Streetside tuition, pavement home Madhyamik launch pads for Sonia, Priyanka
Times of India | 3 May 2025
12 Kolkata: They slept on the pavement, did odd jobs during the day, faced domestic abuse and had to look for new spots to study every night. Yet, these never broke their spirits. Not allowed to attend classes even though they were enrolled in schools, and forced to study under street lights, Priyanka Pramanik and Sonia Ghosh cleared Madhyamik on Friday. Priyanka scored 212 and Sonia 195.
"I was registered in a school but never went there. Instead, I washed utensils at eateries," said Priyanka, who stays under Tollygunge rail bridge. "Being abused by my father everyday, I did not think that I would ever have the opportunity to study," said the Kalidhan Instituion for Girls student who loves to paint.
Sonia recollected how she felt sad when she saw girls her age going to school. "I used to roam around the whole day and was falling in bad company," said the 17-year-old who lives on the premises of a Southern Avenue public toilet. A student of Tollygunge Girls High School, she wants to be a tattoo artist.
Their lives started changing in 2019 when they met Mitrobinda Ghosh, who taught them on the pavement and gave them food and clothes.
The duo's life started changing in 2019 when they met Mitrabindu Ghosh, who started teaching them on the pavement, provided them with food and clothes, and even encouraged them to pursue their hobbies. To Priyanka and Sonia, Ghosh is ‘Rainbow Aunty'."When we met aunty, we hardly knew the basics of maths. We did not know how to read or form sentences. She taught us everything with patience," said Sonia. After long arguments with the duo's parents, Ghosh could get the girls to school in 2021., we started going to school," said Sonia. Mitrabindu had to
Priyanka shared that Rainbow Aunty had to "literally fight with her parents and convince them to let her resume school and continue education." She started going to her previous school again in 2021, and in 2024, she changed her school to Kalidhan Institution for Girls in Class 10.
Barely a year before the Class 10 exams, the two girls had been evicted from the pavement at the intersection of Southern Avenue and SP Mukherjee Road. "There were days when we struggled to even find even a spot on the pavement to study. We sat on broken vans to prepare for our exams on those days," said Priyanka.
Ghosh, secretary and project director of Tollygunge Ramdhanu Social Welfare Society, was overwhelmed with the success of the girls. "I met them on the streets in 2019, and their enthusiasm for art and education drew me towards them. I started visiting them along with my daughter. At first, they were hesitant to study, but I was determined to bring the light of education into their life and started teaching them on the Southern Avenue pavement. I got help from some volunteers who came forward to teach them. I got immense support from the local councillor, Manisha Bose, who helped me by providing space, often opening boulevards for my classes," said Ghosh. "Recently, I rented a floor of a house in Southern Avenue, where the girls stay from morning till night."
The two 17-year-olds hope that their success would be examples for girls who are often discouraged from pursuing education and face tremendous challenges in life. "My brother is getting the opportunity to pursue education at a residential school, but I was never allowed. In today's time, equality should prevail, and we can set examples in our community," said Priyanka. Sonia said they had already started identifying children, especially girls like them. "Everyone should get a chance to pursue their dreams," added Sonia.
Councillor Bose said: "I was impressed by the work of Mitrabindu and her dedication to not only educate these children but also to train them in art and dance. I have seen these girls studying on the streets. It feels great to see them pass the first big exam of their life."