Everydayheroes

In rural Maharashtra, an athlete who overcame polio and discrimination, now mentors the next generation

At the age of three, Bavadekar started suffering from polio in both the legs. Today, he is an athlete, wrestler, body-builder, swimmer, coach, farmer, and a cashier in the bank.

Casteism or filth, Suganda Kamble of Maharastra's Bahadurwadi village, tackles both with humour

For the Dalits of Bahadurwadi, a village in Maharashtra’s Sangli district, Suganda Kamble has come to represent hope. Kamble has, for the past five decades, been sweeping the village, collecting garbage, cleaning the gutters and public toilets, and looking after Bahadurwadi’s sanitation. While doing this work, Kamble has also consistently challenged the caste system, with his trademark dark humour.

In Maharashtra's Kalambi village, a charpoy weaver strives to save his art form amidst caste discrimination

Khavle has rare skills of weaving handmade charpoys. This art form saw a downfall and eventually reached the verge of extinction in Maharashtra’s Sangli district a decade ago.

In Maharashtra's Golavali village, a farmer-artist is inspiring her community to turn scrap into art

Sharmila Kinjalkar is a farmer, agricultural labourer and a self-taught craftswoman in rural Maharashtra who is turning items of trash into things like lanterns, garlands and dormats

In rural Maharashtra, a teacher who overcame physical disability, now helps her students realise their dreams

38-year-old Asha has inspired thousands of students across several villages of Pune district in Maharashtra.

In Maharashtra's Shirgaon village, a 'farmer poet' defies stereotypes, seeks freedom through her words

Suvarna Maskar's first poem was published within a few months in 2008 in a Marathi daily Pudhari.

In Karnataka's Boragaon village, the last kalaiwala reflects on his lifelong engagement with the now dying art form

Kalai is a traditional art form in which the brass and copper vessels were tin coated before they could be used for cooking.

In Maharashtra's Malgaon village, a retired school peon battles casteism with his poetry

The 63-year-old retired peon from Malgaon village in Satara district of Maharashtra completed his 47th poem in the first half of this year.

In Maharashtra's Ambap village, a couple with polio defied odds to set up a model farm

Geetanjali and Shivaji were affected by polio, a disability that subjected them to terrible name-calling.

In rural Belgaum, one man traded his flute and shehnai to make toys

Narayan Desai had to give up his caste-based profession of being a flute and shehnai player to take up a more lucrative job — making toys