Sini Srivastava and Shreyansh Jain
FOR 16-YEAR-OLD Shreyansh Jain, scoring 80.4 per cent in his Class X board exams is a tiny step towards an independent life. A scoliosis in his spine— a condition where the spine curves towards one side— has affected his mobility but he hardly ever let that in his way.
In January last year, Shreyansh underwent two major surgeries, setting him back at school by two months. But when he was back at Gopi Birla Memorial School in Walkeshwar, he slogged to make up for lost time.
At home, he crawls to get around. When in school, he has calipers to help him move. But none of it is a burden for the 16-year-old. Shreyansh has his future planned out: He wants to be an entrepreneur.
“I want to pursue a course in commerce, followed by an MBA degree. Thereafter, I wish to start something of my own,” said the son of a businessman father and a homemaker mother.
“We have always instilled a sense of independence in Shreyansh. We have taught him not to let the disability deter him from achieving anything,” said Anita, his mother.
Fifteen-year-old Sini Srivastava of St Joseph’s High School, Panvel, beat the blues— quite literally— to score good marks.
Stricken by clinical depression last year, Sini scored a commendable grade point average of 9.2 at the Class X CBSE Exam. A resident of New Panvel, Sini fell unconscious in school a year and a half ago, and her parents knew then, that something was wrong. After visiting two doctors, the second a psychiatrist, she was diagnosed with clinical depression.
Although she was prescribed medication immediately, the ailment decreased her attention span, and her attendance in school dwindled. When she did go to school, she would often have to return home due to fainting. “We told her it would be okay to drop a year, but she simply refused. We were apprehensive but with support from her school and friends, she did it,” said Sini’s mother Mahima.
Sini was on heavy medication during the exams, she adds. Her story throws light on the rising incidents of depression among school students owing to pressure.
Sini resorted to a unique study method. “I would study for fifteen minutes, take a break for five and then study for fifteen minutes again, due to my short attention span. I started studying only two months before the exam,” explains Sini, who was delighted with her results.
Painting, reading and writing helped her cope with depression as well. Sini is still undergoing treatment and plans to opt for the science stream.
