Community Leader Interview | Pranav Desai

How Can A Disadvantaged Individual Rise Above The Prejudice And Preconceived Notions About Their Abilities?

Last year, in the midst of the quarantine, I, like many others, longed for an escape from the repetitiveness. The days seemed to meld together into one, like a dream one wishes to escape from. I knew that I needed to do something to get back into the swing of daily life. With that single goal in mind, I started participating in art competitions.

One of these competitions was hosted by a non-profit organization named Voice of Specially-Abled People, VOSAP [1]. Based in California, this organization aims to redefine the meaning of a disabled individual. No longer called ‘disabled,’ but instead a person with the strength and fortitude far greater than any of us could ever imagine — specially-abled [2].

I tried out, creating a piece whose topic revolved around the term ‘disability’ for their art competition [3]. To my surprise, I had won the award of country representative [4]. Of course, this was alone, in and of itself, an exciting journey. And after doing a few interviews with the company, I bid them adieu and went on with life as school started once again.

That was nearly two years ago, yet I continue to stay in frequent contact with VOSAP.

Why? Well, though the prize may have been what enticed me to join in the first place, I stayed because of the people and relationships I had formed with this organization. I seldom see such talented and hardworking individuals working to further a cause that many may not think about when looking at non-profits.

As a result, I only saw it befitting for my community leader interview to be based around that of Mr. Pranav Desai, founder of VOSAP. After some emailing, a few weeks ago, I was blessed with the opportunity to interview him. Prior to the meeting, I had done some of my own research, hence I was already partly aware of his accomplishments. Despite all of this, however, I was awestruck at the individual who I was talking with. His challenges and story; his life and his impact. He had inspired me while doing the competition all those years ago, yes; but learning about his life only increased my fascination and drive to continue working with the organization.

This is the culmination of our interview, and I truly hope you will be as inspired as I was while writing this.

Born in India in 1969 to a “very education-focused family,” Desai started out his life as a fairly normal child. In the next few years, however, at the age of 3 and a half to four years old, the polio virus took over the muscle power in both of his legs. Desai notes that due to his young age at the time of the diagnosis, it did not result in “a huge adjustment [in his] life.”

But that is not to say that it did not have an impact on him at all.

Of course, like all fortunate children, the continuing-and-lasting prominence of school started to emerge into his life. Desai would soon “undergo a lot of challenges […] to get an admission in regular school.” Despite the fact that his disability had no physical bearing on his brain, he was prevented from going through this important event like the average individual. Luckily, due to the standing of his family within the community, he was able to “get admission [into] the first grade.” But, like the virus which took away much of his mobility, time too took away his ability to participate in kindergarten like any other child.

During his school years, Desai was tasked with demonstrating his ability to handle himself with normal students. He mentions the mental impact this had when he was younger, as he needed to “prove [himself] more than others.”

And so, he continued working.

Despite the challenges which faced Desai, he well more than proved himself to others. His ambition and drive carried him to being top of his classes. In post-secondary, he pursued a Master of Business Administration (MBA) Marketing course. However, despite his hard work and sacrifice, he could not pursue marketing or sales in India; his ability as an individual was doubted due to his disability.

Soon, after graduating, he moved to America, an action which changed more than just where he lived.

“I saw [how accessible America was,] and [the infrastructure] was far better […]. I could successfully go around the whole country on my own without any dependency.”

This revelation gave him an idea: the ability for change. If this change in accessibility could unlock his potential, what more for others? After all, India has a much larger population than America. So, it came with a massive ‘what if.’ What if he were to make India just as accessible? How many more individuals’ potentials would be unlocked?

“India needs much more accessibility; only 5% of places there are accessible.”

Armed with this new goal, Desai strove to incite change. Soon, with the aid of like-minded individuals, Desai founded VOSAP, a non-profit international organization which aims to re-define the meaning of disability. No longer are such individuals ‘disabled,’ but instead specially-abled with abilities, drive, and passion far beyond those who aren’t [2].


Despite the prejudice which Mr. Pranav Desai faced in his life, he continued to prove himself time and time again that he is more than capable to carry himself and his work. Though I may not face a disability myself, one does not need one to see his desire for change. He, much like many other specially-abled individuals, faced and subsequently climbed mountains to reach their goals. As of now, he balances both VOSAP’s activities and his own job at Nippon Telegraph and Telephone DATA (NTT DATA) as the Head of Sales of one business unit for all of North America and Mexico.

Of course, by itself, this is a tall order. No one man, specially-abled or not, could handle such a colossal task. That is where the thousands of volunteers come in; individuals with the passion to make a difference in the world.

“We are, right now, a family of 11,000 volunteers. It’s not me alone now. It is all of you. That is the purpose! I created this organization [for] a mass movement of like-minded individuals [to] institutionalize the vision I have so that it survives beyond me.”

Finally, this goes back to the question, how does an individual work past prejudice about their abilities? Desai’s answer: hard work and passion. You must prove to those who doubt you that you are so much more than just some stereotype; that you are an individual capable of doing great things. We cannot let a preconceived notion dictate what and who we are. I too share this sentiment and believe that this mantra should apply for everyone, specially-abled or not. After all, how do we break down these prejudices if we ourselves do not take a stand and prove who is truly ‘incapable’ on pure ability alone?

“It is important that [even] with disability, you cannot undermine [an individual’s] ability.” – Pranav Desai


For those who have difficulty reading for any reason, or you do not wish to read, please feel free to listen to the audio recording of this article below!

Picture taken from source [3].


 

Sources:

[1] “HOME.” Voice of SAP, 18 Aug. 2020, www.voiceofsap.org.

[2] “Vision and Mission.” Voice of SAP, 16 Aug. 2021, www.voiceofsap.org/vision.

[3] Indica. “Indian-American Launches Virtual Art Gallery on Disability.” Indica News, 6 Dec. 2020, indicanews.com/2020/12/06/indian-american-launches-virtual-art-gallery-on-disability.

[4] “Congratulations!” Voice of SAP, 24 Dec. 2020, www.voiceofsap.org/congratulations.

Final In-Depth Post 2021

Hello TALONS students and families! My name is Jazmine Cabaluna and thank you for coming to my 2021 In-Depth post for tonight! For this year, much like last. my In-Depth is coloured pencil drawing. Despite having to juggle more work than last year, I’ve had a ton of fun improving and working with the medium. Below showcases a few of the pieces I made that I feel exhibits my growth throughout my journey , along with some short background information behind them! Note that some of these have already been showcased in previous posts; however, I felt that it was important they’d be shown again to add more background on the pieces. I hope you like it!

 


 

This was drawn for an art competition focusing on the theme of empowerment of specially abled people. The subject is a complex one, so I did not want to focus on one disability. I ended up drawing this piece, with different disabilities and colours to represent variety. I ended up becoming a winner in the “Country Representative” Category and had this piece showcased in an online gallery.

Though already shown in a previous post, I wanted to re-highlight this image as I believe it shows the growth I exhibited this year in terms of blending colours together. This was something that I struggled a lot with last year, and so I’m happy to be able to showcase a piece that is composed entirely of it!

 

The main challenge I set for myself when beginning In-Depth this year was to be able to draw a realistic human face by the end of it. This was my attempt, a portrait of my grandparents. Though I wouldn’t call it realistic by any definition of the word, I would consider it a pretty good, truly-first attempt!

 

Though I did show this piece in my first 2021 post that featured drawings, I wanted to showcase it again one final time. This was my first finished drawing of In-Depth 2021, signaling the start of my final year in the project. Though I would not call this piece my best, it definitely was one of my favorite to draw. More information on this drawing can be found here. In-Depth was an incredibly fun project to work on, and I am so happy to have been able to work on it these past couple years.

 


 

Thank you so much for having a look through my In-Depth for 2021! This project is very near and dear to my heart, so I had a lot of fun working on it! Feel free to ask any questions about my art or the project as a whole in the comments below. Have a good night!

In-Depth Post #6

Hello again everyone! Happy Friday!

Well, this is my last In-Depth post before the final showcase post! Before I show what I’ve finished this past month, I will first talk about what I did with my mentor as well as how I believe my learning center will be going!

Over the past few weeks, my mentor and I have been meeting to continue working on my art. During our meetings, and after comparing them to De Bono’s book, I found that there were some “concepts” that were noted. For instance, when choosing what kind of topics I should draw, we come up with concepts. An example of this is the concept of “adventure”. The word itself is not a “practical idea,” like De Bono states (P.108). It is a concept. From the word “adventure,” I come up with practical ideas like “biking” or “nature.” Now that I have a few key practical ideas, I can make an art piece from it! This piece will be below, but next I’ll be moving onto another topic that De Bono states: alternatives!

Alternatives, are, as the name suggests, a different possibility that you could work into your project. As De Bono states, they “are the opposite of rigidity” as being unwilling to look for alternatives “indicates a very rigid mind that does not seek a […] better way of doing things” (P. 121).  He also states that alternatives provide “progress, energy, change, improvement, and simplification” (P. 122). In terms of my In-Depth, my mentor provided many different alternatives when it came to my art. One example, as seen in my art below, I was struggling with drawing trees. More specifically, tree leaves. As my mentor understood that I was getting tired of my art, he suggested the alternative of just making simple circles and blending them into the drawing for the leaves. Of course, it would decrease the overall detail in the plants, however, it would be a viable alternative to instead learning about drawing details in the short amount of time that I have. I took his alternative in, and I made it work to the best of my ability in the drawing!

Finally, I’ll be moving onto my idea for my learning center. I believe I will be doing what I did last year: a museum-style blog where I will showcase my different artworks along with some background on each of the pieces. I felt this worked quite well last year, as not only was it more simple than my other ideas, but it was also much easier for a reader to go through! I’m going to focus on the different topics that my mentor taught me throughout the past months. In order to display this, I want to be able to give a brief description of the technique/topic with one of my art pieces which I feel shows it the best (if applicable). I hope the audience will be able to learn from my posts and, hopefully, apply the techniques to my their own art. Finally, I believe that the museum-style blog post gives the audience enough interactivity. They have the ability to scroll through as quickly or as slowly as they wish when moving through my blog.

Well, thank you all for following me on my 2021 In-Depth journey! I hope to see you all for the final post of 2021!

 

Here is the piece that I decided to make after using the concept of “adventure.” I also, like mentioned above, tried my mentor’s alternative of drawing the trees using simple circles.

Since I felt unsatisfied with the way I drew the previous drawing’s trees, I decided to try and make a drawing where the trees still look, at the very least, more realistic in comparison! This is what I came up with!

In-Depth Post #5

It’s that day again: in-depth time! These past few weeks I have been quite busy with homework, however, I have managed to finish one of my projects just in time for this post! However, before I get to that, let me first talk about the meetings I’ve had with my mentor and how it relates to De Bono’s topic: The Six Hats.

The Six Hats in De Bono’s book goes as follows. Note that all of this information can be found on pages 92-101 of How to Have a Beautiful Mind.

  • White hat: information. This can be “hard facts, which can be checked” or “soft information, like rumours and personal experience”
  • Red hat: emotions, feelings and intuitions
  • Black hat: critical thinking. Can also be associated with “risk assessment”
  • Yellow hat: values, benefits, and why somthing should work. As De Bono states, the black hat “points out all the dangers and disadvantages of the idea” while the yellow hat is “[finding] values” in those points.
  • Green hat: asks for ideas, alternatives, possibilities, and designs
  • Blue hat: conductor of the orchestra; overviews and organizes the other hats

After going through all the hats, as well as reflecting on meetings I’ve had with my mentor, I see that our conversations seem to revolve around only a few. Many are rarely utilized or not even used at all. For instance, we both use the white hat, the black hat, and the green hat most during our conversations. This revelation fits with De Bono’s book as he states that the black hat “is the most used […] in normal behavior” (p.95). Additionally, it makes sense for the other hats to have been used in the context of a meeting. During our meetings, I tend to use the green hat most as I try to ask for ideas and possibilities to improve on my art. For instance, one of my questions during a meeting was “are there any techniques you want me to use more?”. My mentor then proceeded to use the white hat, as he answered that I “should [use] ‘scumbling’ more”. At the time, I did not know what scumbling was and so I used green hat again and asked for clarification. He then, again, used white hat and told me that scumbling was a technique where “you make continuous circles on the paper without lifting your pencil”. This is when I started using black hat, as since I had no prior experience with the technique, I was hesitant to use it on my art. Like De Bono states, the black hat “stops us from doing things that are wrong, illegal, or dangerous” (p.96). This is when I started using yellow hat, which is probably the only time I did use it in the last few weeks. I started seeing value in the technique. I started to look at pictures which used it and became excited at the prospect of working with a new way of blending. I “[found] value” (p.97).

Of course, like I said, there were some hats that I did not use at all. For example, I did not use the blue hat during my meetings. Unfortunately, I did not spend time “[organizing] the other hats and [organizing] the thinking” (p.101). However, this is not to say that I don’t see any value in this hat. On the contrary! The blue hat is incredibly useful and, in hindsight, it would have been useful to have used it at the time so I could’ve organize my meetings better.

Thank you for reading through my blogpost! Here’s my new art:

During these past few weeks, I was really just craving a piece that  focused on blending. I did not want to spend much time thinking about structure, but instead focusing on just letting the pencils flow on the page with one another.

 

In-Depth Post #4

Happy Friday everyone! Since there hasn’t been too much homework these last few weeks, I have been able to work on In-Depth quite a bit! In addition to this, I have been meeting with my mentor a lot as well!

My mentor, due to his experience, has given me a lot of advice regarding my art. As such, I’ve had a few questions. Like De Bono states, “[questions] allow for further exploration” and “clarification of any misunderstandings”, and so I try to ask questions when I feel confused or want to dive deeper into his content (p. 72). For instance, my mentor gave me the advice to “try and use more complimentary colours in your work”. I had forgotten what the complimentary colours were, and so I asked for some clarification in the advice. He then proceeded to educate me on how different pairs and shades of colours will make the artwork more “pleasing to look at”, and afterwards I implemented it into my work. After asking the question and executing it into my work, I can fully agree that the use of these colours really help the piece pop. I also took some time to ask questions like “what piece of advice regarding art do you think is most important?”, which gave me the opportunity to get a truly opinion-based answer that I can use on my work. As for the answer, my mentor told me that “the first layer of the artwork is the most important as every other layer is based off it”, and so I decided to spend more time working on bases rather than rushing through.

Although I did have questions, they were few and far between. I am more of a listener, and so I pay attention to his lessons rather than interrupt them with questions. After all, I can ask the questions after the lecture, so I might as well let him speak just in case he answers it in his presentations. Like De Bono mentions in his book, “if you listen carefully and attentively you will get more value from listening than from talking”, which I fully agree with (p. 69). For instance, during a meeting, my mentor told me how “the outlines [in your art] are just as important as the parts inside of them”. I knew what he meant and agreed with him on his stance, and so I attempted to implement it more into a future piece.

Thank you for reading my post and I hope you enjoy the art I’ve made! See you next week!

I wanted to create a piece focusing on the fearlessness of front-line workers during the pandemic.
I am currently working on a character design piece. I had recently bought a new set of Prismacolor pencils and noticed I had a lot of extra purple pencils, and so I decided to put them to good use.

 

 

 

 

In-Depth Post #3

Hello again everyone! For the past few weeks, I finally managed to finish up one of my projects and start blending together another. But, before I get to that, I want to talk about why I chose coloured pencils to be my In-Depth again for this year.

For my whole life, despite me enjoying art, I never really enjoyed working with the majority of mediums I tried. My interest with charcoal never grew past the initial trying phase, and painting didn’t really stick with me. However, through all these mediums, coloured pencils stood out from the rest. I loved the colour they managed to put on the page, and unlike painting, you didn’t need to spend time waiting for the art to dry to continue. As such, they became my favourite medium to work with. My only main dislike with coloured pencils is how long they take to layer and blend, but I got used to it overtime.

My mentor, on the other hand, found painting to be his preferred medium when it comes to art. He was actually who got me into painting when I was younger. However, like I said, I grew out of it and ended up favouring coloured pencils overall. He gave me some tips when it came to blending or just colouring in general and I talked about about the medium in general. Nevertheless, art was what connected the two of us together, and my dad’s passion for it rubbed off on me.

I have been asked by some peers about coloured pencil tips and whether or not they should try it out. In my opinion, if you’re looking into getting more versed in art, I really suggest trying coloured pencils out, even if just for a short while. A good set of pencils (I suggest Prismacolour) can really make your art pop. Again, just be mindful about how long you’re willing to spend on your art, as they do take quite a while to successfully blend together.

Thank you for reading my post and here’s the art I’ve been working on!

 

I wanted to make a piece that focused on environmental activism and how by incorporating small changes in our lives, we can drastically reduce pollution levels all around the globe. For instance, this drawing talks about how by simply using a reusable waterbottle, we can lessen the amount of plastic pollution in oceans.

 

I’m currently working on a piece focusing on frontline workers during the Covid-19 pandemic. Hopefully, I can finish this for next post!

 

In-Depth Post #2

Happy Friday everyone! Despite the massive influx of homework due to the ending quarter, I still managed to find time to work on In-Depth. As of right now, my art is still in its layering/blending phase. I hope to be able to get final pictures out for next blog post!

While working on my art at home, my mentor, my father, has given me many tips on how to improve. Much of this advice I accepted, or at the very least, managed find a compromise with him. However, there were times where I disagreed with him. For instance, while in the process of colouring a sunset, I was told to spend more time blending in the colours for a cleaner picture before moving on. At the time, I was already quickly moving into colouring in other parts of the picture. I took his advice, albeit I was not looking forward to spending more time on the art as I was getting tired of it (that tends to happen after working on a singular piece for a while). However, while it did take more time to layer and blend the colours for the sunset, I am finding that adding that extra smoothness to the picture really helps make it pop. In another instance, I found that the perspective in the piece was off. I asked my mentor for help, to which he sat down with me to help figure out the problem. He gave me a few tips on how to remedy incorrect angles, such as using rulers to find converging points and taking real world objects and rotating them for reference. However, I still thought that the picture was off. After debating with him for a while, in addition to using the tools he gave me, we managed to find a compromise that satisfied both of our thoughts! Finally, there was a moment where my mentor told me to add another subject to a picture. He noted how it would help give the picture more depth and keep the viewer interested for longer. Despite his points, I still had to disagree with him due to the previously mentioned large amount of homework coming in; I just did not have the time.

Overall, I found the last few weeks to have been quite successful! I hope to be able to make more art once homework decreases. Right now, I just want to have a break from art to spend some time doing other tasks. Thank you for reading!

 

Career Life Education – The Business Side of Things

I have always had an interest in creating and managing my own business, and as such, I decided that I would interview someone who has vast experience in that field. I was fortunate enough to be able to conduct an interview with Mrs. Rochelle Lee, one of the owners of two businesses located in the Coquitlam area. Mrs. Lee, formerly referred to as Ma’am by her students, runs the company with her husband, who also teaches their ever-growing athletics classes and childcare. I felt that they would be the best people to interview due to their years of experience, and I was even lucky enough to be their student in the past (sadly it was cut short due the pandemic). Because of this, I will be referring to Mrs. Lee as Ma’am for this assignment, as students would refer to her as such (it was only fitting!).

During the interview, after asking her how she got into the field, I learned that Ma’am always had a passion in teaching. During some of my own prior research, as well as being mentioned in the interview, I realized that, in Ma’am’s words, “finding that particular something” was essential when organizing a business. Passion goes a long way to any business owner, and it is completely necessary to take it into account when choosing it as an occupation. Ma’am told me how, despite having a desire in teaching children and youth, she did not find the classroom setting relatively appealing. Instead, she wanted to give students the space to “learn to be better citizens” while also giving them a chance to improve athletically, hence why she chose to teach in a gym rather than a typical classroom.

As I continued, I switched to more general questions relating to operating a business, such as skills that are vital to owning one. Ma’am mentioned how important it is to know yourself; to know your capabilities, strengths, weaknesses, and everything in between. You have to know your limits and not beat yourself up over mistakes. Being able to step away when things don’t go the right way is crucial in any occupation, not just being a business owner. You have to know when to take breaks and how to relax, where Ma’am even suggested taking some time to meditate.

Finally, I learned how truly important planning is when it comes to being a business owner. Ma’am suggested to not only plan for future events, but having a daily plan as well. Not only does preparation help manage your time, but it also gives you the motivation to work harder. She mentioned how it is better to “work smarter, not harder”, and that’s something that I fully agree with. This is especially true for Ma’am and her husband, as not only do they need to juggle two separate businesses, but also a family of four. Time-management, something she’s “still trying to learn” is an incredibly important skill for anyone in any type of job.

I could not have picked a better person to interview for this assignment, and so I am thankful for her taking the time in her busy schedule to sit down with me! Ma’am and Sir are an incredibly hardworking couple who continue to inspire the children they teach on a daily basis. Hopefully, I can come back soon once it is safer to do so, but until then, I wish them the best in all their endeavors!

In-Depth 2021 Introductory Post

Hello there!

My name is Jazmine and my In-Depth project for this year will be about Visual Arts! Specifically, I chose to focus on improving my coloured pencil drawing skills. I chose this because I want to improve on my art skills as well as learn new techniques and get more variety when it comes to the materials that I use. However, that said, I specifically chose this medium as it has been a long-standing passion of mine. Though I did choose the same topic as last year, I want to continue to diversify my knowledge on different materials.

Due to Covid, I decided my mentor will be my father, Eugene Cabaluna. He has had experience in many mediums and styles in visual arts throughout his non-professional career. For instance, currently, he is focused on sculpting. Even though it may not be the same medium as me, watching what he does can be very beneficial to my project. For example, by closely examining his sculptures, I can gain a better understanding of proportions as well as working with perspective in general (as his sculptures are a physical item that I can rotate around in any way I wish). I hope, by the end of this year, I will have applied some of his techniques and advice to my art for the long run. Fortunately, he frequently changes whatever medium he works with, so I will be able to see and apply a multitude of different techniques and styles.

I will be doing the whole In-Depth project throughout the months of January to May. Throughout this span of time, I will be having weekly meetings with my mentor accompanied with the mandatory biweekly blog posts. I cannot wait to start work on my In-Depth for this year and I hope to see you all throughout my journey!

Corazon Aquino – Eminent Learning Center 2020

Good afternoon everyone! My name is Cory Aquino and welcome to a learning center made for Eminent 2020 by a student at Gleneagle Secondary. They, for some reason, decided to present a fictitious “newspaper” that was made after my passing. I hope that you will be able to learn about my life, death, and legacy in this strange, yet somewhat endearing way. Thank you for taking your time to learn more about my life and I hope you find it, at least, somewhat interesting.


Please note that in order for the True Newspaper Simulation, you will need to download the PowerPoint (info on how to use on the actual PowerPoint). If you do not want to download an entire PowerPoint, a non-interactive version of the slides will be down below. Have fun and thank you for visiting!


Downloadable Powerpoint link: Newspaper


Non-Interactive Newspaper: