Fighting against all odds, Tejaswani strikes a winning note

“I liked being with Akshay bhaiya. I love my papa the most,” Tejaswani says with a hint of a lisp.

Though her mental age is not more than four years, she can sing more than 150 hymns and Bollywood numbers to perfection.

“She learnt to walk just three years ago. Before that, Tejaswani used to crawl like a baby,” said Harsh Sharma, her mother.

Harsh recounts what went wrong. “Seven days after Tejaswani’s birth, doctors had to operate on her due to some intestinal problem. Twice during the treatment, they declared her dead. I am thankful to God that my child recovered.”

But Harsh got the shock of her life three years ago, when she first heard her daughter humming a song.

“I could not believe my ears and was convinced of my child’s talent. I decided to do everything to develop this gift,” said said.

Now, she is up and moving from nine in the morning till seven in the evening, taking Tejaswani from one music class to another.

But how did Tejaswani manage to meet Akshay Kumar? A few months ago, he was in the city for a shooting.

“Akshay appreciated Tejaswani’s talent and assured her of a break in the industry. He was the one who invited her to be a judge at Little Champs,” added Sharma.

Tejaswani has won several prizes in various singing competitions. Besides winning twice at the Chandigarh Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge, she stood seventh in the show Awaz Punjab Di. A music album of bhajans sung by Tejaswani is also in the offing.

“For me, Tejaswani is a message for all parents of mentally challenged children that rather than forcing these kids to do what they cannot do, they should recognise their talent and help them develop that,” said Harsh.