Meet, Shikha, one of our colleagues here at Arcgate – a calm, composed, cheerful woman – going about her life like any other normal person would. But behind this calm, cheerful composure lays many a tales of struggle and hardships. At a young age, she probably had endured what others may not endure in their whole lifetime.
Born as a second child to her parents, Shikha is 6 years younger to her sister Anjali; however, both she and her sister were children of a troubled marriage. With little to no support from her husband or in-laws, Shikha’s mother had a very rough life. From managing all the household chores to handling all the emotional abuse – she was on the receiving end of it all. But when it came to the education of her children, Shikha’s mom took a bold step and didn’t give in to her husband’s demand of providing her daughters sub-standard education. She decided to send both her daughters to her parents; where their maternal grandparents took care of their education and upbringing. This didn’t go well down with her husband and their marriage got to a point of no return. They were soon divorced; leaving her mom unprepared for what lay ahead. Yet her mom didn’t give up and took the decision of working at her father’s company to fend for herself and her daughters.
Being a first-hand witness and a passive victim to all the hardships her mother went through; Shikha herself turned out to be a survivor. Of course the child within her till date misses and yearns for a normal childhood, love and care of both her parents; but life isn’t what we always want it to be. So Shikha keeps making peace with that fact time and again; pushing herself to continue to make her and her mom’s life better with things she can control and achieve.
With her mom as her role model, she learnt to overcome all the things that held her back. She gave her best shot at everything she did – be it education, sports, or work. And at times she was doing it all together; in the sense she was she started working simultaneously to be able to pay for the education she was getting. Nonetheless, she topped at school, went on to become a district level champion at kick-boxing (talk about getting knocked down or knocking down everything that comes in your way), got a promotion within 6 months at work because of her dedication and willingness to excel.
But then life has its own way of hitting you hard – her maternal grandfather, who was the pillar of their strength passed away and so did her father (whom she secretly hoped to talk to someday to get some answers). This loss hit her hard in the gut, not only that, they could no longer stay in their grandparents’ house and had to move out to a less desirable rented place. Yet she didn’t let it dissuade her from her life goals. Instead, she focused harder on finding herself a better job which could help her realize her dreams. Her quest to find the perfect workplace ended when she joined Arcgate in May 2011. This was the turning point, she was hoping for her in life. She found the perfect atmosphere, a perfect place to showcase her talent and skills which were all well rewarded and recognized at Arcgate.
There is no manual for how to respond when life throws lemons at you without warning; but Shikha with her grit and perseverance – has finally managed to reach a ‘happy place’ in life. She was able to buy a house – yes, a place of her own she could finally call, ‘home.’ It was possible only because she worked hard enough and never gave up. And in that process, she made living on a budget her second nature. She taught herself to be self-sufficient and a hands-on person, from fixing furniture to home maintenance , she did it all and at times challenged herself to fix it on her in order to spend as little as possible to save up for her dream home.
The house is a testament of her grit and determination and Shikha’s life story is a living example that if a woman puts her heart and mind onto something or decide to take things in her own hands, she can conquer anything and achieve everything. Shikha is currently living in her new house with her mother and is looking forward to the next chapter of her life. She is better prepared to now move forward in life and while doing so she wishes to inspire and help other women realize their dreams.
Thank you, Shikha, for being this wonderful strong woman that you are. You clearly are the pride of Udaipur!
