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The wife of a poor pani puri
vendor has become a software engineer in Infosys, thanks to her husband's support.
Sheik
Salar, 26, a street hawker, used every rupee he earned to help his wife Fatima
Bibi Sheik, 21, achieve her academic ambitions. And it was not in vain. Fatima
completed her course at Gayatri Vidya Parishad College of Engineering with high
marks and was given a plum posting by the software giant in a campus selection.
In fact, she is the first student from the college to get into Infosys. Fatima
and Salar stay in a slum at Rajendranagar. While Fatima went to college, Salar
roamed around the city with a pushcart selling puffed rice, corn, chilli bhajjis
and pani puri, earning Rs 150 per day. When she was married off to her distant
relation Salar by her parents in 2001, Fatima was just 15 and felt that she would
never achieve her dream of being a software engineer.
"I did not
want to marry since I wanted to study further and achieve something," she
said. She was crestfallen since Salar merely nodded when she told him about her
dreams. But his nod
meant a lot and he started savingmoney to help her study. By living frugally,
Salar somehow got together Rs 60,000 to pay Fatima's fee for the first and second
year of her engineering course.
The Andhra Pradesh State Minorities Finance
Corporation helped the couple pay the rest of the fee. "At the time of our
marriage I was not sure how serious Fatima was about her studies," said Salar.
"But when I realised that she got 536 marks in her SSC exams and stood first
in her school, I decided to help her study."
The pani puri vendor was adamant that her future should
not get spoilt because she married him.
A junior college in the
city provided her free intermediate education. She secured a decent rank in the
Eamcet exam and opted to join the electronics and electrical engineering branch
in college. "We decided not to have kids till she got a good job," said
Salar. "For this, I took much criticism from my parents." Fatima's
eyes moisten when she talks about her husband. "You can't imagine the hardships
he suffered to help me," she said. "In the last six years, he was my
strength. He sacrificed all his joys for me."
"Fatima was always first in our class," said Asha Kanthi, her classmate.
"We did not know her story then. Now she is our inspiration." Though
happy at the turn of events, the couple is a bit sad when thinking about their
being apart for three months, when Fatima would go to the Infosys campus in Mysore
for training. Have they ever quarrelled? "When we have issues, we sit together
and discuss and sort it out," said Fatima.
She plans to take her husband along with her when she gets her posting. Salar
too is proud, for he has proved that behind every successful woman there is a
man.
Never loose heart and be determined & firm
for your missions of life.
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