My name is Akriti Sangwaan.And this is the story that may give you heartbreak… or understanding.
I live in India, in a small town. I won't reveal personal details,but my heart and soul will reveal everything.
There are four members in my family.My father, my mother, my younger brother—and me.
My father, Vikram Sangwaan, is a software engineer working in Abu Dhabi, UAE.He is disciplined, kind, and strong in the quietest way possible.He has never told me that being a girl limits me.Even when my grades kept falling from 7th grade onwards, he never scolded me.He motivated me. He believed in me.He taught me that failure does not decide worth.
He is my priority number one.
My mother, Sanjana Sangwan, is a housewife—but her strength could run an entire world.Once, our relationship was broken.I thought she didn't love me. I hated her.She scolded me when I trusted the wrong people,when I made mistakes that hurt me.
Now I understand.She wasn't harsh—she was protecting me.She is like a coconut: tough on the outside, soft on the inside.And now, she is my priority number two.
Then there is my younger brother, Arush Sangwan,six years younger than me—naughty, kind-hearted, and sweet.I call him ugly so he doesn't fly in the air if I call him cute
but he means more to me than he will ever know.
My family is emotional.We cry easily, but we hide it.We care deeply, but we don't always show it.If you enter our hearts honestly,we will give you peace.But if you hurt us—we remember.
My grandmother, Nirmala Sangwan, lives with us.She is kind and emotional, yet shaped by years of pain.Sometimes her words hurt more than they should,but I know they come from a life that taught her survival
before softness.She loves deeply—just imperfectly, like the rest of us.
My father's childhood was not easy.He faced abandonment early, harshness at a young age,yet he grew into someone gentle.He walked away from that lifeso we wouldn't have to live it.
Then I was born.And that's when my story truly began.
I have met many people.If you exist, you judge.Friends judge. Best friends judge.That is the truth of life.
You don't need to find the right people.
You only need to be yourself.The right ones will find you.
I am not extraordinary in studies.I was below average in 7th grade,average in 8th,above average—but not a topper—in 9th.
And somehow, as my grades improved,my smile disappeared.
At thirteen.At fourteen.In ninth grade.
At such a young age…I started living with fake smiles.This is Behind My Smile.And this… is only the beginning