Adventurous achievers

Menaita Lala who studied at Arya Vidya Mandir School in Bandra scored 96.7 percent (97.8 percent in best of five) in the ICSE board examinations, March 2012, with cent percent in mathematics and 90+ marks in all other subjects. Games captain of her school, she was declared Best All Rounder during her final year. In addition to academic merit, she has received many awards in athletics, debates and quizzes, reveals an email received by Parsiana from her mother, Dr Mamatha Lala. The 16-year-old "highly motivated and hard-working” Menaita has chosen the science stream as she hopes to become a doctor like her parents. Father Murad, 49, is a consultant cancer surgeon at the P. D. Hinduja National Hospital and Research Centre while Mamatha, 47, is with the Wadia Group of Hospitals in Parel as medical advisor, consultant pediatrician and HIV specialist. Brother Minnat, 14, enjoys football, athletics, horse riding and playing the tabla.
Mamatha and Murad, who both attended the Government Medical College in Bellary, Karnataka, share "a great passion for extreme adventure sports,” they informed Parsiana during a visit to the office. Both participated in the Raid de Himalayas car rally a number of times, with Murad at the wheel and Mamatha navigating. It is a grueling seven-day race, covering 2,400 km. In 2009 they received a trophy for finishing in third position. Skydiving is another pursuit that the couple shared while in the US and Murad experienced while in Australia. For six months, from October 2010 to April 2011, Mamatha served as Expedition Medical Officer for the XXX Indian Scientific Expedition to Antarctica. It was summertime in the southern continent and the sun never set with sunlight 24x7. She earned the Best Expedition trophy for her work in the scientific and logistics departments. Earlier, Mamatha had been declared the best trainee at the pre-expedition training camp in Auli in the Himalayas conducted by the Indo Tibetan Border Police where she received the award for acclimation.
The Himalayas seem to be a magnet for the Lalas, as Murad is a keen mountaineer, having completed the Triple Crown Expedition Training in Nepal which is compulsory for summiting Mt Everest. In 2012 he scaled three peaks near Mt Everest, up to an altitude of 21,000 ft, and now is certified fit to ascend the world’s tallest peak. However, this is an expensive proposition, entailing an expenditure of about Rs 30 lakhs, of which half goes toward the permit alone. Hence, sponsorships are required, which he is in the process of obtaining, Murad informed Parsiana. His parents, Air Vice Marshal (retd) Eruch and Coomi Lala, reside in Secunderabad.