“She was the first person outside my advisory to talk to me at Harker,” Kunal Bhandarkar (12) said. “I didn’t show it, but I was kind of nervous about that day, and we were doing a ropes course, and that was a little scary. She made it kinda less difficult for me ‘cause she was very excited to meet me, and she kinda welcomed me to Harker. When I met her, she was a bubbly, excited, outgoing person. I still see her as this outgoing person who’s ready to have fun, ready to make plans with people. But you also see how fairly deep she is, and all these other sides of her.”

Richa Bhattacharya (12) doesn’t consider herself an extrovert. Though her friends note her bubbly and outgoing personality upon meeting her for the first time, what holds Richa back is her extensive journey out of introversion.

“I used to be very introverted back then, and I couldn’t even perform with a group, but then it helped me grow and when I was a lot older it made me realize that I was like this,” Richa said. “I was always told that I was introverted, and that I would always behave how I would know the definition of introverted to be.”

Richa’s transition into extroversion took place in middle school, simply because she took up sports that she enjoyed and started talking to new people.

“I was a tomboy in middle school,” Richa said. “I’d be the one girl at Stratford who’d be playing football and basketball on my own, just gaining confidence in myself and my own abilities. Before it was kind of like dance and sports was very difficult for me, but I just ended up growing out of it and I realized how much it hindered me in the past. I went out of my way to join the school’s volleyball team, and from being the player on the bench in 6th grade to becoming the captain. I feel like the reason I became captain was because I changed.”

Becoming an extrovert was a big step in Richa’s life. She became more open and comfortable with herself, setting goals and thinking about her future more.

“It’s honestly better as an extrovert, just to the point where I feel like I understand myself better. Before, I didn’t vocalize what I wanted to do to myself, but now I can be real with myself too.“

As she emerged from extroversion, Richa found herself becoming more proactive and looking for ways to enjoy herself with her friends, as one of her friends points out.

“Richa’s someone who really loves to try new things and go out a lot,” Karina Butani (12) said. “She always loves making plans, like having a good time after school. Even during breaks, once she suggested going to Santa Cruz. She’s usually the one to reach out.”

One of these goals manifested in her relationships. She takes pride in her friendships and aims to lighten the mood in her friend’s lives.

“Everyday I strive to be as compassionate as possible, and I just hope that rubs off onto other people,” Richa said. “Just trying to be a better version of myself. With this whole transformation that I went through. There’s a lot of toxicity in a lot of relationships and friendships. Being on one end of it, you realize how much you don’t want to be on the other end. I never want to be that person as much as possible.”

In embracing her relationships with her friends, Richa discovered a place in their lives: a listener. Ever since her first experience with listening and helping a friend in need, she always aims to hear her friends out when possible.

“Even if I don’t have advice to give them, I listen to them,” she said. “My friend went through a really dark point of her life in the past, and she decided to trust me and talk to me, and I respect that and I honor that, and I still check up on her everyday, whether or not anything was wrong. I’ll just check up on her if something good or bad happened. I enjoy being a safe space for the people that I’m comfortable with.”

Because she aims to listen to her friends every day when they need it, Richa’s friends notice her caring personality as well.

“Over the past 4 years of high school, I’ve gotten to know Richa really well, and if there is one thing that defines her, it’s that she truly cares about people’s wellbeing and happiness,” Sohenee Banerjee (12) said. “If someone is going through a dark time, she will make it a point to check up on you and say the things you need to hear and help you find courage and motivation when you need it the most.”

At the end of it all, Richa hopes to take them to the heights that she experiences in her life and inspire her friends to be better people.

“I honor all my friendships and all the relationships that I have,” Richa said. “I guess this ties in with teaching and tutoring. As cliché as it sounds, I want to be a role model, that leader who is also your friend. I want to set an example, and while I’m getting somewhere, I want to take others with me.”