Joy in poverty! As part of the Udyam Scholarship program, we conduct a test, an essay competition and a personal interview. Here are some snippets of the interviews held recently to identify Udyam Scholars 2013-2014: A frail looking girl comes in, takes her seat and is being asked general questions. We ask her what she wants to do. And she says with confidence that she wants to become a Doctor. She articulates why she wants to become a Doctor and how she wants to help the poor people and all that. One of the members has a question on her family background; the child breaks down. No amount of comforting helps her. We give her water. No help. We give her more time. That doesn’t help ether. Then, we warn her the interview will be called off…….slowly but surely the girl is able to speak again. Hesitantly, she says….”Sir, my father sells “Bajjis and Bondas, on the roadside” (Fritters for those not familiar with Kannada). “Why do you have to cry for that?” asks a member. “Sir, I am ashamed to admit that fact. My classmates and friends tease me if I tell them that”. Inside me I know, how much joy her father is giving to hundreds of people who eat his bajjis and bondas! Well done my child. You are the second topper in the school; you have done well in your test, essay and interview. You are very “RARE” indeed. Wish you the very best. Another frail looking boy walks in and is asked to take a seat. The drill of asking questions continues. Time to ask him what he wants to be when he grows up. He is very bold and with great confidence he says he wants to be an Astronomer! Why Astronomy we ask. He says he wants to discover something new in space. A colleague reminds him, that whatever is to be discovered has already been and there is nothing new. He says, “Sir that is not correct. The space is infinite and there are many more to be discovered.” Impressive. Another member asks him about the status of Pluto and why it has been removed from the list of planets. His answer deserved a (Junior) Nobel prize if there was one! Beautiful. Another member asks him about how he plans to become an Astronomer. He rattles a list of institutions in India where they offer Programs at undergraduate, graduate and PhD levels. Very impressive! We tell him when children are aspiring to become software engineers since it is a highly paying job, his answer; The joy of discovering something unknown is more than the money a software engineer earns! We were all floored with his response. We ask him about his family background. “Sir my father is an Auto Rickshaw Driver and he has managed to complete only 10th standard”. Wonder where these kids get their inspiration from! Good luck to you my child. You are the school topper; you have done very well in test, essay and interview. May you be “VICTORIUS”. Talking to these children, who are supposed to be from the underprivileged sections of society, strengthens my belief in the theory of “Karma”. For an outsider, they are from the poor class, they live in below normal conditions, and their parents do not have education and paying jobs. How these children rise above all the negative things………..is a mystery. For me, I do not want to see them as children of Auto Rickshaw drivers or people who sell street food. I see that in spite of their backgrounds, from which they come, they study well, they are articulate and moreover they are passionate! Perfect candidates for Udyam Scholarship program. Cheers, Phanibhushan Sharma
Posted on: Sat, 29 Jun 2013 08:09:24 +0000
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