Karishma Arora does not fit the typical exam topper profile of a student with her nose stuck in her books around the clock. Instead, the Muzaffarnagar resident spent one day a week in the Capital, to be a professional classical dancer.
“Every Sunday morning my father drives me to Delhi and I spend the day with my Kathak guru Geetanjali Lal ji, who is a Sangeet Natak Akademi awardee. In the evening he drives me back. So the whole day is gone without looking at my books,” Karishma told The Hindu in a telephonic interview. She has been in professional training since Class VI, and also spends 1.5 hours every other day in serious practice.
Stress buster
“It was good to take regular breaks from my studies and to have dance as a buffer,” she said, adding that she hopes to use the experience in her future career as well. “I want to do Psychology Honours and hopefully specialise in dance therapy.”
Apart from Psychology, the all-India first rank holder studied English, Economics, Home Science and Fine Arts in Class XII. She scored 499 out of 500.
Credited mother
Karishma credited her mother, a homemaker, with helping her to choose humanities and encouraging her interest in dance. She hopes to join her elder sister in Delhi University in a few months’ time.
With dance classes, there was no time for extra tuitions, but Karishma relied on consistent self-study through the year, with help from her teachers at SD Public School.
Her advice
“I don’t believe in rote learning, it’s important to understand the concepts for yourself and then be able to express them,” she said, offering advice for future aspirants. “I expected a good result, but becoming an all-India topper is a totally different feeling,” the excited teenager signed off.
