Not a day goes by without at least one woman, in urgent need of care and support, coming to us, needing our help, with nowhere else to turn. While it is heartening to note that an increase in numbers is a positive reflection of a society beginning to respond to a challenge, the physical condition in which women continue to come to us, battered, broken, with unhealed wounds inside and out reminds us of how much more has to change.

The strength that each woman who comes to us carries within her, the joy of each impossible reunion, of each mother who never thought she would see her daughter again, of each father who cried silently as someone he loved so well was returned to him…these are the moments that keep us going.

Of the 38 rehabilitations that took place over the past month, perhaps the most touching was that of Nirmala, who after eight months of wandering found herself in Chennai, far away from home in Madhya Pradesh, alone in a city that refused to see her.

Delusional, lost, with no money and little hope, her hair matted, her clothes in tatters, Nirmala slept on the roads and ate what little she could find. Another homeless person, all too easy to ignore. A concerned individual called The Banyan, where slowly, over time, Nirmala healed.

While she was at times tormented by voices and figures no one else could see, medication and time brought relief. After four months of healing and care at The Banyan, Nirmala was able to communicate a clear address to our social workers.

A phone call to Madhya Pradesh was the miracle that a family suffering the pain of losing a child for the past eight months, had been praying for.

Nirmala’s parents, Khem Chand and Kaushalya had searched the entire northern countryside, desperately looking for their daughter. Nirmala’s mother had taken to giving food and clothing to any person she saw living on the streets, hoping that someone, somewhere would show the same kindness to her daughter.

April 26th, 2003, Saturday morning, saw a beautiful, reunion take place at The Banyan, tears flowing, as mother and daughter remained in an embrace that could not be broken. A father overcome with emotion could only watch numbly, as tears continued to flow…

The family spent the next week interacting with the staff and residents of The Banyan. Thoroughly impressed by the work being done, this elderly couple, who had traveled so far using their entire life savings, who had been through so much, wanted to help The Banyan, in anyway they could.

Every day over the week that followed, they spent time with the residents who spoke Hindi, talking to them and helping the social workers in their task of helping each woman who found herself at The Banyan find her way home. Filled with rare commitment and understanding of the work being done, this couple wanted nothing more but to help others, knowing the pain of separation like no one else could.

Making such reunions, which seemed at one point like impossible dreams, come true, is what The Banyan is working towards. We need the support of each one of you to keep us going…

Our rehabilitation team spent most of the month of July traveling the states of Maharashtra and Gujarat for a total of 14 reunions! Happy disbelief was writ large on the faces of so many, as entire villages came forth to welcome our residents back home. Our team each time was humbled by the reception that awaited them, the spontaneity and the warmth that came forth so naturally from those in the smallest, most remote villages.

One of the 14 women who found their way home was Kalpana who returned to her family after 6 years! After traveling for half a day in the wrong direction, things were set straight thanks to the help of concerned fellow passengers. Disappointment was sharp when on reaching the village, the team was informed that no such person lived there. Feeling that nothing would be lost if they continued a little further, the team kept going until they came across areas that seemed familiar to Kalpana.

Kalpana then lead the team to her in-laws house, the house she had left more than six years before. Delighted to see her again, Kalpana’s mother-in law insisted on feeding her and the entire team, repeating non-stop how she thought that Kalpana was lost forever and that she would never see her again. Kalpana’s mother-in law had been caring for her two children who did not recognize or remember their mother.

But the memory that lingered on the longest in the minds of the tired team that returned home to Chennai was that of Kalpana’ s husband finding her at home, when he came home at the end of the day. Words were not needed as a heavy silence melted into tears and smiles, as husband and wife saw each other after six long years. Kalpana’ s husband could not believe that she was alive having resigned himself many years before to the fact that he never would see her again. He had not remarried in the years that she was missing. With a supportive family beside her, Kalpana looks to the future with hope.

Banyan could be contacted at:

The Banyan
6th Main Road
Mogapair Eri Scheme
Mogpair West
Chennai-37
Website: www.thebanyan.org
Ph: 91-44-2653 504 / 2653 1987
Fax: 91-44- 2653 0105