Hard work and dedication pay off for duo

After their grandfather forked out large amounts to fund their private education, the only way the Jhavary twins could have thanked him was by getting good marks at school.

And the former Kingsmead College learners, Humnaaz and Husnaa Jhavary, did just that, getting eight distinctions each.

“We couldn’t afford to take them to this school but we are very grateful that their grandfather has given them that opportunity. If it wasn’t for his heart of gold he had faith in my girls,” mom Farha said.

The twins had been at Kingsmead since Grade 8 where fees for Grades 10 to 12 were R123000 per child last year. They understood just how privileged they were to attend it.

“That’s why we were exploring as many opportunities as possible,” the girls added. “We knew it was a gift to be at the school. Our hard work was a dedication to him.”

The twins took eight subjects: English, Afrikaans, maths, life orientation, accounting, physics, biology and AP maths.

Husnaa said their subject choices had been by default.

“We ended up taking the same subjects; we didn’t plan it that way, it just happened.

“We made our decisions separately and discovered when were talking later,” she said.

In addition to having taken the same subjects, the two also have similar interests, said Humnaaz.

“We are quite independent of thought, so we are quite different, but there are quite a lot of things that are similar,” she added.

Humnaaz said they were lucky to have had each other to “bounce ideas off each other, to reinforce sections and help other”.

To achieve the eight distinctions, the twins started preparing for the exams a month earlier. They studied separately, using past newspapers to get an idea of what to expect.

“Practice is key. I never left anything for the morning.

“We believe in balance. We were very involved in school extracurricular. It’s very balanced - it’s not just the books - we have other interests,” Humnaaz said.

Humnaaz was the recipient of the Dux Scholar at Kingsmead College. She was also placed in the top three in Gauteng for the Accounting Olympiad and was invited by Wits University as one of its top 100 applicants.

Husnaa was the recipient of the Gosnell Award, for epitomising the essence of Kings-

mead.

She was also the head of service and squash and also enjoyed playing piano.

In addition to that, the twins have been volunteering at Impilo Child Protection and Adoption Services, an NGO in Fairvale. There, they would play with the children and help clean the premises.

Coming from a business- oriented family, the twins are considering doing something in commerce but are still weighing their options.

“We’ve been together all our lives but we haven’t decided if we’ll go separately now or not,” said

Humnaaz.