Resham Fatma, a 29-year-old acid attack survivor from Ranchi, has become the first survivor from India to receive the UK government's Chevening Scholarship.
She will pursue an MSc in Gender, Development and Globalisation at the London School of Economics (LSE).
Calling the scholarship deeply personal, Resham said every experience she had lived through had led her to this opportunity.
Born in Jamshedpur in 1997, Resham was a Class 11 student living with her grandparents in Lucknow when her mother's cousin, Riyaz, proposed marriage to her. After he was turned down, he offered to drop her off at home from coaching classes in February 2014 but instead drove towards a highway and poured acid on her before threatening her with a knife.
Resham managed to escape and sought help from an autorickshaw driver, who took her to a nearby police station. She said that although a crowd gathered there, no one came forward to take her to a hospital until an elderly man helped her.
The attack left her undergoing multiple surgeries while balancing her education. Despite spending much of her time studying from home, she scored 87 per cent in Class 12 science. She later completed a BSc Physics (Honours) from Jamia Millia Islamia in 2018 and received the Bharat Award, the country's highest national bravery award for children, during the Republic Day celebrations in 2015.
After initially planning to prepare for the civil services, Resham pursued a master's degree in Politics and International Relations at Jawaharlal Nehru University. In 2023, she founded the Ebrah Foundation, which mentors young Muslim women in education, careers and financial independence.
She married Asghar in 2024, who encouraged her to apply for the Chevening Scholarship. Resham said the foundation's work will continue while she studies in London, with plans to introduce spoken English classes for girls.
In 2015, while the case was still awaiting trial, Riyaz died by suicide in jail. Resham said she had wanted him to remain alive to witness her achievements. While the trauma remains part of her life, she said she has chosen to accept it and move forward.