The Place I Call Home

For many graduating students this year, the Aga Khan Academy Hyderabad is like a home away from home, holding 12 years of fondest memories. Riva Manjiyani, from the Diploma Programme 2, feels the same about the Academy, as she prepares herself to step out of its protective walls into the broad world outside. From arriving in a yellow school bus as a young child to waving goodbye at the same roundabout, Riva amassed a treasure trove of memories, experiences and learnings for over a decade in the Academy.

Her most cherished memories lie within the walls of the Junior School. “It was where it all began,” Riva explained. “In Junior school, I learnt to bake bread, performed at the Academy’s first-ever musical concert, planted saplings and nurtured them, built my dream house out of recycled materials, and learnt to weave stories with the sky as the limit to my imagination.” The Academy enabled Riva’s dreams and moulded her into a strong woman determined to fulfil her dreams.

Riva finds it fascinating to finally step into the shoes of her graduating seniors from all the previous years. She always wondered what it would be like to graduate. Now, as she is all set to graduate from the school, Riva said, “It is a bittersweet feeling. When I look back at the 12 years I spent in the Academy, I desperately want to go back in time and live the moments yet again.”

While she is preparing to step out into the new world beyond school life, Riva’s excitement and anxiousness are walking hand-in-hand. Riva continued, “Now when I am only a few days away from graduating, it feels surreal. As a kid, I was fascinated by the idea of graduation and growing up. Now that I have reached the walk of my life, I feel the void the Academy would leave in me. It feels like a herculean task to move on from the place I have been calling home for the past 12 years.” Riva finds it extremely hard to bid adieu to the school but she is not leaving empty-handed. She is carrying with her the fondest memories of a home and a family that she will cherish forever.

Interviewed by Amulya Madasu, Diploma Programme One