Together, 26/11 victims will swim to the future

Let alone holding someone’s hand. Bhiwandi resident Sarika Upadhyay, a victim of the 26/11 terror attack, is afraid of even shaking hands with anyone. “There are about 10 to 15 splinters in both my hands. I was having dinner with four of my friends that night at Leopold’s when a grenade went off close to us,” the 33-year-old mother of an 11-year-old kid, said. “In fact, I have 108 grenade particles all over my body. I cannot walk or stand for too long. And I need pain killers to help me sleep at night.”

Sarika’s best friend, Anamika Gupta, 28, received three bullets in her stomach, and she still requires a surgery. Life has come to a standstill for the two women ever since that fateful night.

Monday onwards, the two women will participate in a unique programme with 51 women and children belonging to families of police constables and officers who were on duty on 26/11. Women without Borders, an international women’s NGO, will host a week-long workshop comprising two major programmes — ‘Swimming to the Future’ and ‘Our Stories, Our Futures’. Both of will be held at the Police Gymkhana.

‘Swimming to the Future’ will give the participants swimming lessons at the Police Gymkhana pool. “Sports are an innovative way of helping victims. The experience of learning to swim together will build a sense of belonging among the participants, and give them the confidence to face the challenges of everyday life,” Archana Kapoor, partner, Women without Borders, said.

‘Our Stories, Our Futures’ — the second part of the workshop — will seek to empower the participants through story-telling sessions. “This will help them realise that they are not alone,” Kapoor said. “We will have experts from Northern Ireland, Vienna, Austria, who will talk to the participants. Plus there will be three trainers, who will give the participants swimming lessons.”