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Bianca Milani with the children at the Ranjan family residence. Picture by Hardeep Singh |
Ranchi, Aug. 29: Tears had welled in 18-year-old Bianca Milani’s eyes as soon as she had alighted at Ranchi railway station two days ago.
The teenager from Sao Paulo, Brazil, was moved to see poor children begging. “We do have beggars in Brazil, but not children,” she said. But she loved shopping at Big Shop, GEL Church complex and, of course, the city’s greenery.
Milani is on a two-year visit to the city under the Youth Cultural Exchange Programme started by Rotary International. During her stay, Milani would take cookery classes in Brazilian dishes and also learn to prepare Indian food and pick up the nuances of culture.
Accommodated at the Ashok Nagar residence of Rotarian Sujit Ranjan, for two years, Milani was seen enjoying with the children.
Tomorrow she would go to Surendranath Centenary School to take admission in Class XI. She studied information technology at PUC College in Brazil. “I would either opt for commerce or arts,” Milani told The Telegraph in broken English.
“My mother always wanted me to visit India, a desire which she herself could not fulfil. We always had an impression that India would be full of cows and elephants,” she added. What she misses most are her friends and nightclubs. “I always keep in touch with my friends and sometimes I feel sad for not being able to go out,” Milani said.
Milani loved eating roti, kheer and puri at the Ranjan household. But referring to the Ranjans, she quickly added: “As against our small families in Brazil, I was amazed to see 11 people staying under the same roof here.”
The Ranjans, too, were all praise for her. “She is a very simple and disciplined girl. Yesterday she tied rakhis and also put mehendi. She is like our daughter,” said Ranjan’s father, N.R.P. Singh.
Meanwhile Ranjan’s wife Nishi termed it as a “great opportunity” for exchange of culture and values. “Even my children have taught her to play carrom and on the other hand, Milani is teaching them football and basketball,” she added.
Ranjan said they would bear Milani’s schooling expenses under the Youth Cultural Exchange Programme.
“Before the foreign students are sent to India, names of three to four candidates were sent to us, out of which Milani and a girl from Japan, Ami, were selected,” the Rotarian said. Ami has been put up at Rotarian Arvind Pandey’s house and would be taking admission in Class XI in Delhi Public School, Ranjan added.