Idukki siblings hear after Mammootty initiative surgeries

Siblings Mikhael and Mihok from Vandiperiyar in Idukki will celebrate their first Onam after regaining the ability to hear, following free cochlear implant surgeries. The brothers, born with hearing impairment, were treated under the ‘Kaathodu Kaathoram’ initiative jointly run by actor Mammootty’s Care & Share International Foundation and Rajagiri Hospital in Aluva.

Their parents, Sonu, a daily wage worker, and Bobina, first noticed hearing problems when elder son Mikhael was two. Doctors advised early implantation for both children, but the family could not afford nearly Rs 25 lakh for the treatment. They registered under the government’s cochlear programme and waited. Bobina then read about the initiative in a newspaper and contacted Care & Share. Onmanorama reports that the family had even taken to singing on Cheruthoni’s streets to raise money.

The surgeries were led by Dr Rajesh Raju George at Rajagiri Hospital. Mammootty also sent the brothers kasavu mundus and shirts featuring mahabali along with a radio. The family plans to relocate to Kochi for a year to continue speech therapy and follow-up treatment.