The Quiet Strength of Rumaisa

At just fourteen, a Pulwama girl took on the responsibility of her family's survival. Her gritty courage has since sparked a transformation, turning her village into a community defined by resilience and hope.

- Gowher Bhat

In the serenity of South Kashmir, a small village called Barpora rarely makes the news. There are no busy streets, no trendy cafés, and no famous landmarks. But if you take a walk through this sleepy hamlet, you might meet a girl whose life story is anything but ordinary. Her name is Rumaisa, and she has shown what true strength looks like.

Rumaisa’s story is not about fame or feats. It is about survival. It is about facing life's hardest challenges and keeping on, even when everything seems impossible.

At just fourteen, when most girls her age were in school and dreaming of small pleasures, Rumaisa was already taking care of her family. Her father, once the strong leader of their home, had become a shadow of himself. He started to slip into long silences. Some days he would not even recognize his own children.

There were no doctors to explain what was happening. No one had the words for it. Rumaisa understood, even if she didn't know why this was happening. “I lost him even before he died,” she says softly. “I had to make peace with that, even though I didn’t understand what was going on.”

Her mother, who had always been strong, could not handle the stress of caring for a sick husband and three young children. She began to fall apart. With no income, no support, and no one to turn to, the family's world grew darker.

And then, when Rumaisa thought things couldn't get worse, they did. Her uncle, who lived just down the street, refused to help. Rumaisa went to him, asking for help to get medicine for her father. He didn't even open the door. “I begged him just once,” Rumaisa says. “But he didn't even listen.”