Shorolipi Emma Chaudhury

“This story reaches out to those who have so much more to offer than excellent academic achievements.

I must admit that I don’t come from a family background of extreme hardships, in fact my parents gave me everything to nurture a child that is both academically and aesthetically inclined. I came from what seemed like a comfortable upper middle-class family where my parents did their best to invest in things they nurtured me to be good at and thankfully, I grew to be very passionate about one particular interest: Music.

I grew up as just the average performing government school student. I always participated in music exams, competitions, events, the school choir and even external music events as it gave me happiness. I always believed my efforts in it would benefit me some day. Half-way through my pre-university studies, reality kicked in hard when my father had lost his balance of a stable income that further damaged my parents’ already rocky relationship. I completely stopped doing music at the time because I was emotionally affected. I was not doing well in my studies at that time, even failing one of my favorite subjects. Though this gave my mother a lot of anxiety and insecurity, she did her best at maintaining her stable job to give me the life she believed I deserved.

So, I told myself that the choice of my degree program has to be a place that could give me quality education, personal growth and most importantly some form of financial assistance to help my parents. I vowed to be resourceful, hardworking and grabbed every opportunity I found and it led me on to #MySunwayStory. After unexpectedly landing upon the Sunway Music Talent Scholarship, I challenged myself to become a better singer and expanded my abilities out of my comfort zone. Today, performing on stage has become second nature to me and I am proud to call the people in the #SunwayUniversityChoir my family as they helped me grow, become better as a performer and as a person. There are many other individuals that I appreciate sincerely such as singing gurus, music teachers, band members, mentors and friends that I owe so much for motivating me to go higher and further. The scholarship was not merely a financial reduction, it was a platform that opened many opportunities. Despite my father’s faults, I still have a lot to thank him for, because his influence is the reason why I love music today. My mother’s persistent love and support is the reason why I can stand where I am today. Though I believe I still have so much more I want to achieve in the music scene, I am grateful and happy at how far I’ve come. I am truly thankful for that.”

Shorolipi Emma Chaudhury
BSc(Hons) Psychology
Sunway Music Talent Scholarship