Loving care: Kayalvhily (centre) feeding her stepfather muruku as her mother looks on. — LIM BENG TATT/The Star
BUKIT MERTAJAM: Having experienced hardship as a child, and missing the Deepavali celebration last year due to her mother’s ill health, all is looking a bit rosier now for P. Kayalvhily, 25, as she gets ready to welcome the Festival of Lights.
Kayalvhily, who bagged a gold medal in archery at the Malaysia Games (Sukma) 2022, said her mother A. Kanakeswarie, 61, was suffering from arthritis and unable to walk much last year.
“This year, my mother’s health has improved a lot and she is now also able to make some Deepavali cookies.
“Furthermore, my elder sister Kanimoly, 27, who works in Johor, will be back to celebrate with us,” she said.
For Deepavali, the family looks forward to their mother’s thosai and chicken curry.
Kayalvhily said her stepfather G. Geeva, 57, a former caregiver at a home, suffered a stroke three years ago and is now paralysed on his right side.
“Besides having to care for my stepfather and mum, I also have to juggle my university studies and a part-time job.
“I make sure they take their medications and also drive them to the hospital in Bukit Mertajam for their regular check-ups,” she said.
The Bachelor in Management undergraduate at Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) will be graduating in 2027.
Life has been tough for both the sisters as their biological father left the family when Kayalvhily was a baby.
When she was 12, Kayalvhily and her sister were sent to the Ramakrishna Ashrama Orphanage after her mother fell sick and had to be warded at a nursing home.
“While we were at the ashram, I took up lessons in archery and I have been an enthusiast since,” she said at her family’s rented flat in Jalan Kota Permai, Bukit Mertajam.
Besides attending classes at USM, Kayalvhily also works part-time jobs managing booths at public events.
“Although I don’t earn much, we are managing somehow as my stepfather receives social welfare payments and my sister sends money back home to support us,” she added.
