Fighting spirit
Posted: Monday , August 08, 2005 Rashmi Kumar
Pune When there is no choice, there are two options—either you succumb to the harshness that life metes out or you fight back and come out victorious!" These words of motivation come from Kamalakar Desle, recipient of this year’s Jidda Puraskar. One look at him with the sunshine smile and you can see his indomitable confidence.The Jidda Puraskar was bestowed upon him for his contribution in the field of literature through his regular write-ups for various publications and collections of poems. Desle says, "Behind this award, there are years of hardwork and pain. There were times when I was completely ostracized from my village, but I think I was a born optimist. I never gave up." Desle, who lost both his legs during childhood, is presently teaching at Janata Vidyalaya High, Zodge (Malegaon).
"My mother was my first teacher. She taught me how to walk and stitched me soft padded shoes. My second teacher was my sister who carried me to school on her back everyday and never ever complained," he says.
Desle’s real struggle began in 1975, when he was in Std VIII. He adds, "With four brothers and two sisters in tow, we were all required to work to make ends meet. So, I learnt how to stitch clothes. In a single day, I used to make 12 dozen underpants. For one dozen, I was paid 65 paise." He pushed himself to stitch more. Later, he also learnt how to cut crop and went to work in the fields with his sister everyday. In order to earn more money, he took up the job of a guard in a school and ran errands, even mopping floors at times.
Then destiny took a turn when chairman of the school Neelkanth Rao Desle, took notice of this young boy. Says he, "He is my guru. He noticed that despite a stable job I was unhappy, so he urged me to study." Desle was later guided by his teacher—Gulabrao Desai. In 1991, he joined a teachers’ training college and went on to pursue his Masters degree in Marathi. Excitedly he adds, "Slowly, people’s attitude was changing. My education saved me from asking for alms."In the course of time, words flowed from Desle’s pen and he turned to poems. Influenced greatly by Sant Tukaram and Dnyaneshwar, Desle dedicated his first poem to Dnyaneshwar—Dyaniya Tujhi Pai. Also to his credit is a collection of 80 poems in the form of dialogues between poet Khalil Momin and him. Along with his students, Desle has taken up a project to plant trees in Ram Nagar, Dhulia district under the project Kalptaru Chi Aarohi.Currently Desle is also the president of the Malegaon Branch of the Marathi Sahitya Parishad and Shabdasnehi Gramin Sahitya Sammelan, Loni Pravaranagar. He’s happy working at home and wants to inspire many more like him through his poems and newspaper articles. He adds, "At my own home, in my own village, there’s so much to do, do I really need to venture out?"
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