Mumbai train blasts survivor, biking hero & para archer, Mahendra hopes to inspire others who have been through a similar experience.

An avid biker and para archer, Mahendra Pitale’s magic hands have created idols out of the mud. His skills had earned him enough to run the family. But a blast in a train at Mumbai’s Jogeshwari station in 2006 changed everything. He lost his left hand in the Mumbai local train bomb blasts, but that did not deter Mahendra Pitale from chasing his dreams.

While narrating the incident Pitale said: “It’s been 10 years and I still recall the whole incident which took the lives of 188 people on that day. On July 11, after leaving my office in Vile Parle, I was on my way to the station. A bomb had exploded in a local train at Mahim, in which I too was travelling. Impact of the blast was so intense that I flew off the compartment and later discovered myself lying on the platform in a pool of blood. I held onto my crushed arm till I reached the hospital. When the doctor said it could not be restored, I was shattered,” he said. For months Pitale was in depression, as he lost his job in a glass sculpting and interior design firm. 

Mahendra lost his left hand—and his zeal to live. A passionate biker, Mahendra decided to hit the road with bullet motorcycle after 12 years with his prosthetic arm. He participates in bike rallies for good causes and volunteers for NGOs that work for the betterment of the disabled. “While working with the NGO I came across people who don’t have both their legs and are wheelchair-bound. There are people who are visually-impaired and have to be dependent on others for their needs. This made me realise that I have not suffered as much as these people must be going through,” he said.

Mahendra’s indomitable spirit was the one that helped him overcome his fears and bring normalcy in life again. “This prosthetic arm has now become a part of my life and I feel nothing unusual about it now. Yes, I cannot work with the same speed as I used to earlier” said Mahendra. However, with the help of a prosthetic arm and a positive attitude towards life, he started a fresh. Currently, he works with the Western Railways as a grade IV employee.

At present, Mahendra is now trying to improve his archery to get into the Paralympics.

 More importantly, he finds time to counsel those impaired by accident or disease. “I go to such traumatized people and tell them my life story,” he said. 

“I tell them to have faith and there is something better in store for them,” said Mahendra.

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