While the Internet can be a wholesome place, it can also be quite brutal sometimes. This is the story of a young teenager who got trolled for her looks. Hailing from the small village of Sitapur in Uttar Pradesh, Prachi Nigam topped the Class 10 UP Board examination. While it was a moment of celebration for the young girl, things took an ugly turn when people on social media started trolling her for her facial hair.

Prachi is an extremely bright student who secured a whopping 98.5 per cent marks in the class 10 UP board examination – a score we all can only dream of. However, when her photograph was published after the results, people started cyberbullying her brutally for her looks. Prachi finally opened up about the hate she faced in an interview with the IANS. The way she showed immense positivity, despite the harsh words of the trollers is truly motivating.

Prachi Nigam, class 10 UP board examination, trolled, cyberbullying, social media bullying, facial hair, hormonal imbalance

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Prachi’s Befitting Response

The brave and confident young girl said, “Trollers can live with their mindset, I am happy that my success is now my identity.” Prachi further added that her entire focus was on her studies and no one ever pointed towards her excess facial hair.

“My family, my teachers, my friends never criticised me for my appearance and I never bothered about it either. It was only when my photograph was published after the results that people started trolling me and then my attention was drawn to the problem.”

Giving it back to the trollers, she made a very powerful statement saying, “My aim is to become an engineer and what will ultimately matter are my marks and not the hair on my face.”

Netizens React

While many mocked Prachi Nigam’s looks, many came in support of her and asked people to be kinder and show empathy because, at the end of the day, she is just a young girl. Facial hair is a hormonal issue which is common in children between the ages of 8-16 years. As a society and responsible media, we should not make a teenager question her looks over her intellect and achievements. Whether beauty stays or not, achievements will always stay. 

It was really commendable to watch a young girl like Prachi stand up for herself and shun all the people trying to make fun of her. Even the Indian chess grandmaster Vishwanathan Anand extended support to Prachi and asked her to remain focused on her academic goals.

Meanwhile, Prof R K Dhiman, director of Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPGIMS) has said that the institute will treat Prachi free of cost. “The endocrinology will treat Prachi for hormonal issues that are responsible for facial hair growth and are common in children between the ages of 8-16 years. It can be cured within months,” he said.

An X user wrote, “Prachi Nigam … You rock girl!! Hormonal imbalance is a real deal… From facial hair, mood swings to painful menstruation.. You faced it all n emerged out as winner. In this age of filters n fillers, I haven’t seen a girl more confident n secure than you.. God bless you.”

“All the negativity Prachi Nigam facing for her looks despite being brilliant as a student and a topper. And then we also want to criticise Jahnavi Kapoor for getting work done. We can’t decide which side we are on but let’s always being down women no matter what,” said another that resonated too well.

While everyone has an opinion in today’s world, people forget that criticising someone for their looks is the worst thing you can do, especially to a teenager, whose ultimate task is to study. However, Prachi Nigam gave courage to many as she shut the trollers and cyberbullies with her stern and confident reply. You go girl!