The year 2023 ended on a great note for Navin Padmanabhan, though he hardly anticipated it. But it has not been without some angst though, for the 27-year-old, the worst being having to be separated from his father and Bengaluru, that has been his home for 20 years.
Navin was diagnosed as having specific learning disability by doctors at the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS). The discovery for the parents was not accidental, say Usha and her husband Padmanabhan, who were in the United States until Navin turned 7.
When he was barely two years old, Ms. Usha noticed differences between him and his peers. But Navin had a great ear for music and an even greater talent to reproduce what he heard. His maternal grandmother’s talent rubbed off on him and he could master pieces and render them accurately.
