In 2017, Magic Academy, in partnership with the Government of Kerala and its Anuyatra (Walking together) Program, a comprehensive rights-based life cycle approach in disability management, began its journey to integrate differently abled children into its programs. This paved the way for Magic Academy’s journey towards an inclusive society and towards empowering differently abled community to join the mainstream.
Inspired by the highly successful performance of the children, Magic Academy decided to establish a permanent performance platform for them -Mpower centre in 2017. This Centre trains and develops their talents, while ensuring life skills to make them more confident and self-aware. The centre now gives employment to differently abled children in a mode that they can become breadwinners for their family. It is for the first time in the world, a permanent magical performance centre has been opened for the differently abled talents.
Powered by the positive motivation and appreciation from the audience reaching from various parts of the world, children are motivated, they interact and communicate with everyone. They develop their own ideas for performance and showing refinement day by day. Everyone can see the difference such participation has made, and their positive body postures filled with energy is a symbol of true empowerment.
An independent evaluation by the Child Development Centre (CDC), Government of Kerala, evaluated the program and assessed the impact of the initial program on these children. The assessment found that the Program had several positive results on the children, and this provided a huge boost for the entire members associated with Mpower program. According to the CDC report, the Mpower program has helped these children and their parents in improving the mental health status and social development. The report also recommended similar programs based on art to reach more differently abled children.
"I congratulate Gopinath Muthukad and his team for exploring the hidden talents of these differently abled children. The use of magic to bring out the inherent talents of these disabled children was a creative way of telling the world that they are not differently able or disabled but specially abled and they could achieve wonders."
Dr. Mohammad Hamid Ansari
Former Vice-President of India