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  Life   More Features  22 Mar 2019  Living the dream

Living the dream

THE ASIAN AGE. | NIRTIKA PANDITA
Published : Mar 22, 2019, 12:43 am IST
Updated : Mar 22, 2019, 12:43 am IST

Mumbai’s Nilam Tambe, the first Indian recipient of The Prince’s Trust Award, looks back at her journey.

His Royal Highness presented the joint award to Ahmad Aburumman and Nilam Tambe in recognition of their life-changing journeys  —@PrincesTrust
 His Royal Highness presented the joint award to Ahmad Aburumman and Nilam Tambe in recognition of their life-changing journeys —@PrincesTrust

Last year after completing her graduation, Nilam Tambe’s life came to a halt as she struggled to find a job and help her daily wager father. A resident of Bhandup, Tambe’s life changed after she attended a job fair in the vicinity that finally gave her a job that took her to the Buckingham Palace in London.

“After finishing my Bcom, I was looking for a job and was rejected on basis of either, no experience since I was a fresher or the fact that I couldn’t speak English. At times, the jobs were in far off places,” recalls Tambe who was handed a Magic Bus pamphlet at the job fair and the number caught her eye.

The 22-year-old was introduced to Magic Bus programme that provides skill development to youth to find employment. “The training course is of two months wherein we are given job skill training,” she says. It was during her training programme at Magic Bus that they launched a tie-up with Prince’s Trust International (PTI) — a charity founded by Prince of Wales in 1976 to help young people who are unemployed or at risk of exclusion, get their lives on track.

Under this programme, she went for a two-month training course. “But unlike Magic Bus, they have the employer ready with them and one is given training according to the job in hand,” she explains. Now, Tambe works as a teacher at an elementary school not far from her home. “I joined there in October and at first, we had on-the-job training. We got paid for that too,” says Tambe who has two younger siblings.

It was this struggle of her that caught the attention of the Trust that selected her for The Prince’s Trust and TKMaxx & Homesense Awards that recognises young people who have succeeded against the odds, improved their chances in life and had a positive impact on their local community.

“After the selection of my story they came to my area and shot a video of me. They then sent it to London and I got the opportunity to visit the UK and the Buckingham Palace,” she laughs.

From sitting on a plane for the first time to meeting the royals, it has been a surreal experience for Tambe. While they were not allowed to take pictures inside the palace, the whole idea of being there has been a roller coaster ride. “Everything looked so elegant. Things that I had not even imagined in my wildest dream were in front of my eyes. I got the chance to meet the Prince himself. He spoke to me for a brief moment and asked how was I feeling being a part of PTI. I told him that they are very supportive. He also asked if I would recommend PTI to others, to which I proudly replied yes. He then praised me and wished me best for my future,” Tambe reminisces her encounter with the Prince.

As to her future plans, she wants to pursue her masters in commerce and work towards a BEd degree in order to continue teaching. For now, she along with her father will look after the education of her siblings. “The reason I changed my field was because I needed a source of income. Now, all I want to become is a teacher,” she asserts.

What really puts Tambe at ease is that she is now able to lessen her father’s financial burden. “My parents are elated. They are just saying that ‘Our daughter has made us proud’. Sometimes good things do happen in life that we never had thought about,” she concludes.

Tags: prince’s trust international