A Boy from Teluk Intan

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With a torn bag and broken shoes, 16 year old Nara finds himself studying in a boarding school at Teluk Intan. A bright student, he excels in his academic and co- curricular activities. His high-achieving quality soon caught the attention of Mr. Rajendra, a strict but caring teacher. These special individuals soon embark on a small journey which unlocked big doors, far beyond their everything they imagined.

I heard about this story about Nara and his teacher from YTL Foundation. The story really inspired me, and I saw how it could inspire others the same. Because of that, teaming up with Joel Burden, I decided to make a short film, a short film that would tell a story of how a single teacher believing in his or her students can affect and change the lives of so many more.

When someone is encouraged and reminded of their value, something in them comes back to life; a fresh momentum is kickstarted again.I realised that I didn’t want to stop at telling the story of Nara and his teacher; I wanted to contribute in rekindling a fire in teachers that may have been burned out.

To do that, YTL Foundation and I planned a campaign to encourage people to acknowledge the teachers and heroes in their life. As a part of the campaign, the 1BestariNet Teachers Award, an award dedicated to recognising and appreciating teachers all across Malaysia, was launched.

www.aboyfromtelukintan.com #TagYourHero

“I have the opportunity to save lives today because 20 years ago, YTL Foundation extended a helping hand to a young boy with big dreams.” – Dr. Nara

Today, Dr Nara is married with two children and pays it forward by supporting two other financially challenged students. Given his success, “he is still as humble as ever”, as Mr Rajendra remarked, and is very much the same young boy from Teluk Intan he has always known.

“One thing I would like to tell YTL and Mr Rajendra is to not stop doing what you are doing, keep on helping and inspiring others because you can actually change the world by changing one individual.” -Dr. Nara

It comes as no surprise that Dr Nara’s success has been built on the legacy of Cikgu Rajendra, his teacher and his hero; and YTL Foundation is proud to have been part of that legacy.

Heroes are so much closer than we think. In our search for everyday heroes, we found Mr Rajendra, a teacher and a figure instrumental to Dr Narasimman Sathiamurthy’s success, our first scholar, is now a General Surgeon and Thoracic Fellow at the Ministry of Health Malaysia.

Having lost his father at the tender age of 7, his mother struggled to make ends meet. Despite the hardships and challenges he faced, even as a school boy Dr Nara never let his situation dictate the way he looked at life. Being constantly vigilant, whether in the classroom or on the field training as a Perak state hockey player, his hard work and determination to excel was noticed by Mr Rajendra Velupillai, a teacher at SM Sains Teluk Intan. Determined to help the boy succeed, Mr Rajendra reached out to YTL. The rest, as they say, is history.