Shazia Masood
Arwa Imtiyaz, 17, works as a translator for deaf and dumb people. Arwa is a class 11th student who is born and brought up in the outskirts of Srinagar.
She is serving the deaf and dumb people by converting their thoughts into sounds. She got this idea from her mother, Rehana who is also deaf and mute. “ My mother, uncle, and aunt is also deaf and dumb, Arwa said. In my childhood, I wasn’t able to communicate with my mother but when I grew up I learned this technique from my uncle who is also deaf and dumb.”
As Mark Twain says, “Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see.” Arwa’s social work at this young age is a show in itself. She not only translates their signs but also plays an important role to make them happy.
“The happiness on the faces of those deaf and mute persons keeps me motivated and i will fight for their rights and I wish to serve them throughout my life, she said.”
Arwa belongs to a poor family. But she knows how to keep her dreams alive. She wants to become a Doctor in her life. But due to her birth in a poor family, she finds it difficult but not impossible. Her education was a cause that her parents were not happy with her social work.
“At the beginning, there was some sort of annoyance from my parents over my work. But gradually they too understood and supported me throughout this journey, Arwa said .”
It has been four years since she started this social work. She is serving the people, not for any reward. But for the happiness of those who are being treated as a left out section of society. “ Sometimes I had to fight with their parents for sending them to tournaments, she said.”
Arwa gives voice to those who are voiceless. There are around 200 people associated with the All Jammu and Kashmir Sports Association of the deaf. She has accompanied them to tournaments like Ranchi, Delhi, and many other places across the country. ”I accompany this team everywhere they go, said Arwa.”
