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“We understand each other’s difficulties and therefore we are able to support each other”

Between them they have three strong arms and two sturdy legs. And two hearts that beat as one. Fayaz Ahmad Misger (46) and Mumtaz Begum (40) from Bijbehara in Kashmir’s Anantnag district have together built a life centred on dignity, hard work, and dreams for their two children.
 
Fayaz Ahmad was born in 1978 in Anantnag and was the youngest of five brothers. When he was around three years old he contracted polio. The illness severely affected his body and left both his legs paralysed. The doctor recommended calipers to prevent the legs from ‘tethering’ – when the muscles shorten and joints stiffen, making the legs warped. Fayaz’s father, Gul Mohammed, came up with a bright idea – an affordable substitute for the steel braces. Fayaz narrates: “My father took sections of his own clothes, filled them with sand, and sewed them to make two heavy bags that he tied around my legs. He did this for 20 days, looking after me day and night. If not for that, I would never have been able to walk, even with a stick.” He is ever grateful to his parents for their support during those difficult times. His family took him to Barzullah Hospital in Srinagar, known for treating bone and mobility-related conditions; he underwent periodic treatment there for nearly eight years.
 
Gradually, when he was around nine years old, Fayaz was able to walk although his legs remained weak. Even today, he uses a wooden walking stick for support. His hands were unaffected, eventually allowing him to use them to learn a skill that would earn him a livelihood. His education was interrupted, however. He studied up to the third grade at a government school in his locality. After the school was damaged in a blast, the alternative school was located too far to travel from his home and so he dropped out.
 
But stopping studies did not mean the end of learning. Fayaz was nearly 20 when he began learning tailoring from a local tailor. He spent several years honing his skills and eventually made tailoring his profession. It has provided not only a livelihood for the past 26 years but also a sense of independence and self-respect.
 
Fayaz had also nursed a secret passion since childhood: bodybuilding! About five years ago he came across the story of Anand Arnold, a wheelchair bodybuilder from Haryana. Seeing someone with a disability pursuing bodybuilding inspired him to follow his own interest. In 2019 he began working seriously on bodybuilding and continues to practise it. Why buy expensive dumbbells when you can make them at home, right? Just as Gul Mohammed had done a bit of ‘jugaad’ to attach weights to his son’s legs all those years ago, Fayaz has manufactured his own form of dumbbells. “I hope someday I can inspire and teach other people with disabilities who want to take up fitness,” he says.
 
Fayaz married Mumtaz in 2013. He met his bride-to-be through their families who knew each other. When the possibility of marriage was discussed, the disabilities on both sides seemed to match perfectly. Mumtaz’s right arm is missing.
 
Mumtaz, who has three brothers, was brought up by her nani (mother’s mother), Zuna Begum. Zuna, who lived with her son, missed having a child around the house and simply took her granddaughter to live with her. She gave her an education too.
 
Mumtaz describes her fatal accident: “I was 10 years old and was walking to school with five of my friends. “We were playing around, and there was a wire that had fallen on the road. I picked it up and felt a huge shock. I couldn’t even move.” It was a live electric wire. Zuna rushed her to hospital. Her right arm had to be amputated.
 
For a young girl, losing an arm could have changed the course of her entire life. But Mumtaz continued moving forward with Zuna’s staunch support. She studied until ninth grade and learned to manage her daily activities independently. “I even learned to cook and make rotis using one hand,” she says. After her grandmother died, her uncle did not want her in the house and so she returned to her parents.
 
Today, Fayaz and Mumtaz are the parents of two sons: Haris (12) who is in fourth grade and Hibaan (5) in kindergarten. Their children’s education is particularly important to the couple because their own education was interrupted by circumstances beyond their control. They want their children to have opportunities they themselves could not have. The children attend Cambridge English-medium school about a kilometre from their home. Fayaz has a three-wheeled disability scooter and often takes the children to school himself.
 
Their home is filled with the everyday joys and responsibilities of family life. Mumtaz enjoys listening to songs, travelling, and spending time with family. Fayaz continues his tailoring work and bodybuilding, while Mumtaz looks after the household and contributes to raising their children – children who are bound to grow up to become confident, compassionate adults.