Imagine recollecting days spread across two lakh years in a calendar.
Prashanth Chandran,19, who has made it to the Indian Book of Records, after having immersed himself in the world of math and calendars, is the person who is polishing this unique talent.
And now, he is striving to make his mark in the Asian Book of Records.
The birth of the 'calendar' boy
Born in Thiruvananthapuram in 1995, he was diagnosed with multiple disabilities, many of which are being treated even now. He has been diagnosed with celebral palsy and is mostly confined to the premises of his house.
"I was shocked to see a baby like him. He looked so different. Until that day, I had never seen a baby with multiple disorders. The doctors told me that my child would not live for more than three months. Now, Prashanth is 19 years old," said his mother Suhitha.
Below are the names of a few famous people who were also diagnosed with cerebral palsy.
Prashanth has also been diagnosed with extremely poor vision.
Till the age of 18, Prashanth was sent to a special school situated close to his house. The school authorities had issued a certificate upon the successful completion of the fourth grade. However, he had not received any certificates with regards to his education since that day.
His teachers vouch for his diligent work culture and his affectionate ways.
"I have two children and I have raised both of them equally. Yes, Prashanth is gifted in certain ways, but I have never considered making a "huge deal" out of it," says Prashanth's mother.
Prashanth's elder sister, Priyanka, has been a great source of support and encouragement.
Currently, pursuing her B.Tech in computer science engineering at a college in Thiruvananthapuram, Prashanth's parents said that Priyanka is more excited and happy to see her brother steal the limelight.
It was not long before, that his parents discovered his love for dates and days. According to his father, Prashanth has the ability to recollect the date and days of calendars upto two lakh years. "Prashanth had managed to download a calendar application on his sister's old mobile phone and has been glued to it ever since," explains his mother.
It is Prashanth's father, Chandran, who had taken the initiative to showcase Prashanth's hidden skills. "We have seen many people with disabilities being who have done many great things. But I am quite sure that there aren't many people, with multiple disabilities, who can predict days the way Prashanth does. That is why, I decided to walk from pillar to post to seek opportunities and encourage Prashanth to highlight his talents," says Chandran, a businessman.
Puzzles, keyboard and the alphabet
Apart from the world of numbers, Prashanth loves music. At present, he is being trained to play the keyboard by a teacher from a special school.
The young calendar genius also enjoys jig-saw puzzles as well as collecting refrigerator magnets.
Moreover, he is possessive of his collection. Interestingly, he can also tell the date and day on which each of items were gifted to him and by whom.
The wheel of fortune
He may not like fortune-telling as much. But as far as the lives of his parents and sister are concerned, Prashanth's predictions have always been true. "He predicted that my daughter would score 88 percent during 10th grade school board exams. Similarly, he predicted the date, day and amount at which my husband would be able to sell some property. Both these predictions had come true. But this isn't the case, when our relatives ask him to predict the lottery results," Suhitha says.
Chandran said that despite entering the Indian Book of Records, the family has neither received any support nor has Prashanth been awarded any scholarship by the government to help him pursue his education. "What more can he do? He has several limitations," Chandran sighs.
As the family gears up for Prashanth's entry into the Asian book of records, they continue to hope for some kind of support that could assure their son of a bright future.