Not losing sight of the goal

Achievers

Sandhya M Bharadwaj
Sri Kumaran Children’s Home
Marks scored  617

»Sandhya M Bharadwaj stood first in her school and is one among the toppers in the State. Like many others, Sandhya too says she didn’t go for any extra coaching but chalked out a systematic schedule and stuck to it.

Academics is not all, Sandhya’s an ardent cricket freak and doesn't miss a single match on TV. “For a change, I am no Sachin Tendulkar fan. I support the Indian team and want them to excel in every match,” says Sandhya, who is an IIT aspirant and has been going for coaching classes for more than a year now. “The competition is killing. There’s a general feeling that those from an SSLC background are not as competitive but I don’t agree with that. All you have to do is to stay focussed and you’ll come out in flying colours,” reasons Sandhya.

Her visibly excited father says, “We’ve always given her the freedom to do whatever she wants. We want her to be a good human being and make the best of the opportunities in hand,” says her father Manjunth A V.
She adores Chetan Bhagat and has read almost all his books and watched the movies inspired by his book. “He writes in a simple conversant style,” she wraps up. 

Mohan Kumar S
The Bangalore Education Society
Marks scored 605

»He would study in front of the idiot box watching cricket matches and during the breaks. And that is what propelled Mohan Kumar S into topping his school his year. He’s one of those galli cricketers and adores Sachin. “I missed seeing Sachin when he was in the City. I always try to imitate his batting style and I think he is a brilliant batsman,” says Mohan, who wakes up at 3 am to dive into the books.
“I just can’t study at night, I study early in the morning, between 3 am and 6 am and that time is sacred for me,” he says. Mohan’s father wants him to become a doctor but he has other plans. “I want to become a mechanical engineer and have started working towards that,” says Mohan. His father Sriram S says, “I have never pressured my child. He has complete freedom to do what he wants and I think children will perform best when they’re left by themselves,” he says.
Sriram’s friend Vijeth R N says, “Mohan used to teach me and whenever I did badly, he gave me the confidence to do well. There’s so much positive energy I draw from him,” says Vijesh, who is his classmate and constant companion. Commenting on the spate of suicides he read about in the papers, Mohan says, “young people must understand that this is not the end of the road and that if you have an aim in life, then getting ahead isn’t too tough,” he says.
Nina C George