Javed Abidi

So that was huge.

That's when it really hit me.

There was not a place which was accessible.

I mean, there was not a place where I could go on my own, whether it was offices or whether it was a theatre or a shopping area.

And then, of course, as a young person, I was looking for a job.

I was a trained journalist.

I remember going from newspaper to newspaper and everybody would pat me on the shoulder.

They would tell me how brave I was.

How intelligent I was, etc.

And then there was always a but.

Being in a wheelchair, how can you be a journalist?

And you know, you have to go places at short notice and this and that and blah and blah.

That's really the first time that my disability hit me on my face.

And I was like, wow.

One felt horrible.

One went through deep turmoil.

I mean, there were nights when I could not sleep.

That was what I call a twist of fate.

I was a practising journalist for almost two years.

Then there was this chance meeting with Mrs Sonia Gandhi, the widow of our late Prime Minister Mr Rajiv Gandhi.