Tenor Singer
Visual impairment : blind at twelve years
Born : September 22, 1958
Bocelli was born with an inherited form of glaucoma, which only got worse as he aged. When he was twelve years old, he was hit with a soccer ball and went completely blind. The traditions of the region, and the strong influence of his parents who taught their son never to simply accept defeat, rather to draw strength from it, have left indelible impressions on the man.
Ballet Dancer
Visual impairment : Due to retinal detachment
Born : December 21, 1921
One of the most outstanding ballet dancers, Alicia Alonso from Cuba is a recipient of the Prix Benois de la Danse (Prize Benois of the Dance) lifetime achievement for devoting her entire life to artistic contributions. She may be well past her retirement age but is a much sought after dancer even today.
Composer / Pianist
Visual impairment : Blind since birth
Born : 4 July, 1909
Alec Templeton was born in Cardiff, Wales (UK) and was blessed with absolute pitch. He began his musical studies at an early age in his hometown and later studied at the London Academy of Music. At 18, he composed "Trio for flute, oboe and piano" for which he was complimented by Ralph Vaughan Williams.
Blues singer
Visual impairment : Blind since birth
Date of Birth : August 16, 1915
Hibbler was a very popular baritone singer in the 40's and 50's who rose to fame with the Duke Ellington band. His deep tone, distinctive phrasing and inflections were readily identifiable.
Esref Armagan
Artist
“No one can call me blind. I can see more with my fingers than most sighted people do with their eyes” This is what Esref Armagan says about himself, and rightly so.
Artist
Visual impairment : Vasculitis
Born: 1948
The mind’s eye is something we have all heard of. Lisa Fittipaldi goes on to show us what it really is. Lisa is an incredible artist who began to paint only after she lost her sight.
It all started when her husband thrust a child’s watercolour box on her so she could get over her depression and stress that had overpowered her when she learnt her loss of sight was permanent.
Writer
Nature of visual impairment: Went blind at three years
Born: 21 March, 1934
Ved (Prakash) Mehta, the fifth of seven children and second son of Doctor Amolak Ram Mehta and Shanti (Mehra) Mehta, was born in Lahore, in the Punjab, then in British India, and now in Pakistan.
Actor, singer, author, producer
Visual impairment: Blind due to oxygen oversupply during incubation at birth
Born: 27 March 1947 in Boston, Massachusetts, USA
"Any negative can be turned into positive." This is one of the many "Sullivan's Rules". As an actor, singer, author, producer and motivational speaker, he empowers those around him with his lifelong commitment to achieve.
Born prematurely, Tom was administered an over dose of oxygen while in the incubator. Tom lost his eyesight. But, he never allowed blindness to restrict his way of life.
Business and Entrepreneurship
Visual impairment: Retinitis pigmentosa
Born: April 4, 1969
"My struggle and impediments in life came more from my family than the outside world,” says Vikram Dalmia. A successful entrepreneur and cricketer, he had to fight attitudinal barriers within his family to make a mark for himself. His conviction proved him right.
Entrepreneur
Visual impairment : Became blind at 28 years due to an accident
On December 28, 1990, Siddharth was 24-and-a-half-years old. Enthusiastic about a fast paced environment at Fascination India, he was enjoying every moment. His life changed forever that night in a motorcycle accident. He lost vision in both eyes. However, he did not let that come in the way of his growth as an individual.
Professional
Visual impairment : Blinded by an accident
He had always wanted to be a microbiologist. “My parents wanted me to do medicine so they encouraged me to apply and I got a seat,” he remembers. “After completing medicine, I went back to Microbiology, but the only difference being that now it is Medical Microbiology and not Industrial Microbiology.”
Business and Professionals
Born: July 12, 1951
Visual impairment : Lost eyesight at the age of four following a cataract operation
"Its all in my brain, whether it’s account-keeping, recruitment or staff management”, says Shivaji Laxman Chavhan who does not use any computer or any software; his high-powered concentration, memory and insight give him the necessary skills to run his travel business.
Banking professional and social entrepreneur
Blind: From birth
An old Japanese proverb says, "Fall seven times, stand up the eight". Paul Mudda has certainly stood up several times. But for him the falls were twice as painful. Grappling with being visually challenged as well as coping with the trauma of being an orphan is a daunting prospect. Yet Paul has overcome every hurdle in life and stands today as an epitome of inspiration.
Professional
Visual impairment : Born with visual impairment
In 1988, Nafisa Shikari became Manager and Corporate Dealer at the Central Bank in Mumbai. Till date, she executes ready and forward transactions, advises her customers on hedging their exposures and coordinates with the bank's International Division to arrange foreign currency loans for her clients. Apart from this she also handles the submission of R-returns, a fortnightly statement of all the sales and purchases of foreign currencies of her branch, to the RBI.
Business and Entrepreneurship
Visual impairment: Blind since ten years of age
Born: January 7, 1950
"You can't be more than what you have unless you become more than what you are. It is worse not to have a vision than being a blind" - K. Ramakrishna
Professional
Visual impairment: Retinitis Pigmentosa
Jyotindra V. Mehta was born in a middle class family in Bhavnagar, Gujarat. His visual impairment due to retinitis pigmentosa was a big shock to his family. However, they overcame their anguish and life carried on. Mr. Mehta attended the National High School in Ahmedabad . He was a bright student and Maths, Science and Sanskrit were his favourite subjects. But he was denied studying the first two because of his visual impairment.
Visual impairment: Blind since birth
Born: April 16, 1978
Making it in life with the right approach and attitude
“Everywhere you go, there are problems, it is how you handle them” says, Heeru Chandnani. For Heeru, her disability is almost a non-issue; it’s all about being comfortable and making others comfortable about your disability. Her positive attitude and practical approach has enabled her to achieve success in whatever she chose to do in life.
Professional
Visual impairment : Retinitis pigmentosa
Born: December 30, 1958
He manages two businesses in Kolkata, is the author of several well-known books, and has been honoured with several awards. He is also India 's first visually impaired chartered accountant. Meet Dilip Loyalka, a self-made man.
Visual impairment: Retinitis pigmentosa
Dr. Ashwini Kumar Agarwal is a specialist in banking, and has worked as the Director, National Association for the Blind (NAB), Delhi from 1999-2004.
Visual impairment: Became blind at 15 years
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