The post-results drama: Shock & awww

But you said you hadn’t even finished your course!” you tell your friend, in that ‘how could you betray me’ tone, who scored a 94-point-something in their Board exams.
You’re not as devastated by your result as you are by your slimeball-of-a-friend’s score – who calmed you during preparations with, ‘maine bhi bilkul nahi padhaa’.
With 6,300 more students scoring above 90% in this year’s Board exams, every .01% also matters.Here’s the rough deal many students are dealing with ever since results were declared.
Batao-batao, how much?
News of the results being declared is barely out, and the question, ‘how much did you get’ comes pouring in – a million phone calls from family, neighbours, best friend’s mom, mom’s kitty party friends, et al. Says Arjun Rana*, 18, about the day of the Board results, “Everyone’s phones in my house were ringing at the same time and I knew all that was for me. Everyone is so curious and it’s not like they really care.”
My son got a 93, and yours?
It isn’t just limited to friends or classmates. There is the ‘supermom’ swelling with pride because her friend’s daughter got a whole 4% less than her own star kid. Rishi Sharma, 24, a Masters student at Georgia Tech University, says he was embarrassed with the way his mother flaunted his 95.7%. He says, “I didn’t know where to hide my face as my mother was being so boastful about my result. She actually put up my marks as her BBM status and sent out mass SMSes.”
Sorry, dosti result tak hi thi
Until now, you and your group were soulmates; inseparable, no matter what. But the bitter truth is that some of you will make it to the No 1 college, while some won’t. Karishma Grover, 23, a postgraduate student, shares her sob story. “Two of my friends scored higher than me in the English test and they made it to my dream college. Now, I avoid their get-togethers because each time I listen to their college stories, I feel I could have been there too. It’s not like they’re brighter, they were just luckier,” she says.
Your sibling scored higher
The brainy bachcha who does the family proud with 95+ aggregate marks becomes the yardstick with which all the siblings’ capability is measured. Ankita Srivastava*, 20, a DU student, says, “Some of my cousins hate me because I scored in 90s in my 10th and 12th exams. They’re told, ‘Usko dekho aur kuch seekho’.” She adds with a giggle, “It’s sad because they also work hard yaar.”
The rounding off model
Some tend to apply this math rule whenever it suits them. You scored an 89.5%, but you have no qualms announcing it as 90%. Apologies for bursting your bubble, but while it’s close, it can’t upgrade you into the 90+ league. Deepti Prakash*, a first-year IP University student, says, “The day the results were out, my friend’s mother claimed her daughter had scored 75%. It was only when I personally congratulated her, that I found out she had got 71%. She was quite embarrassed when she realized her mom had been lying to everyone,” she says.
*Names changed on request