“JOURNEY OF A STUDENT FROM THE EXPERIMENTAL BATCH”
SAKSHI CHANDEL, 4 BPTH
Welcome to this eighteen year old girl’s boring yet livable life. A girl who has just gotten out of a TERROR – #NEET. Well I guess all of us have been through this phase and no one wants to live this again right?
Coming back to what I want to say – NEET ho gaya, ab aaya “THE COLLEGE” life, which I practically never had because of the ever famous “integrated system”, so I was very excited to have the most amazing and happening college life. Little did I know that it would be a, “You’re in a professional medical college!” type life.
Being an ambivert and of course being that one student out of the first 100 student batch was exciting yet confusing. New college, new people and an endless amount of confusion!
When I saw people in first year, it was very difficult to just go and initiate a conversation randomly with anyone because I always had a fear of being judged. The fear of being left out, the fear of being targeted, the fear of so many things, kabhi darr tha padhai na kar paane ka, toh kabhi darr tha Anatomy na samajh aane ka. But yahi darr ke saath, I somehow managed to come out of the phase where I thought twice before speaking, to the phase where I went all out, having conversations with people. It was difficult because this was something out of my comfort zone but since 2018-2022, it has been an incredible journey. A journey that indeed taught me so much about life, a journey that helped me identify my own abilities and strengths, a journey that made me realize that I’m capable of doing so much more than what I actually think I can.
From being just a student who sits and attends lectures to being the CR who runs here and there in search of laptops, reminding teachers for lectures to being the General Secretary and getting the opportunity to work with the best team, to organize the best events, which almost every student waits for…
It’s been one hell of a journey. Above all, this journey gave me those gazillion memories which will always stay with me and those wonderful friends who made college a better place to live (or shall I say they made college much more tolerable?), the ones who stood by me no matter what the situation was, so if there’s something I’m taking back with me, it is “The Somaiya Family“. We fight, we argue, we laugh, we cry, but we’ve learnt to come back stronger, always!
“ARTISTIC SKATING GAVE ME AN IDENTITY”
KHUSHI BHATKAR, 1 BPTH
Hi! This is Khushi Bhatkar. Today, I get the opportunity to share the experiences I’ve had in my artistic skating career. So, first of all, let me introduce to you what artistic skating is. It includes jumps, spins, and many other stunts, performed on skates.
The journey started when I was in the third grade. My parents made me join roller skating classes during my summer vacations. That was the time I fell in love with this sport. For one year or so, I was taught basic roller skating. During that time, I used to admire my seniors doing stunts on skates. After a year, the head coach taught me how to do a spin, and thus began my
actual journey of artistic skating!
Further, I participated in various district and state-level competitions. Winning those competitions was an amazing feeling. Eventually I participated in the nationals, where I represented Maharashtra, but I could not win. I had gotten so used to success that I didn’t know what losing was. However, that day I learnt the lesson that winning is not important, rather learning from your experiences and having self-satisfaction is more important.
After a year of hard work, I won my first national level Artistic Skating Championship. This was the most memorable day of my life, where I represented and won for my state. Later, I won many state-level competitions and again a national level competition. I started doing many stage performances and got much appreciation for the same. The principal of my school gave me
the opportunity to perform on skates in front of the entire ICSE Council at Kolkata in the presence of Mr. Pranab Mukherjee.
I have had many ups and downs in my skating career. I remember not having time to play with my friends. It was just school, skating, athletics and studies for me, but the best part is that I used to like it. I feel very nostalgic today, writing about my artistic skating experience and therefore, it would be wrong if I did not mention the people who have supported me -my parents, without whom this journey would not have been possible, my coach and my seniors, who made me better in my craft, my teachers and my principal. I would like to end by saying that artistic skating gave me an identity! It has moulded me into a better person.
I would also like to share my acting experience. I used to participate in many plays, and fashion shows during my school days, many talent shows and dance competitions as well. Winning those was always an amazing feeling.
After my tenth standard, I started preparing for competitive entrance exams. However, at the back of the mind, I wanted to explore this field of showbiz. After my entrance exams, I had a break for almost five months. Now was the time to explore!
My younger sister is fond of dancing and acting. There was this casting director who had called us for a meeting to cast my sister. She looked at me and suggested I try giving auditions. After giving that audition, I was selected to star in an advertisement for Nestopar, an education app!
My happiness knew no bounds the day I saw myself getting featured in a digital ad. Later, I got the opportunity to do a cameo in a Ranbir Kapoor film. The film is yet to be released!
Acting was, however, just a profession I wanted to explore. It is a passion or a hobby for me and I would love to take up more projects in the future, but being a physiotherapist and serving society would always be first on my list. Thus, the break after twelfth standard gave me a chance to explore this field and I would love to explore further.
“THE EXPERIENCE I WOULDN’T TRADE FOR ANYTHING IN THE WORLD”
DHVANI NIRMAL, INTERN
Chanderkhani Pass (12010 ft): Where it all started, when my dad took me for a trek there in May 2016. Unlike most parents who take their child for a relaxing/luxurious trip in the 10 days’ break that they get between 11th and 12th standard, not to mention the preparation for NEET. Amidst it all, my father took me on a trek.
Not only was it my first trek but it was also the most difficult one I’ve done till date (even though it wasn’t that difficult) because I had no clue what I was in for and had gone with the mind-set that it was going to be an easy-going trip. I complained and cried throughout the trek day 4 onwards, but my dad and fellow trekkers kept pampering and motivating me (perks of being the youngest one in the batch). I vowed to never go on a trek again. Cut to 17 April 2022 – I’m graduating from the Basic Mountaineering Course at Nehru Institute of Mountaineering, one of the most prestigious Mountaineering Institutes in Asia.
I will not lie, the training at NIM was as challenging as one would expect from an institute under the Ministry of Defence. The day started at 04:30 AM in the morning and ended at 9:00 PM in the evening. Walking 10-12 kms daily with a 20kg rucksack became normal there. After spending the first 10 days at the NIM Campus and Tekhla Rock Climbing area, we moved for the Base Camp. NIM (4,300ft) – Tel Camp (8,200ft) – Gujjar Hut Camp (11,150ft) – Base Camp (12,500ft). The route from Tel Camp to Gujjar Hut Camp is the most difficult one, that day tests your strength, endurance and will power more than anything else.
Once at the Base Camp, we pitched our tents and got some time to ourselves. From the next day onwards, we had our Icecraft and Snowcraft training for the next 7 days, the areas for both being 2 hours away from the camp. Headache and Nausea because of Acute Mountain Sickness was a common picture in the initial days at the Base Camp. Lectures and rope knots exams were scheduled in the hours after lunch.
The last day at Base Camp was scheduled for height gain – Base Camp to Macha Dhar (15,600ft) and then back to the camp. After spending 10 days at the Base Camp, we descended back to the camp with a night’s halt at Tel Camp.
The 28 days I spent at the Nehru Institute of Mountaineering are the days where I’ve had to work harder than I ever have in my entire life – to keep at par with the physical training aspect, to learn as many techniques as I could and mostly to not give up and take it one day at a time. The course tests you every day, starting from morning PT on the first day until the graduation ceremony. Despite everything, it is still the experience that I wouldn’t trade for anything in the word.
What started as a 10-day holiday and a trek where I cribbed and cried the most, led me to the happiest day of my life so far. From Chanderkhani Pass in 2016 to Basic Mountaineering Graduate in 2022, the journey has been a long and challenging one, but also the one I’m most proud of.
“I SHALL CHERISH THESE FEELINGS FOR THE REST OF MY LIFE”
HEILY THAKKAR, 4 BPTH
Theatre is something that I’ve always wanted to explore. During the lockdown when all of us were looking for answers and introspecting about a lot of things, I decided to join an online theatre acting workshop. I’m happy to share that I went from being very nervous and anxious on day 1 to ending it with a feeling of happiness and content.
I performed my first on-stage play on 5th December, 2021. Before getting up on the stage, I could literally feel my heart pounding through my chest. My hands were sweating because of the anxiety and fear of all sorts of “what ifs?”. A few moments before my entry, while in the wings, I tried to take deep breaths and got into my character.
Finally, the moment came, it was my turn. As soon as I stood in my position, the lights came in and I forgot about everything and started performing. I will always remember every moment of that day, the way I felt, and I shall cherish these feelings for the rest of my life. After that day, I’ve grown to realize that theatre is my hobby.
Apart from our academic pursuits, all of us should also be involved in doing something creative and artistic.
So, what are you waiting for? Just take the plunge!
“AUTOGRAPH PLEASE!”
REVATI PATIL, 1 BPTH
You might spend years perfecting every stroke of your signature or you might just squiggle a couple of loops and call it a day, but either way it belongs to you…
I knew I wanted my signature to be unique, something that would include not just my name or initials but also my passion, my profession.
So on a random day, I asked my dad to help me out with my signature and while we were at it, he explained to me how the signature is a person’s identity, how it defines one’s character, and how it would be ideal if I made it considering my passion towards public services, and helping people deal with their pain and sorrows.
So after a few attempts, we came up with a signature. The initial of this sign had to be the standard symbol of Medicine field, the symbol of The Red Cross Society in a zigzag-looking way, more or less like a tree, followed by heartline of an electrocardiogram.
This signature was created to have a distinctive feature so that only I could recognize it as mine.
As many people often ask me about my signature and what it actually means, I’d like to explain its meaning – the initial indicates art and the heartlines indicate life, thus quoting, “life is art and art is life”.
The entire signature including the PqRS curve, which also includes the initials of my family members, without whom everything is incomplete.
Though many people are emotionally attached to their handwritten signature, to me it holds a special significance as a reminder in itself. In my own words, the initial zigzag may define chaos, the struggle to find a way and finally living it, the graph of life has its highs and lows, complexity, but that’s what defines life – though it may be full of surprises, you have the zest to live it fully, and maybe we are meant to learn it this way. Because life without ups and downs is a flat line of death.
As they say, “Presence of a heartbeat indicates there is still time for your dreams.”
So even if it’s messy, imperfect and weird, the perspective is that in the end it’s beautiful and most importantly, it belongs to me.
Glint 2022 