Digital Arts Academy for Deaf (DAAD) was launched four months ago and has already developed 20 videos in sign language, most of which explain basic tools such as Photoshop, and skills like video-editing, Indian Express says.
Two young couples in Kerala have joined hands for a special project inside the government-backed Technopark in Thiruvananthapuram that aims to build an online link to a better future for the hearing impaired. Along with three others, they are the brains behind Digital Arts Academy for Deaf (DAAD), which is being incubated by the state government’s Kerala Start-up Mission to develop course videos in sign language to teach basic IT skills to the hearing impaired.
But for this team of seven, it’s as much professional as it is personal — all are hearing impaired. According to Kerala Start-up Mission business manager Prajeeth Prabhakaran, DAAD is “unique in every respect”.“In the state’s start-up ecosystem, we don’t have such innovative ventures to address the learning requirements of a niche audience. They have also proved that hearing impairment is not an obstacle to run a venture. Within a few months into the launch, the firm has got an American client. They are getting a lot of support and advice from the Mission,’’ he says.