Celebrating International Day of Persons with Disabilities 2024: Stories of Resilience and Inclusion

On the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, we honour the strength and determination of individuals who overcome challenges daily. At Ninestars, we’re proud to share the inspiring stories of our team members, whose resilience and achievements reflect our commitment to inclusivity. These stories remind us that inclusion is not just a policy but a way of life that empowers everyone to thrive.

Read their powerful journeys of perseverance and self-belief.

The International Day of Persons with Disabilities, celebrated on December 3, is a powerful reminder of the resilience and talent of individuals who overcome barriers daily. It’s a moment to amplify voices, celebrate diversity, and inspire action toward creating opportunities that empower people with disabilities to lead and thrive.

At Ninestars, this celebration is personal. Our employees featured today exemplify strength and determination, inspiring us with their incredible journeys. By sharing their stories, we honour their contributions and reaffirm our commitment to an inclusive workplace where everyone can shine. Today and every day, we celebrate the courage and perseverance of people that make a difference, not just in our organization, but in the world.

Elumalai P. – In Pursuit of Excellence and Growth

Personal and Professional Journey
Elumalai’s association with Ninestars began in 2007, fueled by a strong academic foundation with a B.Sc. in Mathematics and an M.Sc. in IT. Over the years, he has taken on challenging production tasks and successfully managed complex projects for our Media Clipping team. His relocation to Bangalore in 2018 marked a new chapter in his life, and he found Ninestars to be a supportive partner in his journey, both professionally and personally.

Overcoming Challenges
Relocating to a new city brought its own challenges, but Elumalai adapted seamlessly with Ninestars’ support. As a person with a disability, he faced societal attitudes that could sometimes be limiting, yet his focus on self-reliance and determination helped him overcome these hurdles.

On Inclusion
“Inclusion means creating an environment where everyone is treated equally, regardless of their abilities,” he shares. “At Ninestars, I’ve experienced respect and fairness, which reflect the company’s commitment to inclusivity.”

 His Message to the World
“Self-confidence and self-love are the most important things in everyone’s life. Believe in yourself, pursue your dreams, and never let challenges define your limits.”

Hemalakshmi P. – Believe in Oneself and Embrace Opportunities 

Personal and Professional Growth
Hemalakshmi has embraced every challenge as a chance to grow. She has learned new technologies, adapted to evolving roles, and thrived alongside a supportive team. Her journey at Ninestars is a reflection of her resilience, determination, and openness to learning.

Daily Motivation and Advice
Hemalakshmi draws motivation from her ability to contribute meaningfully to her work. “Believing in oneself is the foundation of success,” she says. Her advice to others is to remain persistent, seek support when needed, and embrace opportunities with confidence.

On International Day of Persons with Disabilities
“This day is about celebrating diversity and raising awareness for an inclusive world,” Hemalakshmi shares. She emphasizes the importance of creating a meaningful impact, such as improving accessibility and fostering understanding through action.

Vignesh S. – Strength in Adversity

A Fresh Start After Challenges
Vignesh’s journey took a dramatic turn after a spinal surgery, which altered his physical capabilities. Joining Ninestars marked the beginning of a new phase, offering him stability, encouragement, and the chance to rebuild his confidence.

Workplace Inclusion
“To me, inclusion means being treated as an equal and valued member of the team,” Vignesh shares. The respect and care he receives at Ninestars have been instrumental in his recovery, he mentioned, helping him find purpose and motivation in his work.

On International Day of Persons with Disabilities
“This day is a reminder to support individuals with disabilities and inspire them to pursue their dreams,” he says, highlighting the importance of empathy and action in fostering an inclusive world.

Rishi Bharath – A New Journey

Starting Fresh
Rishi Bharath has just started his journey at Ninestars, and he views every day as an opportunity to learn and grow. Though new to the workplace, his enthusiasm and adaptability shine as he navigates his role and adjusts to the office environment.

Hopes for the Future
“I’m still in the early days, but I hope to grow and achieve my goals here,” Rishi shares. He looks forward to growing in his career and contributing meaningfully to the team.

These stories exemplify the resilience, determination, and strength of the Ninestars team. They remind us that inclusion is more than a policy—it’s a practice that empowers individuals to overcome barriers and thrive. This International Day of Persons with Disabilities, we celebrate the extraordinary contributions of our team members, reaffirming our commitment to fostering a workplace where everyone has the opportunity to succeed.

NFT Culture: Hype or Favourable?

With a hefty $91.8 million price tag, The Merge (collection of art series) is the most expensive NFT sold so far. This series was created by renowned digital artist Pak making him arguably the most valued living digital artist. 

NFT culture survives at the intersection of art, culture, and the blockchain. Investors and collectors seem to be pouring money into non-fungible tokens, tokenizing anything unique as an Ethereum-based asset. In fact, sales are believed to surpass last year’s total by going up to $90 billion by the end of 2022 despite NFT prices seeing a downturn of late.

But what’s really manoeuvring the market and what makes people want to invest millions of dollars in NFTs? 

Getting to know NFT

According to Wikipedia, “A non-fungible token (NFT) is a record on a blockchain which is associated with a particular digital or physical asset. The ownership of an NFT is recorded in the blockchain, and can be transferred by the owner, allowing NFTs to be sold and traded”.

NFT is simply any form of digital asset that symbolizes real-world objects like art (any form), music, in-game items, and videos. They are traded online using mostly cryptocurrencies and they are encoded with blockchain.

Cash (physical money) and cryptocurrencies are “fungible,” meaning they can be exchanged or traded for one another (which defines specific value for specific items). They’re also equal in value: one rupee is always worth another rupee; one Bitcoin is always equal to another Bitcoin. The nature of Crypto’s fungibility makes it a trusted means for carrying out business transactions and administering them on the blockchain.

Even though cryptocurrency and NFT have almost the same encoding software the similarity ends there. Every NFT has a unique digital signature that makes it rather impossible to be exchanged or considered equal (hence, the “non-fungible” moniker). For example, an NBA Top Shot gif is not equal to a cat gif just because they’re both NFTs.  For that matter, even two seemingly similar NBA Top Shot clips aren’t necessarily equal to each other.

But, anyone can view the individual images or even the entire collage of images online for free. So why are people crazily spending millions on something they could easily download, screenshot or just access online?

Because an NFT allows the buyer to own the original item (OG is the new trend!). But that’s not the only reason, NFTs contain built-in authentication, which offers proof of ownership. Collectors and investors value the “digital bragging rights” more than the piece itself (most of the time).

Essentially, NFTs are like physical collector’s items, but only in digital form; i.e., when a collector auctions a painting, instead of getting an actual painting to hang on the wall, the buyer gets a digital file instead. They also get exclusive ownership rights. NFTs work with the concept of ‘one owner at a time’, and their adoption of blockchain technology makes it easy to verify ownership and transfer tokens between the owners. The creator of the art piece can store specific information in an NFT’s metadata in the file, like their signature.

NFTs are offering more power and control to content creators than ever before…

Looking beyond the hype and the price tags; NFTs could represent a huge opportunity in content marketing. Each token has an exclusive and transparent ID which can be used to track and control them. This paves the way for fundamental changes in the relationship between content creator, consumer and brand.

Traditionally after the first sale goes through, the artist or the creator’s journey ends there with their item. Once the art has been sold, the transactions usually end there. The buyers, however, could sell the same work of art again at higher prices if there is demand and if the buyer is willing to sell. However, there is one more way that the non-fungible tokens help the creator and is called ‘NFT Royalties’. NFT royalties give a certain (usually specified) percentage on the sale price every time the NFT creation is sold on a marketplace. These are automatic pay-outs to the author made on repeated sales. The percentage of the royalties are coded into the smart contract on the blockchain of the NFT. Each time a secondary transaction takes place, the encoded smart contract ensures that the terms of the NFT are fulfilled to the dot and the specified cut of the royalty percentage on the sale price goes to the artist who created them. 

This works equally well for digital content, gaming accessories, physical items, real estate etc. NFT royalties are a never-before-opportunity to maximize the earnings of artists and content creators and to give them what is their fair share of profit. 

NFT has the power to triangulate the relationship between artists, collectors, and the brand to create a strong community that benefits all.