Rashi Singh
“Being from a small town in UP, me and my family didn’t have much idea as to what IIT or JEE really was and what it really meant. So I went to Delhi and started my preparation. I was spending a great time there, not having the slightest hint as to what was going on in my family, until covid stuck and I had to return.
My dad told me that he will come to pick me up as using public transport was risky at that time. I waited and waited for him, his phone was switched off, so I called my mom. The lady who had never travelled alone took a cab, travelled at night and came all the way from home just to pick me up. The good thing that happened that day was that we were not afraid to travel alone anymore.
Turned out dad was busy at work.
When I reached home, I realized that in spite of being financially stable dad wasn’t happy with spending a huge amount of money on my higher studies. He used to think that all this was a waste of money; well the delaying of exams and my staying at home worsened the situation. Every day I used to hear ‘ban gayi engineer’, ‘nahi hone waala tujhse kuch’ and at times threats like ‘shaadi karwa duga’ and so on.
Things were bad, to say the least. Every night I used to cry alone, every moment became so hard to bear, and studying, that was almost impossible. Exam was near and at this point I had two choices. Either I could’ve easily given myself a thousand excuses of not being able to study or continued my preparation despite everything.
But I knew I wanted to do it and now all I had in my mind was, ‘Ye mera exam hai, Ye mera syllabus hai, aur meri responsibility hai ise karna’ …and here I am.
I remember on the result day I rechecked the result a hundred times, for I couldn’t believe that it was really me and that I made it.
All this time mom you were always there for me, always supported me, always loved me when I cried. No words could describe how much you really mean and what you really did. You might be having no formal education, but to me mom you are the most educated and intelligent person in the world.
Now I wonder if the ‘shaadi karwa dunga’ threat is valid or not. The bar is far too high.” — Rashi Singh
