The television was on since morning at BF 107. A little before noon, Soumi Chowdhury was heard shouting that one Sougato Chowdhury’s name was being announced as the country topper in ICSE examinations. “But we could not make out if it was me. So we opened the laptop and went online for confirmation. When the aggregate showed against my roll number, my mother was weeping in joy. I was dumbstruck,” recalls Sougato. The rest of the day transpired in running from one TV studio to the other, giving interviews. “The next day we went to Mocambo to celebrate.”

Sougato has scored an eye-popping 99.2 per cent, catapulting his name to the top of the national merit list along with two others from Maharashtra, shattering the all-time record. “This is god’s blessing,” says mother Soumi. “Thanks to my son’s result, treble the number of colleagues know me now than they did so long in my 10 years at IBM,” laughs father Suvagato. 

The student of St. Xavier’s Collegiate School feels one factor that helped was the selection test happening two and half months in advance, earlier than other schools. “That left us with more time to revise.” He went to the same tutor — Ajanta Munshi in AE Block — for physics, chemistry and mathematics. He also had a tutor each for Hindi and for computer application.

“I studied for five to six hours during the study leave. I sat for some mock tests too.” He admits to having ignored Hindi since the aggregate, he knew, would take only the top five subjects into account. So how did he score 95 in Hindi? “I had studied it for a month in Class XI and on exam-eve, I read the text books.”

The Chowdhurys have been residents of Salt Lake since 1990. Till Class V, he was in Apeejay School, Salt Lake. “It did not have Plus II then. So I shifted to St. Xaviers,” he says.

Neighbours have been calling up and calling in. “A couple, who are friends with my grandfather, gave me a book and a cake. The block association congratulated me as well.” 

With school set to re-open on June 15, the family took a well-earned break, holidaying in Dehra Dun and Mussoorie. “These last couple of years we could go nowhere,” mother Soumi says. 

And once he settles into the ISC groove, he wants to resume training in his favourite sport — chess. “I was a member of Dibyendu Barua Chess Academy in FD Block from Class V to IX. Then I had a private coach coming at home till the summer vacations in Class XII and took part in state championships as well. I had even just got my Federation Internationale des Echecs (FIDE) rating. I need to start playing tournaments again to defend that.”

SIX LETTERS CROWN SLUM GIRL’S MADHYAMIK SCORE

Soft-spoken, frail and diminutive, Monalisa Mondol is the second of the three daughters of Atul Mondal, a meat-seller of Mahisbathan. She wants to be a doctor or a mathematics teacher. And she is on her way to achieving her dream.
Fifteen-year-old Monalisa has passed Madhyamik examination with six letters, aggregating 574 out of 700. A student so long in Krishnapur Chanchalkumari Balika Bidyalay, she has now got admission in Bagbazar Multipurpose School for Girls. 

She had scored 547 in the selection test. “My aim was to do better in the finals.” Teachers of my school had created a routine for me. Ma (Mitali Mondol) woke me up at 4am before she started on her household chores and left to cook in BJ and CJ blocks. I studied till 9am and then helped out Didi with housework. Then I’d watch a bit of TV and have lunch. In the afternoon, I’d study for another couple of hours before taking a break to go for a stroll in the neighbourhood. In the evening, I’d study for 6pm to 11pm.”

Studying in the evening was often difficult. “We have three rooms of which the one facing the street is used as my father’s meat shop ever since he stopped finding work as a mason. It hampers my concentration if the TV is turned on in the other room. Even if my family reduced the volume for my sake, who would tell the neighbours? They all relax by watching TV after the day’s work.” With the hutments standing cheek by jowl, the effect is as bad as multiple TV sets blaring in one’s own house. Add to that the din of regular brawls.

Monalisa got full support from her mother. “She saved from her income to arrange for four tutors. I had one tutor since Class VII to teach all subjects. But that became insufficient once I reached Class X. My father has studied till Madhyamik. He did not object.”

Her result has created a stir in the neighbourhood. “The other day, the parents of a Class VII student came to ask if I could teach their son,” she smiles shyly. Her elder sister, who flunked Higher Secondary examinations last year and now helps with domestic chores, was too depressed to appear this year. “Now she is saying she will take the exam next year.” 

Monalisa has taken up science and is aware that she needs to take expensive tuitions if she has to do well in Joint Entrance Examinations but for now she is thinking of her school education needs. “I have become associated with the NGO Prayasam and they have offered me an annual fellowship of Rs 6,000. That should cover my fees,” she says.