Top Amanzimtoti matric fourth in district

Kingsway High School’s Hridhay Somera of Umkomaas was the top matric in Toti who finished fourth in the Umlazi district and 10th in KZN.

He achieved 10 distictions for his IEB subjects, including 95% for an extra subject, advanced programme mathemathics, which he applied to write as an IEB exam and self-studied. When asked what made him want to tackle such a difficult subject on top of nine hectic ones, he said he has always loved maths and wanted to take up the challenge. His overall aggregate of above 95% placed him in the top 50 in SA.

“I was really surprised, as I had no idea that I would do that well in the province and the country. I was so relieved after hearing the news that I had achieved 10 distinctions. The goal was always to get all As, but I never expected to get an average above 95% – that was a surprise. English was always a challenging paper for me. I also wrote some papers such as accounting and history while battling a bout of food poisoning and wrote my final few papers with my writing hand fractured.

“My goal is always just to be the best that I can be. I believe that if you put in the work, the results will always take care of themselves.” As crazy as it sounds, the teen believes he could have done even better. “I probably could’ve procrastinated less and definitely planned out my studying habits a bit better, but all in all I’m happy with how things turned out.”

READ ALSO: Actor bags role in The Jungle Book

Hridhay reckons mathematics was his favourite subject and Dr (Pam) Pillay his top teacher in matric. “She was a real inspiration to me throughout the year. Special thanks also to Mrs (Vino) Naidoo and Mrs (Lesley) Cogan for always believing in me when the odds seemed stacked completely against me.”

High school was not just about swotting for the teen, as he got the chance to be on the big screen when he bagged a role in the Warner Bros’ feature film ‘The Jungle Book’, whic was partly shot in Port Edward in 2015.

He is now looking at studying medicine at the the University of Pretoria, UCT, Wits or the University of Stellenbosch. “The degree is six years, but taking into consideration specialisation, I’m looking at studying for the next 10 to 15 years. I would like to pursue a career in paediatric cardiac surgery or plastic and reconstructive surgery.”

READ ALSO: Toti’s top achievers

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