Meet the real slumdogs who made it big

New Delhi: Eighteen-year-old Pankaj Gupta’s life story is what movies are made of. Son of a bangle-maker in Firozabad, his was a childhood in and out of school, spent in abject poverty with an alcoholic father and a future that seemed bleak.

At the age of 10 Pankaj decided to take command of his life and took a train to Delhi.

“I ran away from home. Some people helped while there were many who didn't,” Pankaj said.

Luckily, Pankaj ran into an NGO where he found shelter, education and a better life. He grew up nurturing his fondness for acting, found small time roles in serials and recently a cameo in Bollywood's Oye Lucky Lucky Oye.

“I look at everything that I have gone through in a positive light. But for the last 10 years I have not seen my parents. So you lose some and you win some,” Pankaj said.

Twenty-one-year-old Vicky Roy also has a similar story like Pankaj.

He is today one of the youngest freelance photographers in the Delhi. But when as a 10-year-old all Vicky wanted to do was run away from his village.

“Most children run away from home because of poverty. My work is different because I have experienced a lot in life,” Vicky said.

Under the care of the Salaam Balak Trust, Vicky developed his talent for photography. He recently even held his own exhibition called Street Dreams.

Thousands like Vicky and Pankaj leave their homes everyday, some out of hope and some out of despair, but just a few manage to script their lives their way.

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