When Babubhai Patel had the second of his three daughters, fellow villagers sympathised with him. The poor cattle farmer would have to sell off his cows to marry off his daughters they said aloud. For no one in Kangvi, a village of 200-odd inhabitants in Gujarat, had even been to college. And like many of their brothers in India’s rural heartland, they also looked upon the girl child as a financial burden.It’s ironic therefore that it took a woman to show them the road to higher education, and to make the entire village proud! This alone makes the story of Punam Patel worthy of a film.

Today, Babubhai smiles from ear to ear when asked about his girls, his chest brimming with pride. His eldest daughter, is a government officer and the youngest is preparing for her higher secondary exams. But it’s his middle daughter Punam who is creating waves. Having attended school for 10 years after working the mornings in the farm, Punam left home to pursue higher education and is a Bachelor in Homeopathic Medicine and Surgery (BHMS) from Anand.