2. Introduction to Author

Firdaus Kanga is an Indian novelist, author. He is well known for his autobiographical works as it has traces of motivation and enthusiasm for life. He was born in Mumbai, \(1960\) to a middle class Parsi family. He joined the Campion school after his fourth grade, until which he was home tutored. His main area of interest was disability studies, as he could personally connect to it. He was born with a disability and did not want people to view him with sympathy. He is wheelchair ridden, \(4\)ft tall, and weighs around \(20\)kg.  His father worked in TWA Sales department, due to which his family got ticket concessions and free tickets to visit places like Europe, America and England. He made use of this opportunity to meet new people, learn from experiences and exchange ideas.

 

He wrote his first book when he was \(31\), eating all the odds. Kanga believes in taking life as it comes, and to go with the flow. He gained friends in the London literary circles in a short span of time. He took the guidance of great writers like Timothy Mo, John Irving, V.S. Naipaul, Paul Bailey and Faber Chairman Mathew Evans.

 

Kanga was born with osteogenesis imperfecta, which is a genetic disorder where the person has brittle bones. This can cause several fractures in the body owing to the softness of the bones. Kanga refused to reduce himself to the status of a cripple even if he could not do any normal activities owing to his condition. His parents tried their best to make him stand on his feet, which included spending on hospitalisations and making him eat crushed pearls. They tried all remedies but did not get any results. Kanga accepted the reality of being in a wheelchair and made use of the opportunities that were available to him. He grew passionate about books and watched a lot of movies. He based his book 'Trying to Grow' on his condition as his protagonist Brit Kotwal has the same disorder, making it semi-autobiographical. It was later adapted into a movie named 'Sixth Happiness' in \(1997\). He wrote a travel book, 'Heaven on Wheels', based on his travel to Britain and his meeting with the great scientist Stephen Hawking.