Campaigning in the narrow lanes of Bagmari’s Kathogola locality in Maniktala, Shrreya Pande is in constant motion, greeting voters and accepting offerings.
Pausing to talk with My Kolkata, Pande spoke about her vision, mission, hydration tips and more.
For her, confidence, she says, comes from a deep sense of belonging with the soil. “This entire Bengal is my land. I’ve grown up in Maniktala,” she said, adding that it is important to assert that “this is my country, my state, my constituency”.
When asked about the legacy and learnings of her father, the late Sadhan Pande, she keeps it simple and direct. “Consistency, extreme level of hard work and people are the last word,” she said.
She elaborates with a striking metaphor. “People will make you sit on the chair, make you sit on the floor. You must not sit on the chair. Even if they make you sit on the chair, sit on the floor. You can fall from the chair, but you cannot fall from the ground.”
Campaigning through Kolkata’s heat is no easy feat, but Shrreya Pande is taking it in her stride. Diet plans, she laughs, are impossible right now. “If someone gives me a green rasgulla, I will eat it. Food is a form of love,” she said. Her only constants are hydration, sunscreen and rest. “I’m sleeping stress-free and well.”
Summing up her campaign with a message to the youth of Kolkata, she said, “Be a human first. It’s a very dark world out there. Try to be the light.”