“If you ask me what’s the one thing that I like about myself? I would say that I’m the most confident and I always stick to my passion, no matter what. Since childhood, I was always conscious of this one thing – Never do anything without liking it. I always dreamt of doing what I love, and nothing can be more blissful than doing what you enjoy. I was a studious kid until grade 7th. I always used to stand first in class and in all extracurricular activities.
But with time, I realized my passion and my potential. I found joy in extra-curricular activities, to be more specific, public speaking. It always felt nice to go onto the stage, hold the mic and receive applause. I never missed any competition in school and college, I always used to win, and I represented my district at the state level twice in debate competitions.
I always used to skip classes to take part in competitions, and my parents were worried that I would lose my marks in the board exams. I managed to top the 3rd position, even without much preparation and studying, though my school teachers and parents were disappointed that I lost the distinction in just 3 marks, I was happy because I never really cared about my marks.
My grades dropped down during my PU, I didn’t enjoy going to college, because I was not interested in the science stream. I still remember, I once got 18/100 in my math. But still, the entire college knew me because of my stage presence.
After 2 years of going to a college that I didn’t like, I finally got to Choose my interest stream of education to study. Then Covid happened, and I again lost interest in studies though I always took distinction. I found out that I was different, and I always wanted do only creative things in life. I always looked up to my passion, I started writing poems whenever I felt low, I began to perform at the open mic events, and the journey was magical.
My account is the best literature professor at college by name Madhusudan Reddy was very supportive, he once gifted me a saree worth ten thousand rupees, because I wrote a poem on saree and he liked my poem, he even used to compare me with great English poets like Shakespeare.
Every time I felt low in life, I used to remember his words and kept myself motivated with positivity. Unlike other students, my focus in my final year degree was different, I started to work on my skills instead of my marks, I did internships, and gained some experience, which finally led me to a job at IITM research park, my very first job with no working experience or a master’s degree.
I believe it’s only your talent and skills that give you recognition more than your actual degree. I started to write when I was barely 12, and I published my first self-published book at 15 and my second book at 17, for which the Indian Peace University awarded me The Young Achiever Award. I also took part in India’s first-ever virtual reality show to find the best speaker in the country called Super speaker season 2 where I was among the short-listed top 1000 out of 2 lakhs + registrations.
It’s been two months in this beautiful Chennai, and nothing has changed in me. I managed to find organizations that conduct open mic events and perform whenever there is an event. Also, I started to volunteer to teach school kids every Sunday, I visit the beach often to watch the sunset and pen down poems.
New city, but, the same me. No matter where you go if you are passionate about something, you will always find a way to cherish them. Someone looked up at me and said you’re just 21 and you have done so much, I smile and say this is just the beginning.”
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