Ranveer urges Indian Sign Language to be declared an official language
By Ranveer Singh is urging authorities to consider and declare Indian Sign Language (ISL) as the 23rd official language of India! The superstar has always raised his voice on social issues and this time he is signing a petition aimed at furthering awareness on this cause. Ranveer’s independent record label IncInk, which he has formed with Navzar Eranee, is also releasing its first sign language video, rapper/poet Spitfire’s Vartalap from his debut 4 track EP Paathshala.
Ranveer says, “We created IncInk as a platform to promote inclusivity through art, hence the name ‘IncInk’. Through this endeavour of ours, we’re lending support to the cause of making Indian Sign Language the 23rd official language of India. I will be signing the official petition filed by National Association of the Deaf (NAD) India with support from the ‘Access Mantra Foundation’, who are working tirelessly to make this a reality. I urge my fellow Indians to join this cause and give it momentum by building awareness about it. We are also releasing our first sign language video on Spitfire’s latest track ‘Vartalap’ with the hope that the track will trigger more conversations on the issue.”
The Vartalap ISL music video was created in collaboration with AccioMango – a community-based start-up, managed and operated by Deaf professionals and founded by deaf expert Dr Alim Chandani. It advocates and aims to create equal opportunities for the Indian Deaf Community in compliance with the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (RPWD) Act, 2016. Dr Chandani is also the CEO of Access Mantra Foundation (AMF), a non-profit organization that aims to create awareness among the hearing-impaired community for information that is not easily accessible to them.