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Mother in shock, neighbours grieve
A pall of gloom descended on Muthumariaman Koil Street in Kotturpuram on Wednesday, as the news of the death of 26-year-old Praveen Kumar, a young man with a learning disability, reached his family and the neighbourhood where he was loved by all.
By
migrator
migrator
Chennai
Stating that there was nobody in the vicinity who did not know Praveen, his neighbour Venkat (name changed) said, “He would always wave to all the uncles, aunties , akkas and annas. He was known for his friendliness and loving nature. We cannot imagine not seeing that happy, smiling face asking us what we were up to.” Filled with shock and unable to comprehend this loss, his mother Vijaylakshmi M kept repeating ‘my son is dead.’
“Anybody who went to visit her was welcomed with the same question: ‘Do you know my son is dead?’ She is in shock,” said Meenakshi K, a resident of the area. Describing him as very hardworking, she said, “Though he was disabled like his older brother and younger sister, he would help his mother with her chores.
We would see him happily accompanying her to the shop to buy the groceries and to fetch water. He was always very happy. His disability was not very evident when one meets him, as he was talkative and loved to mingle with those he is familiar with.”
Fluent in Tamil, he could also speak a few English words and phrases that he picked up from the television or from conversations he overheard. “He would always say ‘I love you’, and pretend to talk on the phone with his toy mobile phone. He loved watching TV and would make it a point to come to our house every single day after work to sit with us and watch TV. He would laugh at all the jokes he understood from the serials,” said Karthik Loginathan, another one of his neighbour.
“After he returned from work at around 7 pm every day, he would freshen up, put on a pair of shorts and walk into our house to watch TV. He would join us for dinner and would eat anything put in front of him. He loved to eat,” he added.
The police had called for the identification of a body they thought was Praveen’s, and his father K Manavalan confirmed it after he returned from Sabarimala on Wednesday morning.
It was Manavalan, a Postal Department staff, who would drop him for work at Savera Hotel every morning. But after he left for Sabarimala pilgrimage, his mother has been doing it for the past few days. “Consumed by guilt over his death, his mother is blaming herself,” said Karthik.
We will miss Praveen, say his co-workers at hotel
By Vipasha Sinha
At the Savera Hotel, where Praveen worked as a member of housekeeping staff, he will be remembered for his enthusiastic nature. His colleagues who couldn’t believe Praveen was dead said he worked hard for Pongal celebrations arranged by the hotel for the staff.
“We had a small function for the employees on January 12 in which he lit up the entire place with his dance performance. He even pulled me to dance with him,” said Radhish Kumar, HR head at Savera Hotel, who hired Praveen seven years ago.
“Praveen was one of the first persons with learning disability whom we had hired. He set an example with his dedication and enthusiasm. At first, he was working in the hotel’s cafeteria where he learned the job quickly and became everyone’s favourite. He liked imitating stars, including Rajinikanth,” Radhish recalled.
“He was employed as part of our policy to build an inclusive work atmosphere. He proved his mettle and blossomed into a confident young man. We will miss him,” says Nina Reddy, joint managing director of the hotel, adding that everybody was shocked over his demise. When he went missing, the employees of the hotel were the first to spread the message on social media and a few of them went out looking for him.
“I formed a team of 20, two people in batches of 10 who went around the city on their bikes looking for him, but we couldn’t locate him. We were also coordinating with the police patrol team,” says Radhish, adding, “We have other staff members who are intellectually disabled. We are planning to talk to their parents and come up with a plan, with the help of the police, to help track them in case they are lost.”
“No one can replace Praveen and we will organise a special prayer meeting for him. We appreciate his contribution and we plan to hire more people with physical and mental disabilities,” said Nina Reddy.
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