The former MTV India CEO, Ashiish Patil, is a writer, producer,
director. He truly believes that stories have the power to change the world. Goldiboy and three apes is a remarkable
endeavour in that pursuit, authored by Ashiish.
Risshan, Ashiish 's son shares his lived experiences on his YouTube channel Issepshal. A stand-up comedian, he breaks stereotypes about autism with his own brand of humor. It appears Risshan is following in the footsteps of his father. But Ashhish believes otherwise."Like son-like father: says the dad. He, a late-diagnosed autistic, provides a few glimpses into their lives as well.
Read on to know more about the enterprising father-son duo...
ASHIISH PATIL
The trailer of the book is heartwarming. It stands out that you have been able to present a serious topic in an entertaining manner.
I’m so glad you enjoyed
the trailer. The book is even more fun! And I’ve always believed no one is
interested in listening to a sermon/ bhaashan. But a story or song, that’s when
you can bring people in. After which you can deliver more than just
entertainment. That’s why stories have the power to change the world. Hopefully,
this is one such story that can make the world a wee bit more inclusive.
I’ve always believed entertainment gives you the width, but adding that layer of meaning gives it the depth. And I’ve tried to do that across most, if not all, my projects.
Also, there is no pity,
disbelief, shame, discrimination associated with disability. Is this something
you wanted to convey through the book as well?
Absolutely. In the early
phase, there is so much confusion for families and people who get diagnosed.
It’s like a tsunami that hits you, ke bhai yeh kya ho rahaa hai?! And for the
neurotypicals, at times the discrimination, fear comes out of just lack of
awareness. Becoming aware is the first step to understanding, only then can
acceptance happen.
Isspeshal is a take on
special. Not special needs, because everyone’s need are special – but about how
our differences make the world more special. I mean vanilla ice cream every day
would get pretty boring–autism is that mix of chocolate sauce, sprinkles or
that fun topping that adds diversity to life and makes it more, Isspeshal.
Isspeshal also is the name of the Creative flagship company that me and my wife, Shital run. So every project we do, be it a feature film, web series, music video, advertisement or, for that matter, a children’s book ALWAYS has a tie-in at the back-end to neurodiversity. Be it the catering for a shoot, a neurodivergent intern or assistant director in the crew or the goodie giveaway designed by someone from the community. Phir raat ko neend bhi better aati hai 😊
With over 100
illustrations, and an adaptation of one of the most popular fairy tales, it is
a challenging project. How long did you work on it?
Oh yes, it took us over a
year. It’s not like a traditional children’s book, which is typically 24 to 40
pages. This one is a gorgeous 120 odd pages with as many beautiful hand-drawn
illustrations done by an art-teacher who works with kids. We wanted to make sure
that every image looks really appealing and has more layers. For instance, the
infinity sign, which is the international symbol of autism, has been incorporated
seamlessly across the book. On Goldiboy’s t-shirt, as the clip in Baby Ape’s
hair, as a butterfly… the choice of the book Papa is reading, the playlist on
the iPad are all conscious. With Temple Grandin [our Autism legend], Billie
Eilish [who has Tourette’s], the language used [‘brain has left the group’,
‘learning to be flexible’], the references to ‘gluten-free’ diets, weighted
blankets are all conscious. We got the book also validated by a bunch of
therapists, counsellors, special educators, autism moms, doctors to make sure
we’ve got it right. It was quite a process, but seeing the final version, it
all seems worth it!
This is a story about an
autistic son written by an autistic dad, a book of its kind, most likely. A
late diagnosed autistic yourself. Could you tell us about your late diagnosis?
Now, as the saying goes, ‘like father, like
son’… in our case, it turned out to be ‘like son, like father’. Thanks to
Risshan, as I started reading up about autism a lot more, attending therapy
sessions, working with him and more, I started noticing so many similarities,
commonalities. A bunch of things that I never understood as a child, that I
ignored as a teen and probably masked as an adult. Seeing how Risshan leads
such an authentic life, so fearlessly, I finally mustered up the courage to get
a formal assessment myself. It was a gruelling 3 months of multiple in-depth
interviews, with me, my family, detailed questionnaires, a lot of
soul-searching which finally told me something I always suspected. And more
than the label, it was just the clarity that I sought. It was like a cloud had
lifted from my brain.
I guess Rissh and I have more in common than I thought. One more thing to bond over!
Storytelling stands as an
incredibly potent medium through which to convey and express one's perspective.
Stand-up comedy is another form of storytelling. How and when did Risshan start
doing stand-up comedy?
Yeah, stories have to power to change the world. And humor is a tool to jump any and every
human firewall. You can drop hajaar truth bombs when packaged with humor.
Risshan is an inherently funny kid. Often unintentionally also. And besides being
a great mimic, he loves performing! I mean, right when one of us is angry, he
will imitate his mom/ me and crack us up. I have also always used humor as a
tool to escape, cope, belong. So together, as baap-beta, we’re quite a killer
combo. I write, he performs. We did a couple of fun sketches like…
Things ‘normal’ people
say to people with autism…
Every neurodivergent…
Dad: https://youtu.be/D8Ca3OJ2vi4
Mom: https://youtu.be/7Ku9Su0Ri5s
And they were a riot.
The birthday videos he
does for people are usually laugh out loud too.
So, we started putting up
these Chhota sets of stand-up, shot with just a couple of us…
Some spoken word poetry and more.
To expose him to more and more formats.
And also use different
genres to really get the message on neurodiversity and inclusion out there.
As a family, what do you
perceive to be your strengths?
Well, we are a nice
tripod. Each leg is equally important. Even if one fell short, the stool would be
wobbly. And each of us brings a different skill to the table. Of course, my
poor wife, Shital has to deal with two corny neurodivergents at home with a
really weird sense of humor. She brings reason, structure, sense to all we do.
I bring the creative chops, the writing, the lateral thinking, the eye for
detail on execution, the ideas. Risshan brings his big heart, his sense of
humor, his purity. He keeps us honest. As a family, I guess, the ability to
keep it real, to appreciate, celebrate the small things, and a passion to now
really give back/ help the world become more inclusive are our biggest
strengths.
RISSHAN PATIL
I love seeing my photo in the book; I love that Goldiboy looks like me and I love that there are so many things that I love in the book–from pizzas, iPads to Bikes, Bappi Lahiri, Beatles and Billie Eilish besides my Papa’s Bad Jokes! I think we should make a movie with me as hero now… then I can do my Dhoom dance!
I watched some of your
videos and you were just superb. How do you put together a script?
Thank you so much. My
Papa helps me. I keep cracking silly jokes. And saying funny things and Papa is
usually watching this. His sense of humor, believe it or not, is worse than
mine. So, he takes the things I say, do and turns them into sillier, funnier
things. I just have to be myself. It’s so fun. I looooove making people laugh.
I also work with Papa, and we
make up songs. Like my most favorite thing in the world is pizzas. And we toss
around words about pizzas, then we find words that rhyme with that. And turn it
into a rap song. Papa plays a groove and then we go, check this out…
I love Pizza rap
What has been the most memorable moment for you?
I love
performing; I love singing. Recently I got to become Pushpa in the school play,
wear a beard and then say funny lines. I also got a pizza for doing a good job.
[My Papa
bribed me with a pizza to say this! 😉]
Risshan's answers have been paraphrased by Ashiish for better coherence.
Excited to see what the duo is up to next.The Goldiboy and the three apes; is a great introduction to autism for children and adults alike. Get your copy now!
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