The Autism Acceptance event held at Nehru Centre in the UK in 2023 was a unique initiative organised by the International Autistic & Complex Needs (IA&C), the I'm possible family, and the members of "Amrut" Patel Dughalaya.
The event aimed to raise awareness, encourage acceptance, education and struggles about autism and caring for individuals with different abilities.
Gita Chaudhary, the founder of IA&C & I'm possible family, led the event as a community leader, freelance autism consultant, and public speaker.
It began with a welcome speech by Yuvrajsinh Jadeja, a host and neuroscience student, followed by a beautiful, divine prayer in Sanskrit performed by Swathi Lakshmeesha and Lakshmi Rao. Various individuals showcased their talents during the multiskilled programme. Vidwan Pramod Rudrapatna Prasanna Kumar, the grandson of a renowned Veena Naestro Athana Vidwan in Mysor Palace, performed a mesmerising therapeutic Veenavadan (Veena performance). He was accompanied by Aniruddh on the tabla, who has been playing the instrument for 10 years and performing around the UK. Swathi accompanied her husband, Pramod, on Talam.
Pritesh, a talented singer with a passion for music and technology gadgets, sang the bhajan ‘Raghupati Raghav’ confidently. Vallabh, a 13-year-old drummer, performed ‘The Beatles - Come Together’ with great enthusiasm. Vallabh enjoys playing musical instruments, reading books about animals, history, and geography. Followed by Vijaiji speech about his talented son.
After the performances, the speakers were introduced by Ankita Chaudhary, the assistive coordinator of the event. Dr Steven Stagg, a senior lecturer and clinical psychologist, gave a speech titled "What is Autism Spectrum Disorder and Why Does it Matter?" He discussed the critical features of autism and shared research conducted with the British Indian community, effectively conveying complex messages with simplicity.
Fawzia Govender, the Head Teacher of an Autism Special School, delivered a honest speech on "The dilemma of bringing up an Autistic child," highlighting the challenges faced by families from identification to acceptance and diagnosis. Ms Govender drew from her 30 years of experience working with special needs parents, making her story relatable to all parents of neurodiverse children or adults.
Gita recognised the strengths of the event and announced plans for a Part-2 event in the future to meet the audience's desire for more knowledge about autism. A video was presented featuring Ishwar Sharma, a 13-year-old internationally recognised yoga prodigy and speaker who has won multiple awards, for Yoga, worldwide. Dr Saraswati Hosdurga introduced the Asian Autism movie called "Varnapatala" (The Spectrum), and S. Nair introduced Ira Gurukul, which provides a therapeutic environment and learning opportunities for autistic, and complex needs young people in heart of India.
The event concluded with the distribution of certificates to the participants by Mahant Mahamantradasji, Dr Stagg, and Ms Govender. Ms Chaudhari delivered the vote of thanks expressing gratitude to the Nehru Centre team members, the Indian High Commissioner, and everyone involved for their valuable participation. Special appreciation was given to Ramila Chaudhary and Narsih Chaudhary for their contribution in managing the technical aspects of the performances. Radhikaba and Jagdish Chaudhary captured the beautiful memories of the event through their cameras, ensuring that the rest of the world could watch and gain knowledge to spread awareness about different abilities.
