When their son was diagnosed with autism, Shivendra Upadhyay and Bibha Kumari took inspiration from that episode and started Twinklezz Center in Bengaluru, which provides early intervention therapies and open schooling for children with autism. By launching Ability Advocacy, the husband-wife duo has now taken the tech route to alleviate the shared pain points for therapy centers, parents, and therapists. In a conversation with ET Digital, Upadhyay and Kumari talk about how the company is deploying AI in therapy, the challenges of navigating ableism in India, and the impact it is making in supporting children.
The Economic Times (ET): What inspired the creation of Ability Advocacy, and how has your personal journey influenced its mission?
Bibha Kumari (BK): The journey of parenting a child with autism is a profound evolution, starting in denial, blossoming into awareness, and culminating in deep acceptance. We came to understand that we were chosen for this unique path, entrusted by an unseen power that believed in our capacity to overcome its hurdles.
Initially, we were adrift in a sea of uncertainty: Why us? Did we cause this? Would our child ever belong? We traversed the silent landscapes of denial, anger, and bargaining, striving for a perceived “normality.” We attempted to fit our child into pre-defined molds, unknowingly stifling their inherent uniqueness in a quest for conformity.
But then acceptance dawned. It wasn’t simply acknowledging a label, but embracing the entirety of this experience. The moment we wholeheartedly embraced our child; an inner freedom was born.
