ask
you guys a few questions for which I
want a yes or a no answer do you guys
enjoy going to a local coffee shop with
your special someone do you enjoy going
out for a movie to watch your favorite
film do you go out do you like going out
to a bar to have a celebration do you
like going out on a vacation with your
family great you should know that a
hundred million people in India find all
of this extremely challenging because of
inaccessible instead of infrastructure
yes I mean hundred million people with
disabilities in India don’t get to go
into a coffee shop with their special
someone because their menu cards are not
printed in Braille they don’t get to go
into a theater to watch their favorite
film because it has no ramps and they
don’t get to go into a bar because
there’s a skepticism around it we don’t
often think about this this way but at
some point or the other in their lives
they feel excluded from society we live
in a world where almost everything seems
to be getting divided cultures and
religion is dividing mindsets and
countries are dividing people we started
this concept called social spaces where
we give an opportunity for people to
come together on an inclusive in a fully
inclusive platform to get to know one
another and here we have necessary ramps
fully wheelchair accessible spaces
accessible washrooms and sign language
interpreters who not only interpret the
entire meet up but also interpret music
to the hearing-impaired let me show you
when we started social spaces last year
we had five people who attended our
meetup here in Gurgaon today we have at
least 80 200 people that come in every
single time it’s a year and about 20
meters later we bring together the
largest community of people with
disabilities with over 10,000 people
from 80 plus cities now you may think
that this meetup is only for people with
disabilities but let me tell you that
this is an inclusive platform where
people without disabilities have as much
fun or even more from from beaches to
public parks to bars to cafes to hotels
we have explored it all and what’s even
better is we do things like stand-up
comedy like band performances like
storytelling like karaoke like like
movie screenings we create this
environment which makes you feel there’s
a feeling of oneness and those feeling
of belongingness now my three takeaways
from from my perspective of in this
company when you’re designed for people
persons with disability you designs do
design for all you may have a temporary
in jail
and this is for you when you can’t walk
up the stairs you may have a child and
you may want to take it around on your
pram this is for you and when you grow
old you may lose your sight this is also
for you awareness isn’t enough demand
for inclusivity inclusivity is the need
of the art this is the only way that
mankind can move forward with the aim of
having a hundred social spaces
this year we insist that every venue has
necessary ramps sinuses and interpreters
this is the only way that people tend to
see that this makes not only economic
not only social but also economical
sense one out of ten in India face a
disability just look around you imagine
if one out of ten around you in your
friend or family circle met with an
accident and had to face a disability
would you treat them any different this
is a great opportunity and it gives them
opportunity give them an excuse to talk
to each others who they have not been
talking otherwise you never know which
conversation can lead to a relationship
and marriage and the great life ahead
metella is Hana rostocki before the knee
measured mahjong methodical external
agent Craner in a poke the lefty of KISS
program men agree to this comment
regeneration of Emil negativity man may
our children have been messing with this
thing where they could date they could
meet a partner or did you just go about
it boys and girls
not only a person with the opposite sex
technique the same sex as well this help
is actually helping them to come out of
their own shelters own shells and also
helping parents to remove their things
[Music]
the apps like this that can let them
know people from the comfort of their
homes and they can meet them only when
they know who they are I mean this is
something that the people must want to
know so the awareness has to be spread
[Music]
it is my wish that we cultivate this
mindset for inclusivity because like I
said it is the only way to move forward
and like Martin Luther King puts it one
does not start living until he comes out
of his confines of his narrow
individualistic concerns to a broader
one of all of humanity thank you [Applause]