Kanhangad: All three children are studying for MBBS. Her husband is a doctor. So, Juana wondered — why shouldn’t she also become one? She decided to take the NEET exam, and when the results were out, she had qualified. Now, she is waiting for her allotment, hoping to pursue her dream of becoming a dental surgeon. At 47, Juana Abdullah from Kottachery in Kasaragod, is all set to embark on her journey into medicine.

When she arrived at the exam centre — Periya Polytechnic — the security guard remarked that the path was for candidates, probably assuming she was a parent. “Sir, I’m the one writing the exam,” she replied with a smile and walked into the hall. She offered a short prayer before starting the test calmly. “I wasn’t sure I’d pass, but it was a long-held dream — and now the way is open,” she says.

Juana is granddaughter of P V Kunhamad Haji, one of Kanhangad’s early textile traders. She is the second daughter of former Lions district governor K Abdul Rasikh and Asiyumma. Her father had always wished to see two of his children become doctors, though her elder sister Shaibana chose to study Zoology instead.

After completing her schooling at Little Flower School in Kanhangad, and pre-degree studies at MES College, Kozhikode, Juana attempted the medical entrance once before, but did not get through. She went on to earn a degree in Zoology and later began postgraduate studies in Medical Pharmacology, which she had to discontinue following her father’s death. She later married Dr K P Abdullah, an ENT specialist in Kanhangad.

Her eldest daughter, Mariyam Afrin Abdullah, is doing her house surgency at Thiruvananthapuram Medical College. Her sons — Saliḥ Abdur Rasikh and Salman Abdul Khader — are in their third and second year of MBBS respectively, while her youngest daughter, Aseema Asya, is doing Plus Two at Race Public School in Kozhikode.

Since the removal of the upper age limit for NEET in 2020, Juana saw a new opportunity. With strong support from her husband and children, she began studying again — using YouTube lessons and her children’s study materials. She even tried for a pharmacy course earlier this year and qualified for that too. “It was my late father’s dream — now it’s mine as well. It’s not about earning money. It’s about proving that if you have determination, you can become a doctor at any age,” she says with conviction.