Daringbadi: Chasing a dream against all odds is easier said than done. Children growing up in the shadow of poverty face a host of challenges that their counterparts from affluent families never experience. These children, residing in disadvantaged neighbourhoods with substandard housing, inadequate medical care, and under-resourced schools face innumerable hurdles to excel in life. However, only some of them beat all odds and realise their dreams while others fail to make it. Sunima Pradhan of remote Silikuti village under Simanbadi panchayat of Daringbadi block and Sradhanjali Nayak of Rushiguda village under G Udayagiri block are two such girls who have braved all obstacles and made the district proud with their achievements. Sunima has been able to show case her hidden talent by doing her post-graduation in Odissi dance at Utkal Sangeet Mahavidyalaya in Bhubaneswar. Similarly, Sradhanjali who had a penchant to become a Tablist has managed to do her post-graduation in Tabla from the same institute.
However, their talents would have gone waste sans the support of cultural group Sanskar Bharati. Sunima, who comes from a very poor background, had never thought in her wildest dreams that she will be able to learn and excel in Odissi dance. Sunima nursed an interest in dance since her childhood but never got the help to advance it further. She completed her primary education at Dakarbadi near her village. Later, she studied at Kasturba Gandhi Girls’ School at Daringbadi and Government Upgraded High School at Simanbadi till Class X. She tried to get higher education but lack of money proved to be a barrier to achieving her dream. However, fate smiled on her when she performed at a cultural programme at her village. The officials of Sanskar Bharati noticed her performance and advised her to learn Odissi dance and take higher education in the dance form. However, her father Sanjiv Pradhan being a small-time carpenter and a marginal farmer lacked funds to support her daughter’s dreams. Sanskar Bharati officials came to know about her problem. Niranjan Panda, the tribal folk art coordinator of Sanskar Bharati, decided to help her and provided funds for taking admission at Utkal Sangeet Mahavidyalaya in Bhubaneswar.
Not only Sunima, but Swastika Pradhan of Takarmala village in Sriniketa panchayat and Devaki Mallik of Dumudupanga village under Raikia block were also helped by Sanskar Bharati in taking admission at prestigious institute.
Similarly, while male Tabla players are more in number than women, Sradhanjali has learned the instrument by doing her post-graduation in Tabla from Utkal Sangeet Mahavidyalaya with the help of Sanskar Bharati. All these girls hail from very poor backgrounds but have been able to realise their dreams with the help of Sanskar Bharati. The girls, when return home on holidays, help their parents with household chores as well as in turmeric and vegetable cultivation.