Many students, who did exceptionally well in the class 12 Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) examinations, the results of which were announced on Sunday, refuse to be categorised as “bookworms”. Among the toppers are singers, dancers and sportspersons, who say these activities are as important as academics.
Star singer
Aaditi Pradeep of Delhi Public School, east Bengaluru, topped the humanities stream in her school by scoring 93%.
In her school and elsewhere, she is more popular for her voice. Aaditi has released an album and has performed at the Carnegie Hall in New York after having won the second place in the western classical category of the American Protégé International Singing Competition. She is also a trained Bharatanatyam dancer and plays the piano. Aaditi plans to pursue a career in law and political science.
“I want to take up a career that has both academic and extracurricular dimensions, because I believe an all-round focus is necessary to build one’s personality,” she said.
Sports champ
A star basketball player, Kiran M.H.M. of National Public School, Rajajinagar, scored 95.4% in the science stream. He was part of the team that bagged the first place in the youth international tournament held in Malaysia recently. “Sports allows me to lower academic stress. I head to the gym before school and devote time to academics in the evening,” he says.
Creative streak
Sanjan Das, the all-rounder from National Public School at Koramangala, is a regular in cultural events and theatre projects. He has directed and written scripts for many plays, and has been offered a conditional admission into the University of Cambridge. He is trained in Kalaripayattu, a martial art form of Kerala. Sanjay has keen interest in robotics, is a midfielder in his football team, and is part of the relay team also.
