Puslinch boy with muscular dystrophy makes his acting debut

Young Puslinch boy makes acting debut From CTV Kitchener’s Krista Sharpe: A young actor from Puslinch is hoping to provide representation in show business for others like him.

PUSLINCH — A young boy from Puslinch has made his acting debut and hopes more kids like him are represented in movies and TV.

Nylan Parthipan, 10 recently made his TV debut, and also does voice acting on a few different programs.

“It’s fun,” he said. “I like it because you can be anything or anybody.

“More kids with disabilities should try more things.”

Nylan adds he’s proud to show off what makes him unique.

“Nylan was born with a condition called muscular dystrophy,” said Thadshika Parthipan, Nylan’s mom. “It affects his skeletal muscles, he’s not able to walk or run.”

The 10-year-old started acting in 2019 after advice from his physiotherapist.

“Her daughters are in acting and said ‘oh I came across this, they’re looking for a child with a disability’ and we said okay, sure, why not?” said Thadshika.

Nylan says he continues to audition because he didn’t see enough kids on TV like him.

“The representation for a child with disabilities, but also as a person of colour, it’s important for us,” said Thadshika. “He was turned down because the script was not written for a child with a disability, so that was hard for us to see at the beginning.”

For his voice work, his dad built him a sound booth and the pandemic allows him to record from home.

While acting is his passion now, it will likely only be a hobby as he grows older and pursues his goal.

“I want to be a scientist so I can find a cure for muscular dystrophy,” said Nylan. “If you put your mind to anything, you can achieve it, anything you want.”