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| Rijad: Tuzla's most successful teenager for 2007 |
When Rijad's mother passed away, his father, a modest labourer with endless love for his children, faced the most difficult decision in his life. Aware that he alone could not provide a warm and stable family environment, he entrusted his children to the care of the SOS Children's Village in Gracanica.
Adapting to the new life was hard for Rijad. He had difficulties accepting the urban environment, his new family and the new way of life. In addition, just a few days after his admission, the red haired boy started fifth-grade. His formerly excellent school results rapidly deteriorated. However, school was not the priority for Rijad's SOS mother Indira.
Indira offered Rijad and his siblings the unconditional love and affection the children needed. Firm in her intent to create a comfortable and secure family environment, she became the pillar of the family and Rijad's greatest support. Recognizing and accepting her as a genuine maternal figure, Rijad started to work hard on his development, and as a result, success was inevitable.
Discovering his dream
After the completion of primary school, Rijad signed up at the secondary vocational school for traffic officers in the nearby town of Tuzla and moved into the SOS Youth Facility there. His SOS mother then encouraged him to take as many extracurricular activities as time allowed him. Rijad began attending acting classes, he developed a passion for amateur radio operating and was a regular in the town's bicycle races.
Very soon Rijad started coming home with diplomas, trophies and medals from different amateur radio and bicycle racing competitions. Still, acting remained his first love, especially after he had become a member of Tuzla's Association of Youngsters which had its own drama troupe. Rijad's first role in the play "From Here to a Dream", assured him that acting was indeed his true calling.
Pursuing the dream
Long before prom night and the graduation ceremony, Rijad had already started preparing for the entry exam in order to become a full time acting student at the Academy of Dramatic Arts in Sarajevo. For many aspiring young actors, this exam is the only stage performance which they ever get to do, and Rijad was aware of the strict selection criteria.
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| Rijad is also the pride of his SOS mother Indira and his younger siblings |
For days and nights, Rijad rehearsed an excerpt from the movie "Perfect Circle" by Bosnian director Ademir Kenovic, a tragic saga of a poet and two orphaned boys surviving the war horrors of Sarajevo under siege. "The first time I saw this movie, I was fascinated. There was no question about what my exam performance [for the Academy] would be," says Rijad, adding that he knew at once that he impressed the exam committee.
Sure enough, Rijad was right. A few days after the entry exam, a phone call confirmed that Rijad had been accepted as a full time student of the Academy. His big dream had come true. What Rijad did not know was that in the acting class he was one of only eight students from the entire country.
Tuzla's top teen
Rijad hardly had time to celebrate properly when he was 'struck' with another success. The municipality of Tuzla had named him Most Successful Teenager of the year 2007.
At the awarding ceremony, Rijad's entire SOS family was seated in the front row. "My brothers and sisters made banners with my name on them," remembers Rijad. They applauded and yelled his name for a long time after he received the award. SOS mother Indira says this was one of the proudest moments of her life.
Rijad is optimistic and high spirited. He enjoys his studies, but "I'm the happiest when I see that my younger brothers and sisters see me as their role model and are studying very hard so they can one day make their own dreams come true," concludes Rijad with a smile.