26/11: Tragedy was a life-changer, pushed people to help others

The events of 26/11 twisted their placid, everyday lives irrevocably. It was easy to wallow in self-pity, sink deeper into the wreckage of the past and just give up. But some chose to turn their tragedy into an opportunity to brighten the lives of others.

Rangini Sharma, who lost her husband Sushil Kumar Sharma, a ticket collector with the railways, on November 26, 2008, wants to “keep him happy wherever he is” — educating students from marginalised families. She has started a foundation in her late husband’s name. “We just pooled all the compensation money that came in together to create a corpus…”  It has funded over 30 students for their tuition fees.

American mid-western housewife Kiia Scherr has started a support group — One Life Alliance — along with other survivors of 26/11. She lost her 13-year-old daughter and  her husband.

“Being there for others connects me to them… I know that wherever they are (my husband and daughter), they would want me to be doing this,” said Scherr.

Then there is Jharna Narang, 36, who lost her parents and brother at the Taj. “I want to use my life’s example to motivate the world to concrete action not revenge,’’ she says.