Disabled India cricketer Ramesh Naidu helped dozens of depressed souls negotiate the lockdown and its frustrations with his online encouragement
Ramesh Naidu
Ramesh Naidu, 25
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Took up motivational speaking and inspirational writing via social media to help people afflicted by mental issues during lockdown
The second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic was a testing time for sportspersons given that all public grounds and sporting activities were shut.
However, India’s 2019 Physical Disability T20 World Series-winning all-rounder Ramesh Naidu, refused to be bogged down at home and instead decided to reach out to people via social media and help in a unique way. Lack of physical activity notwithstanding, the lockdown also affected the mental well-being of people. And here’s where Naidu, 25, a resident of Visakhapatnam, decided to help. He began interacting with depressed people online and started writing inspirational lines and motivational speeches for them.
Ramesh Naidu (left) with Dr Arun Kumar Mohanty, the director of AMG Residential English Medium HS
“When there was a strong second wave of the pandemic right up to April, there was a complete lockdown in Andhra Pradesh. Then, there was a break of 10 days, and again the lockdown came into effect, disrupting normal life. People were upset. So, I decided to use the online platform to reach out and speak to these people in distress,” Naidu, a final year student of Electrical Engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, told mid-day recently.
Naidu does not have the big toe on his right leg and also has no fingers, but surprisingly bowls some sharp leg-spin for Team India. He felt he could motivate people through his own example. “The focus of my articles was mental strength and how to overcome the dark phase in your life. I wrote everything with the mindset of a cricketer. For example, how can a player, who is going through bad form, make a comeback and overcome that failure,” added Naidu, who credited his school—AMG Residential English Medium in Visakhapatnam—for its free and quality education that has played a vital role in making him a responsible citizen.
Naidu during a selection trial in Mumbai prior to the 2019 Physical Disability T20 World Series
“I interacted with people through my Instagram live page [rameshnaidu03]. People, who had issues, would ask me questions. I would try to analyse their problems, give my observations and offer a solution to help them overcome their depression. People who are depressed, seek encouragement and motivation and that’s exactly what I helped them with. I offered counselling for free. I may not have helped hundreds of people, but around 30 to 40 people did benefit from my endeavour. I also connected with people through Whatsapp groups and telephone calls on a one-on-one basis. I simply passed on my experiences. It is very satisfying when people start believing in you, trusting you and telling you their problems. I feel they also motivated me in return, so even I have benefited through this lockdown,” explained Naidu.
Besides helping mentally-affected strangers virtually, Naidu also physically helped out in the real world. He joined a group of school friends to provide oxygen cylinders and other medical aid to over 100 people. “We [friends] first came together and began gathering information of all those who needed help, and understood exactly what kind of help they needed. We then started seeking solutions through our friends and contacts and finally provided solutions to the needy. So, it was a well-planned initiative. It was a serious situation given the lack of oxygen and hospital beds. Most of the needy people were from the middle-class segment. Thankfully, it all went well and today the situation is under control,” Naidu concluded.
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