A cheerful and bubbly teenager, Virali Modi was enjoying her holidays in India. Little did she know, that her life would completely change when she returns to the US. “I am a US citizen and I have an OCI, so I’m legally living in India as well. I came in August 2006 to visit my extended family in Bombay. I stayed here for like a month and a half. I went back to the US and that’s where I got sick. The doctors are assuming it is malaria, but none of the reports have been conclusive. I was paralyzed from the neck down,” reminisces Virali, now a confident woman.
More than her medical condition, it was the lack of support from her close friends that led her to depression. Growing up in Pennsylvania, USA, Virali came back to India in 2008. “Quite honestly, I wasn’t really taken aback. My upbringing was in a very positive and optimistic household. I was raised in an environment where negativity is not a part of my repertoire, it is not a part of my dictionary. I am the only child and there was no one my age. At that point of time, you’re 14-15 years old, do you even listen to your mom and dad at that time? At least that’s how I was as a teenager. I did my GED over there in the US, but then after coming here I just didn’t feel like studying anymore,” says Virali.
Coming from a very accessible country to a country that was still opening up to the idea, Virali also had to deal with the language barrier. “It was difficult because I lived in a country with full accessibility. It was difficult trying to maneuver and trying to understand and especially then I didn’t even speak Hindi, so it was very difficult for me to even understand other people.”
However, she took all their difficulties in her stride and with the constant encouragement from her mother, she took on the challenge of participating in Miss Wheelchair India Contest in 2014. “That was like a fluke, honestly, because I got the invitation. At that time, my confidence was 0. I was very scared and I didn’t want to participate in it. But then my mom and dad emotionally blackmailed me. My mom made me watch videos of Sushmita Sen and Aishwarya Rai and Priyanka Chopra and that’s where I got my confidence. That actually gave me a lot of confidence to project myself and to let my voice be heard,” says Virali, who came second in the contest.
She went on to launch a Change.org petition titled ‘Implement Disabled Friendly Measures in Indian Railways.’ She landed in the ‘100 Women (BBC)’ for 2017 for her efforts to make railways more accessible. She has also shot ads withe Bollywood actors, Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan.
She has given multiple TEDx talks on her experiences and struggles due to her disability. At the International Purple Fest, she participated in a panel discussion where she read a passage that she wrote about her friend’s experience with teaching about disabilities, sexuality and marriage.
“My experience at the International Purple Fest has been beautiful. I’ve never seen so many people with disabilities out and about together, celebrating disability and innovation and everything so amazingly beautiful, so heart-warming and just lovely. But more than that, I think just seeing ramps, being pleased about the placards and the signages. It’s just amazing,” exclaims Virali.
She further adds, “States in India, especially down in the South, are a little bit more receptive towards accessibility and ramps and having these facilities available. I feel the North is a little bit lacking still. Corporates and CSR have turned it around like anything. Every corporate that I’ve been to has been accessible to a large extent and they are working towards more accessibility. In spite of that, I think even in India as a nation 10 years ago, you would not see a person with a disability out and about as much as you do now. The government is coming out with campaigns, Accessible India campaign, though it is not as implemented as it should be, I believe. But I feel in the coming years, India will definitely become a little bit more inclusive and more accessible. And the mindset is definitely changing.”
Virali recently posted about an airline forgetting her in the aircraft after landing as she needs a wheelchair and even being carried two floors to register for her marriage. Both the posts on social media had a huge impact. How important is it being vocal, especially now on social media? “It does make a difference. One has to be vocal on social media. Social media is the one thing that people actually listen to. You can call customer service but you will not get a satisfactory answer but if you post on social media, you get a quick response,” says Virali.
It does very important to be vocal now because social media is .
Virali is a published writer and has been a top writer for 4-5 years in a row. “I write short stories for fun. I’m working on my book biography right now. Working on it. And the title is still unknown. The chapters are building slowly as I’ve been working on this book for a year now,” says Virali.
Sharing her experience as a motivational speaker, Virali’s used her gift of gab to have a positive impact on not just an differently abled audience but people across age and gender.
“Its very impactful for me to see that other people are being impacted and that other people’s perception is changing around disability, around life whatsoever. So that is really impactful and empowering to me as a as a person with a disability that I can go and change people’s perspectives and people’s mindset. I get to travel the world and see many places that I probably wouldn’t have gone to before. I thoroughly enjoy what I do,” she says.
Virali now has many acquaintances but she counts her friends on her fingertips. “I like to keep my circle close. I believe my privacy, my peace and my serenity. I want peace and I want joy and I want happiness and serenity. That’s all I want,” concludes Virali.