From being a founder and director of a student-led community, raising awareness about menstrual hygiene to debuting as an author narrating real-life experience of staying in Pakistan, SMART Campus IBDP student Atyantika Mookherjee truly personifies GIIS’s 9GEMS pedagogy. Her book titled My Islamabad Diary- A Discovery of Our Western Neighbour published by Buuks Publishers, Chennai has helped her achieve this outstanding milestone in the literary field.

Having lived in Pakistan as a child, the country itself played an integral role in her development and the shaping of her worldview. However, it was only recently that she realised the novelty of her stay in Pakistan and the value of her experiences and decided to pen her story.

The book, My Islamabad Diary depicts a compelling story of India-Pak relations from young Atyantika’s perspective as she recollects and narrates her real-life experiences of spending four years in Islamabad as she moved to the city accompanying her parents for a diplomatic assignment.

Free of preconceived notions and propaganda, being unbiased at her young age, Atyantika breaks through the binary ideas of India-Pakistan, to delve into culture, society, youth, and heritage. The book also gives a fresh perspective of living across the Radcliffe Line from a young girl’s viewpoint, making it an interesting read.

The book was launched virtually on May 21, 2022, in the presence of Ambassador Dr TCA Raghavan, who was High Commissioner to Singapore and India, Mr Atul Temurnikar, Mr Rajeev Katyal, and Mr Pramod Tripathi. Appreciating her book Dr TCA Raghavan quoted, "What makes Atyantika's account stand out is its simplicity, its lack of preconceptions, and its straightforward description of a complex, changing, and often hard to define interface."

GIIS has always focused on nurturing every student holistically providing opportunities for them to explore and hone their talent and skills in various areas beyond the spans of the classrooms. Be it sports, performing and visual arts, developing entrepreneurial and innovation skills, or inculcating universal ethics, every student at GIIS is encouraged to become well-rounded individuals. Students like Atyantika, exemplifies how the school lays stepping stones for its students to achieve new heights and become global leaders of tomorrow.