Mumbai, India

Expanding Your Future

Azharuddin Shaikl

Azharuddin Shaikl

Sports come naturally to Azharuddin, known as Azhar to his friends– he has received seven different certificates for his athletics, and won silver and gold medals for cricket. He participates in karate after school, and he has been chosen as Captain for multiple teams. Azhar has always aspired to be a professional cricket player for the national team for India, because he saw a profession using his physical strength as his only path. However, in his words, “BTE has changed my way of thinking about the future. Before BTE, I thought I would be a cricketer when I grow up, but now, I know that I have many more options.”

The BTE India program has provided Azhar with the opportunity to cultivate his many other talents besides his athleticism. The 2016 Alliance Building & Training Session (ABTS) in particular gave Azhar the chance to practice his language skills with other students from around the world. He speaks both Hindi and Urdu, and is able to read and comprehend English, Marathi and Arabic. Before the conference, Azhar  stated, “I want to attend ABTS because I want to gain knowledge from other student ambassadors,” which is exactly what he did, communicating in and listening to the languages that the other students spoke.

Azhar’s strengths show through both in and outside of school, and BTE is helping him to reach his potential in all aspects of his life. No matter what Azhar decides to do with his career, his future is bright, and BTE will continue to help him shine.