Closer': A film dealing with autism

Recently I got chance to glimpse into the life of children/people with Autism and their family through a movie named “'Closer': A film dealing with autism” by Meghana Gulzar. (click on the picture for the movie page)

I was a bit confused first as I thought it may not be able to portray the real feelings of this group of population, but I am happy that it proved me wrong. As the movie started I was amazed to hear a voice of a mother who was explaining the story of her son Rahil, the emotions and the confusion she stated purely explains the mental status of the parents having children with Autism. As the story of these angels begins and further parents explains about their children, a voice again thrilled me and filled me with some anomic emotions, it was a poem, I don’t know about the poet but that poem is something I must share with you all:

Masuum ek ankh keh rahi hai kan mai,

Ik jahan aur bhi hai is jahan mai,

Dekha to hai magar use hum jante nahi,

Uski nazar ko theek se pehchante nahi

Hum panchi kehte hai jise wo macchi kehte hai

Ha meethi cheez ho to wo bhi acchi kehte hai

Hum sochte hai jabhi to budhi kho jate hai

Unke khyal shayad pet gudgudate hai

Wo chaand dekhe lagta hai kha jaye tod ker

Suraj chala gaya hai apna anda chood ker

Dilchasp hai wo duniya agar dil lagao to

Wo bhi tumhara hissa unko bulao to

Dono jahaano mai abhi zara si duri hai

Kuch aur pas aao parichaye jaruri hai

Masum ek ankh keh rahi hai kan mai,

Ik jahan aur bhi hai is jahan mai.

These lines were not just lines they were beyond it, and they actually made me think again and again about the social integration of these children, about the gap between them and the society, about the barriers they are facing everyday because of our lack of interest (as a whole society) in their integration. After this thoughtful session the movie touches other sensitive areas of their life. The area which invaded into my thought process was a question asked by a mother of a teenage, about the physical and mental needs of this group at certain age (described by her as “catch 22 situation”). I was actually thinking about this from long time after the movie “My name is Khan”, that they are also having some physical and mental needs (here I am talking about the sexual urges) which should be cater but in our society this area is still to be develop. The other question was a big one asked by the same mother –“what after us?” this wasn’t only her question it’s the question of all those parents living with this population group.

We have to think deeply about the socioeconomic development as well as psychosocial needs of this population to answer these questions. A same kind of approach is shown in the film also. The main part of the film (that is related to the treatment part) was somewhat satisfactory to me; they have opened a window for the parents and people related to the population having autism. And for me all that Occupational therapy approaches and activities described their brought a feeling which cannot be explained in words, but the only thing I feel that there is Occupational Therapy in words and activities but no OT was there to explain the OT domain in Autism. But still one of our Occupational Therapist Ms Bhawana Agarwal, passed out from Santosh Medical College, tried to give the possible answer to the above situation on behalf of all the Occupational therapists which I would I like to mention here as this would be the best way to give a beautiful and thoughtful end to this entry. It goes like this:

Us jahan se is jahan tak hum tumhe layenge,

Is jahan se hum tumhari pehchaan karwayenge.

Panchi aur machhi k antar ko tum pehchanoge,

Bas meethi cheez hi achhi nhi hoti ye bhi janoge.

Nahi kho jaoge fir tum har chhoti baat par,

Tum bhi cheezon ko thik se samajh paoge.

Chand ko khane ka dil phir nahi karega,

Janoge tum kyun jata hai suraj,kya chhod kar.

Hum tumhe bulate hain is duniya me aao,

Is duniya ko bhi tum dilchasp paoge.

Thaam lo hamari ungli aur mitao ye doori,

Kar lo pura vo parichay jo hai zaruri.

Us masuum ankh ko kaho,kahe hamare kaan me,

Wada hai us jahan ko le aayenge is jahan me.

Autism: What they actually wants!!!!

Hello friends, today when I was looking a video regarding the success story of a girl child having Autism Carly, I thought of this blog. When we are talking about Autism, a lots questions arises, and a lot of myths also. By just listening the world Autistic for a child we make numerous assumptions about him, but do we really care about, what he wants and what he feels, the answer is No.

We as a Therapist, as a parent, as clinician are just superimposing our thoughts and assumptions on the child. From my personal experiences since last 2 year with these angels, I actually realized that before starting with our therapeutic program, we have to understand them first, we have to understand their behavior, we have to understand their tantrums and we have to understand their basic needs. Look into their eyes there are numerous questions, study their tantrums, they actually telling you something, they actually want to express themselves but don’t know, how to do so. They wanted to enjoy life just like other children but something is their which is hindering their way, you have to find it out. Talk to them, it’s not like that they can’t understand you or it’s not necessary for them, it is actually necessary!!

They are like just another normal child, with some challenges and lots of abilities, but their abilities are sometimes masked by their challenges. We are very much interested in the triad of Autism and the word Autistic brings these three things in our mind:

1. · See their social interaction is poor
2. · They can’t even communicate
3. · They must be having various compulsive and repetitive behaviors

And in these three challenges we overlooked their inherent capabilities. Once I was attending my Neurology lecture on Autism, there was one statement that took my attention-“Autistic children lack emotions and if they have they cannot express it” and suddenly a picture came into my mind of a child with Autism-Harsh. Harsh is a child with autism. He used to come for his therapeutic sessions regularly. The first thing he do, whenever he see me or my colleagues, is calling us with our Names. Once one of my colleague approached him and start talking, suddenly he looked toward her and said in a scanning tone with shaking head “Bhanu Madam, nai aayi thi, mai roya tha”( Bhanu madam, didn’t came, I cried). At that point of time we are feeling that we are Autistic as we are not able to express our emotions. Then we realized that what she had given him was Care and trust. So i must say, they are emotional and yes they can express their emotions also, but the way is a bit different, but does it really matters......I tried several times to be just empathetic and not emotional as emotions can hinder our therapeutic process, but with these children I have to support my therapy program with emotions, and I must say these emotions actually paid in the form of improvement in their personality. Around those days only I came across a book –“Ten things every child with Autism Wishes you know”, and this book helped me to understand them a bit batter. See they are not lacking in capabilities, they are lacking in finding the way to success, they need your help, so help them, and I can bet on this they will surely prove their worth.

Ten things every child with Autism Wishes you know

Here I came across an awesome book written by Ellen Notbohm "Ten things every child with Autism Wishes you know"......so I thought of sharing those ten things with you people.. hope you will like them. So here comes the “Ten things every child with Autism Wishes you know”:


1. I am first and foremost a child. I have Autism. I am not primarily "Autistic".
"Defining me by one characteristic runs the danger of setting up an expectation that may be too low, and if I get a sense that you don't think i "can do it", my natural response will be: why try?”


2. My sensory Perceptions are disordered.
“This means that the ordinary sights, sounds, smells, tastes and touches of every day that you may not even notice can be downright painful for me.”


3. Please remember to distinguish between won’t (I choose not to) and can’t (I am not able to).
“It isn’t that I don’t listen to instructions. It’s that I can’t understand you”


4. I am concrete thinker. This means I interpret language very literally.
“Idioms, puns, nuance, double entendres, inference, metaphors, allusions and sarcasm are usually lost on me”
5. Please be patient with my limited vocabulary.
“I may be hungry, frustrated, frightened or confused but right now those words are beyond my ability to express.”
6. Because language is so difficult for me, I am very visually oriented.
“Please show me how to do something rather than just telling me.”


7. Please focus and build on what I can do rather than what I can’t do.
“Look for my strengths and you will find my potentials and capabilities. There is more than one right way to do most things.”


8. Help me with social interactions.
“ It may look like I don’t want to play with the other kids on the playground, but sometimes it’s just that I simply do not know how to start a conversation or enter a play situation.”


9. Try to identify what triggers my meltdowns.
“Meltdowns, blow-ups, tantrums or whatever you want to call them are even more horrid for me that they are for you. They occur because one or more of my senses has gone into overload.”


10. If you are a family member, please love me unconditionally.
“I did not choose to have autism. But remember that it is happening to me, not you. Without your support, my chances of successful, self-reliant adulthood are slim. With your support and guidance, the possibilities are broader than you might think. I promise you- I am worth it.”


So if you like these thoughts I would highly recommend you this book to understand the inner sight of these little angels.


Your friend
Amit Kochhar Occupational Therapy Student