"Your circumstances do not define your identity."
She grew up in a village in Jamui, Bihar, the second of five daughters in a family where her farmer father raised seven children on limited land and limitless belief. The village had plenty of opinions about families with five daughters giving advice to stop studying, get married, and settle down.
Nargish Parween heard it all and kept going.
Her determination was quiet but unwavering. After her Class 10 exams, she began teaching at a private school for ₹3,000 a month, not because she had given up on her dreams, but because she wanted her younger siblings to continue their education. She taught throughout the day, studied whenever she could, and put her family’s needs first.
After Class 12, financial pressures forced her to pause her education. It wasn't a choice she wanted to make, but the reality of supporting a large family on a small income. For many girls in her village, such a pause became permanent.
Then she found I-Saksham Education and Learning Foundation.
I-Saksham's fellowship gave her passion a direction, teaching children effectively and creating change within communities. As an Edu-Leader Fellow, she completed her undergraduate degree alongside her work. She later became a Buddy, mentoring twelve to thirteen fellow Edu-Leaders, facilitating sessions, and helping them navigate grassroots education challenges.
The fellowship took her beyond her village, representing i-Saksham in Mumbai and Singapore, where she shared rural girls’ realities and discovered how far her voice could reach.
When she applied to Azim Premji University in Bhopal for a Master's in Education, she had to convince her family to let her move to another city alone. Social expectations made the decision difficult, but she sat with her parents, explained her aspirations, and earned their trust.
University brought new challenges. English, academic reading, and expressing her ideas in seminars were unfamiliar. She asked questions, sought support from teachers and peers, and immersed herself in fieldwork across Madhya Pradesh, Varanasi, and Chhattisgarh.
But the hardest chapter came when someone attempted to blackmail her family by using photographs of her sisters to intimidate them through online harassment. While the village atmosphere urged silence to avoid shame, her father stood firm: if they had done nothing wrong, they should raise their voices rather than lower their heads.
Nargish filed a police complaint and, with guidance from i-Saksham, pursued the matter legally. She won. The experience strengthened her belief that victims are never the criminals and that silence does not protect you but your voice does.
Today, she works with Karunodaya Foundation on adolescent girls' leadership, school libraries and keeping girls connected to education. She grew up in a village where five daughters were seen as a burden. Today, she is helping those daughters and countless others, believe otherwise.
Nargish Parween heard it all and kept going.
Her determination was quiet but unwavering. After her Class 10 exams, she began teaching at a private school for ₹3,000 a month, not because she had given up on her dreams, but because she wanted her younger siblings to continue their education. She taught throughout the day, studied whenever she could, and put her family’s needs first.
After Class 12, financial pressures forced her to pause her education. It wasn't a choice she wanted to make, but the reality of supporting a large family on a small income. For many girls in her village, such a pause became permanent.
Then she found I-Saksham Education and Learning Foundation.
I-Saksham's fellowship gave her passion a direction, teaching children effectively and creating change within communities. As an Edu-Leader Fellow, she completed her undergraduate degree alongside her work. She later became a Buddy, mentoring twelve to thirteen fellow Edu-Leaders, facilitating sessions, and helping them navigate grassroots education challenges.
The fellowship took her beyond her village, representing i-Saksham in Mumbai and Singapore, where she shared rural girls’ realities and discovered how far her voice could reach.
When she applied to Azim Premji University in Bhopal for a Master's in Education, she had to convince her family to let her move to another city alone. Social expectations made the decision difficult, but she sat with her parents, explained her aspirations, and earned their trust.
University brought new challenges. English, academic reading, and expressing her ideas in seminars were unfamiliar. She asked questions, sought support from teachers and peers, and immersed herself in fieldwork across Madhya Pradesh, Varanasi, and Chhattisgarh.
But the hardest chapter came when someone attempted to blackmail her family by using photographs of her sisters to intimidate them through online harassment. While the village atmosphere urged silence to avoid shame, her father stood firm: if they had done nothing wrong, they should raise their voices rather than lower their heads.
Nargish filed a police complaint and, with guidance from i-Saksham, pursued the matter legally. She won. The experience strengthened her belief that victims are never the criminals and that silence does not protect you but your voice does.
Today, she works with Karunodaya Foundation on adolescent girls' leadership, school libraries and keeping girls connected to education. She grew up in a village where five daughters were seen as a burden. Today, she is helping those daughters and countless others, believe otherwise.
This story was told by Nargish Parween and published with their permission by the What's Your Story editorial team.
