Never say never

Adversity and hardship have not stopped an audio engineer with a spinal condition from pursuing his passion, writes

D’Cruz in his modified handicap-friendly car.

SOME would say that disability is just a state of mind. Throughout history, we’ve witnessed some of the most outstanding achievements by people with apparent physical disabilities such as English theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking who suffers from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis; limbless Australian-American motivational speaker Nick Vujicic; and Indian dancer Sudha Chandran, whose leg had to be amputated due to an accident.

It takes courage for any ordinary person to achieve success when he lacks something, but for a person with a disability? That, and more. And that’s what Kenneth D’Cruz, a 29-year-old audio engineer who worked tirelessly to set up his own audio production company continually strives to do despite his condition known as spina bifida, a birth defect where there’s incomplete closing of the backbone and membranes around the spinal cord.

D-Cruz and his company AudioFUSION Productions are currently participating in the 16th KLPJ Wedding Fair 2017 in Mid Valley Exhibition Centre, KL where they’ve set up a booth to promote the interesting packages the company has to offer to liven up weddings and other special occasions.

D’Cruz at work during Soundcheck for MUD The Musical at Panggung Bandaraya.

It’s a balmy Tuesday afternoon when my photographer and I find ourselves making our way towards the man sitting with crutches by his side inside a cafe in Citta Mall in Ara Damansara.

His warm smile greets us when I call out his name. At first glance, D’Cruz looks like any other young man his age, dressed in a casual red shirt and dark slacks. It’s only when he stands and starts walking towards me that my heart sinks; I realise that both his legs are crippled.

“Can we take a photo of me sitting in my car?” he asks and grins when my photographer nods her agreement.

Using his trusted elbow crutches, he carefully makes his way out of the cafe towards his Nissan Xtrail parked near the mall entrance. He strikes a few poses behind the steering wheel which is equipped with gadgets that make it possible for him to control everything using his hands.

After a few shots, it’s a wrap and I’m eventually left with D’Cruz to resume our chat back in the cafe, which has suddenly swelled with customers. There are children running around us as well but D’Cruz remains unfazed.

TOUGH CHILDHOOD

Good-naturedly, D’Cruz smiles at the children before shifting his attention to me. Taking a deep breath, he begins: “I always knew something was wrong with me. But I’ve never felt out of place because until today, people around me treat me like a normal person.”

But there was nothing normal about his early life. The frequent visits to the hospital and the walking frame he had to use when he was a toddler served as testament to this.

“I never asked my parents ‘what’s wrong with me?’ because I understood. I mean, which normal person would be in and out of hospital so often, right?”

With his condition came complications to his kidneys and bladder which required

Panggung Bandaraya stage, the venue for MUD The Musical for the past 3 years.