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21 APRIL, 2026
Real lives, reel story A Hillside filmmaker has turned her experience as an aged care worker into a short film exploring a poignant love story of a couple navigating the effects of dementia. Deepthy Nirmala spent 17 years working in aged care and decided to create a heartfelt story to promote conversation around the impacts of dementia. “Dementia deeply impacts not just the individual but their loved ones,” Nirmala said. “I wanted to highlight that dementia is a lived experience.” Nirmala’s two passions - people and stories - led her to filmmaking as a way to share the real-life experiences she witnessed in aged care. The short film, titled “A Long Goodbye,” is beginning its festival run. A private screening brought the cast, crew, and local community together, sparking meaningful discussions about dementia. “There wasn’t a dry eye in the room,” Nirmala said. Her goal is for the film to raise awareness and open dialogue around the profound effects of dementia on individuals and their families.
Deepthy Nirmala. (Damjan Janevski) 546391_04
Help Emi stand again In her 10 short years Emeliah, or Emi, from Bacchus Marsh has already endured more medical battles than most people will face in a lifetime. Living with her mum and two brothers, little Emi battles severe scoliosis, a condition which has controlled her daily life since birth. Multiple hospital visits, check-ups, and surgeries have plagued most of Emi’s childhood, and she now needs life-altering surgery to save her from permanent paralysis. Despite everything, Emi’s mum Tjanna Roberts said the brave youngster has shown nothing but courage. As a mum, Ms Roberts said the journey has been taxing, yet she’ll always be there
At just 10 years old, Emeliah has endured more medical treatments than most adults. (Supplied)
for little Emi. “It’s just our life, we have to do it. We don’t know any different as these medical needs are all we know,“ she said. On top of supporting Emi through her medical journey, Ms Roberts also provides full-time care for Emi’s two siblings with special needs.
“They’re my babies and they need me,” Ms Roberts said. “At the end of the day it doesn’t matter how I feel, as long as they’re okay. “As a mother you’re always going to put your children fi rst. Right now I’m just trying to focus on them and how they’re feeling.” Emi’s journey began at just two years old, when she started full-time bracing, before undergoing her fi rst spinal cord surgery to correct a tethered cord. Despite years of casting, bracing, and treatments, Emi’s spine has continued to worsen and eventually the pain restricted her from being able to walk. “It’s been really traumatic for Emeliah. When she was little she was in full body casts and braces,” Ms Roberts said. “She’s constantly in and out of hospital
having checks. She’s struggling mentally with it all.” When she was six, Emi spent months in hospital undergoing halo gravity traction, followed by the insertion of growth rods which were meant to help straighten her spine gradually as she grew. For a time, the treatment worked, and Emi was able to walk again without the use of a wheelchair. However, doctors discovered the rods had failed, with Emi’s spine now tethered around them, making them unsafe to remain in her body. The failed rods need to be urgently removed and new rods inserted, as well as a full spinal fusion, a surgery no one should need until adulthood. Continued: Page 5.
Helloworld Travel Bacchus Marsh
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By Jack O’shea-Ayres