Anisha Dhami : Entrepreneurship for rural development

Anisha Dhami completed a Bachelor of Commerce program from Kumaon University in 2023 and aspires to receive an MBA from a good educational institution. She presently lives in Haldwani, a town in the foothills of Kumaon Himalayas. 

A native of Sheri village near Chaukori, Anisha hails from a farmer’s family. She has a brother and sister. As agriculture could not provide sufficient income for the family, her father went to Mumbai to work for a private company. The stressful working conditions in an alien city worsened his ill health. Because he suffered from diabetes, he could not withstand the rigours of a city life and returned to his village a few years back. 

Anisha and her elder sister studied at Himalayan Inter College (HIC) in Chaukori. The sudden demise of her father and the dire financial situation made their lives difficult. Her mother continued to work the farm but the family could not meet the educational costs from the meagre agricultural income. 

Fortunately for the Anisha sisters, Himalayan Education Foundation( HEF) provided scholarships to pursue their education at HIC. Anisha completed her Intermediate  education in 2020 and went to Haldwani for her bachelor’s degree in commerce.    

At present her brother is working as an educational counsellor at Noida, Delhi. Her sister got married and moved to her in-laws’ place near Kapkot. Currently she is working as a teacher in a local school. While doing her degree program, Anish also completed a certificate course in Financial Accounting.

Her favourite subjects are Marketing management, Economics and Law. She wants to become an entrepreneur and ultimately start a business of her own. That has been her dream since her school days. As a prerequisite she would like to pursue a business studies program next and acquire an MBA degree.

As a fitness freak, Anisha is a regular at the gym and works to achieve a sound mind and a healthy body.

She relaxes by singing and dancing. Her leisure activities and hobbies include choreography and script writing. She also makes music videos and creates reels on instagram. In her spare time she expresses her creativity on social media.

Anisha loves to read romantic fiction and she adores books like Pride & Prejudice. Her favourite characters are Romeo & Juliet. She is a fan of the popular singer Arjit Singh and enjoys travelling.

Talking about the challenges faced by the hill communities, Anish mentions casteism, overpopulation, inadequate educational facilities, low income for farmers and increasing costs of living. She says employment and good education facilities will provide better life prospects for the people in the Himalayan hills.

Recalling her time at the HIC, Anisha remembers her helpful and kind teachers, her naughty friends, campus events and celebrations and her stint as  the  co- curriculum head of her school . The most memorable occasions are when she  received compliments for her dance performances. She misses those days of her schooling at the HIC. “HIC is an institution that provides resources for polishing your talent. Success comes with persistent hard work, learning from failures, and from overcoming hurdles.”

As for the advice to the current HIC students, Anisha says, “Make the best use of your time in your school because it’s a crucial phase of life where one learns and grows in life. 

Study hard with a lot of ‘masti’ (joy) and make sweet memories. Leave the school with knowledge and skills and that will be helpful in further education and life too. There may be some days when you’ll say to yourself ,”I can’t”. But yet stand firm and say, “yes, I will”. Then success is not far away.”

Let’s wish Anisha Dhami great success in pursuing her dreams. We hope to see her develop her own business in rural Kumaon, a business that will thrive and help the hill economy. 

Contact Anisha Dhami:

Phone: 8938097477

Email: aradhayadhami@gmail.com

Instagram:  Aradhiya Dhami