NEW DELHI: Prakhar Mittal scored a perfect 100 in all his subjects in CBSE Class 10 board exams except French, where he fell short by just one mark. With 499 marks out of 500, the Gurgaon boy is one of the four all-India CBSE class 10 toppers.
A trained pianist, Prakhar used to listen to western classical masters Mozart and Beethoven for busting his stress. He would also go out for walks to relax.
"I have been learning piano for many years. I am into classical piano and I like Beethoven and Mozart," the DPS Gurgaon student said, adding, "Music is more of a passion, something I pursue for relaxation. My real calling is academics," he said.
Prakhar deliberately kept away from social media sites - Facebook, Twitter and Instagram as he felt, they "disturb concentration".
While he got a perfect score in Social Science, Mathematics and Science, his favourites remain Maths and Science.
"I used to study at night. School teachers also guided me during exam preparation and it worked well for me," said Prakhar, who has his eyes set on IITs after finishing Class 12. He is keen on taking up robotics.
"I feel that Class 10 board exam helps you gain experience on how one has to prepare for Class 12 board exams. Even if you don't do well in Class 10 exams, you can always try and do well in your Class 12 boards," he said.
Prakhar's father, who works with a finance firm in Gurgaon, said that his son always studied according to a plan. "He has always been a good student and we expected a good result from him. But we did not expect that he would top the entire country," he told PTI.
The teenager said, "Of course, there was a fear as I was about to appear for my first board exams. But instead of taking pressure, I tried to be consistent and studied every day for at least three hours. My parents never put pressure on me."
Three other students who secured the top positions are Rimzhim Agarwal of RP Public School, Bijnor; Nandini Garg of Scottish International School, Shamli, and Sreelakshmi G of Bhavan's Vidyalaya, Kochi.