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Meet Sadaf: The Wheelchair Woman Who Runs Her Own Brand
“Where there is a will, there is a way.” If a quote could be represented as a person, then Srinagar’s Sadaf is that. A person’s passion and determination knows no limit and bounds. If the determination is strong and efforts are dedicated, no mountain is big enough to climb. Resilience and dexterity can pave the way to a journey of blossoming. Bound by a wheelchair, this is how Sadaf runs her spice business from the valleys of Kashmir. From playing basketball in a wheelchair to managing the business of spices, Sadaf successfully broke the stigma and stereotype around disabled people to prove her tenacity despite her disability.
Journey and Story of Sadaf Masalay
Raised in the extensive range of valleys of the beautiful city of Kashmir, Sadaf Masalay was an experienced basketball player. She owned a boutique before starting a business of her own. With the launch of her own brand, she became a successful entrepreneur. She was a healthy, fine child and everything was sunshine and rainbows until she caught a bad fever at the mere age of 10. When the child was taken to the doctor for consultation and medication, the doctor passed a report to her parents stating that the young girl was diagnosed with a condition where she would not be able to walk again.
This eventually led to her dropping out of school. After being let down by several medical professionals in her hometown, Sadaf and her family looked for possible opportunities in Mumbai hoping they would find something in this city. Here, she underwent surgery and was asked by the medical professionals to walk in specially designed shoes. However, her weight being heavy weighed her down and that being the case she had to opt for the wheelchair. In an interview with Better India, she even opened up about how confusing and hard it was for her to watch other kids of her age go to school while she had to sit back and watch them without knowing why this was even happening to her.
The journey from there onwards was difficult for both Sadf and her family members. When her father passed away, the family responsibilities fell onto the shoulders of Sadaf. She remembered the way her father, who was her only pillar of support, believed her when nobody else did. “Except for my father, everyone else doubted my capabilities. But he always encouraged me to dream big. I missed him. There were days, when I would end up crying all day, sitting alone in my room. I was getting into depression,” she quoted.
Sadaf, later in 2015, opened her boutique but the workload worsened her eyesight. In the same interview, she told the viewers and readers that she wanted to try everything she could. So, she gave it a try to basketball and she won multiple awards in the same bestowed by the Jammu and Kashmir Basketball Association. Years after, she successfully opened up a brand of her own without the emotional support and financial assistance of anyone. She even added how people ridiculed her about her disability when their kids who are educated and able-bodied were doing nothing and wasting their time, are the same people who now give the example of Sadaf to others. Hailing from a town situated in the valleys tackled several obstacles that laid down her path without giving up. Attempting to inspire people and break the myth about disabled people, she believes that people like her should never doubt themselves. She says to keep the faith and take steps forward to the future despite whatever may come your way.
