Mumbai : Nikita Krishna Khardikar has conclusively proven the adage that where there is a will there is a way. She scored 90.8% in Class 10 examinations; but, more important, she was studying in Michael High School, Kurla, where her father has worked as a peon for over 20 years.
In fact, her father had to drop out after Class 10 since his father lost his job when the textile mills closed in Mumbai in the mid-1980s. Nikita’s mother has also not studied beyond class 10 and is a homemaker.
“Nikita used to study late in the night – till 1 or 2 am,’’ said her father Krishna. “That is after she did her daily homework,” he added. By virtue of being a staffer in Michael High School, Krishna used to get fee concession, though he had to spend on his daughter’s coaching class fees. “I am proud that Nikita has been studying in our school since kindergarten. She is an all-rounder. What she has achieved is a reward for her father. Nikita would never feel ashamed that her father swept and mopped the floor,’’ said Jean Gomes, Principal of the school.
Now, Nikita wants to become a collector and make her community and family proud. Hiren Mistri, the son of a tailor, meanwhile, has scored 91% marks. For the last one year he had been doing a part-time chore as a newspaper hawker: He would go from doorstep to doorstep to distribute newspapers, to manage his expenses. This would keep him engaged from 4 in the morning till 8 am. His school was in the afternoon and he would go for tuitions before that.
Incidentally, his brother is studying computer science engineering and his sister has just passed class 12. Hiren went to MMN Dugad Gujarati High School, Virar, and is undecided whether he wants to become an automobile engineer or a doctor.
