A Story Of Nanhikali Shwetta Patil

Shwetta Patil, who hails from Worli in Mumbai, is one vivacious all-rounder. Be it academics, poetry recitation or slogan writing Shwetta has done well in all of them. Moreover, this Nanhi Kali has done all of this despite the fact that she comes from an economically disadvantaged background.

Shwetta’s father Mr. Sakharam Patil works as a helper in a Handloom shop and earns a paltry salary per month. Her mother Sangeeta runs a mess (where Shwetta also lends a helping hand). Shwetta’s five-member family, which also includes her brother, lives in a tiny ten by twelve room, that too on rent in a slum. Added to her economic woes was the fact that she was a hyperactive kid who found it difficult to concentrate on her studies.

But Project Nanhi Kali came forward to provide not just material but also academic and social support to the girl. When Shwetta became a Nanhi Kali, her behaviour changed and since then she has been a regular attendee of the Academic Support programme run by the Nanhi Kali team. Her Nanhi Kali tutor in the Academic Support Centre had to employ innovative teaching methods in order to calm the naturally vivacious and talkative girl and get her to focus on her studies. The tutor’s efforts to channelize Shwetta’s efforts into useful channels yielded results pretty quickly. She aced the scholarship exam, she appeared for in 2009 in which she passed with distinction. In the recently concluded annual exam, she scored above 92% and ended up as one of the toppers in her class. She has also won numerous prizes for her participation in extra-curricular activities including the first prize in a mandal level poetry recitation competition, the second prize in a mantra recitation competition and in a slogan writing competition among many others.

It must also be mentioned that Shwetta has developed leadership skills and takes up responsibilities in many situations. She makes sure that the other girls feel comfortable while participating in the group learning process and motivates others to regularly attend the Academic Support Centres.

Shwetta’s parents are rightfully proud of their daughter’s achievements and encourage her to continue her studies. Shwetta’s schoolteachers are quite appreciative of her and express admiration for the efforts put in by the Nanhi Kali team too. Her class teacher remarks, “I can see a bright spark in Shwetta following her joining the Nanhi Kali academic centers. She has become more studious and there are marked behavioral changes in her in the sense that she is much more mature now.”

Shwetta herself has this to say, “The learning experience which I get makes the subjects very interesting and it always motivates me to study harder. I was able to pass the scholarship exam with distinction because of the efforts put in by the Nanhi Kali team. I am confident that with the help of the Academic Support Centre I can ace the scholarship exam in class VII also. And yes, thanks to the Nanhi Kali team I was also able to meet the great cricketer Sachin Tendulkar!”

We congratulate this Nanhi Kali on her successes and wish her all the luck for her future endeavors.