BETIA: Sisters Rani (15) and Renu (13) grew up in Chautarva village in Bihar's West Champaran facing barbs from neighbours and relatives for being girls. Today, the teenagers run their home by repairing motor vehicles on the highway.
Rani and Renu's father Vikram Sharma is a mechanic. He used to run a small automobile repair shop from their home on the Champaran highway. Four years ago, when a medical condition left the right side of his body paralysed and the family started struggling for basics, the sisters decided to take things into their own hands.
Till then they had never stepped into their father's shop, forget repairing a vehicle. "But we were sitting on a highway and we had the equipment. It was just about opening our minds to something new," Rani told IANS.
So they started teaching themselves -- from repairing punctures to tyre refills. There weren't many takers initially, as people were reluctant to give their vehicles into the hands of two teenage girls.
Today however, their shop sees a steady stream of cars, bikes, cycles and even trucks. Running the house, hasn't meant neglecting education. Renu is a student of class 9 at the Government High School, Rani is preparing to take her class 10 boards this year.
And their grit and diligence has won them widespread admiration with people offering them both encouragement as well as money. But the best thing? "Villagers now tell our father that he is lucky to have daughters who are no less than sons," says Rani.