Select background

The Rota Talent Contest for “Specially abled Children” is being held on 22^nd November of every Year.

In the Rotary year 1988-89, Rtn Vummidi Balaji was the Director Youth Service. He hit the idea of entertaining the children of all the orphanages in the city. It was an immediate hit. The first couple of years the program  was conducted at the German Hall with around 500 children participating.

It was in 1993, when Rtn Chella Srinivasan was the President, Rtn Kapil who was the Secretary then came forward to sponsor 50% of this programme and take it to a bigger scale. From then onwards the programme has always been an event looked forward by the members, their spouses and the annets.

The Inner Wheel Club of Cosmos joined this programme to conduct drawing competition for these children. It was no longer opened only for orphans. Even handicapped children, both physical & mental, started taking part. The name changed from Inter Orphanage Talent Contest to Rota Talent Contest For Special Children, to Rota Neeta Talent Contest For Special Children to now the Rota Talent Contest For Diffrently Abled Children.

Under this program the contest is being conducted for children drawn from the various institutions in the Chennai city and it's suburbs. Our Club provides for breakfast, lunch, snacks for all the children and accompanying teachers, for this day long programme.

At the end of it all the prize distribution ceremony is the once in a life time opportunity for these children. Every year famous and popular personalities like Cine Stars, whom these children can instantly identify with, are roped in.

Here is the gist of this contest in poetic form penned by Rtn Anand Sampath:

It was a clear sunny blue skied Sunday,

The wind had blown the dark clouds away.

As they trooped in one by one,

In a single line together as one. 

Their eyes registering a hesitant fear

They were to do something no one else did dare

Smiles registered, laughter rang around,

Their anxiety to perform their best was abound.

 The curtain rose at nine in the morning,

Those who were asleep awoke

The performers began their act and show did begin

A thousand children left all their handicaps behind.

Many of them, children of the lesser God,

Not once during the day did they show their pain

The teachers nurtured them with care,

Dressed in finery their talent they did bare.

Music of great composers was played.

The finesse of which not one of the hearing impaired did hear.

The dance steps seemed to come naturally to them

As with a smile and a twinkle of their eyes they swayed. 

Boys came with the help of crutches,

Orchestrated a movement on skates with no hitches.Small children,

could not see, but did enough to declare

Open your eyes all of you and see how fortunate you complaining mortals are. 

The dumb did speak,

Their silent voices echoed in the paintings.

Limbless some of them may have been,

The colors they painted, was a sight to be seen! 

They applauded and cheered each other,

Whistled and sang along with no bother.

Mayhem surrounded and not one voice did complain

Of all the noise and cat whistles that did rain.

It was nice to be part of the talent exhibition,

Of these young children with no inhibition

Teary eyed we (I) could only applaud

The immense display of positive energy these children of lesser God displayed.

In short

The blind taught us to see.

The deaf heard our silent voices

The dumb spoke

And we remained mute spectators even though we had everything others would envy. 

Here is my silent appreciation

To all the Ann’s of rotary club T.Nagar,

Without their commitment and dedication

This event would not have been an eye opening revealation.