Ranjith P. Panathur's journey from a crumbling hut in Kerala to two prestigious institutions in the country is nothing short of inspiring. The 28-year-old from a small village in Kasaragod was, earlier this week, appointed as an assistant professor at the Indian Institute of Management, Ranchi.
Soon after, Ranjith put a post on Facebook expressing his joy and also detailing his struggle, with a pic of his humble house. The post soon went viral, garnering over 6,000 likes and close to 10,000 shares.
Eldest among three siblings, Ranjith worked as a night security guard to support his studies as his family found it hard to make ends meet—his father is a tailor and mother a daily wage labourer. He graduated in BA Economics from St Pius X College and completed MA Economics from Central University of Kerala.
His did his PhD from IIT, Madras, but life was tough there for Ranith and he almost dropped out before being motivated to carry on by his guide.
And now, Ranjith wants others like him to defy the odds and chase their dreams.
Here's his post, translated from Malayalam:
“I was born in this house. I grew up here. I am very happy to say that this house has produced an IIM (Indian Institute of Management) assistant professor. I want to tell the story of my journey, from this small house to IIM Ranchi. I will be the happiest if at least one person gets inspired by my journey.
I passed plus two with a decent grade. But circumstances were not in my favour; I thought I would have to stop my studies. But luck favoured me. I got a part-time job as a night security guard at the Panathur Telephone Exchange—a student during the day and a security guard during the night.
I had no mentor. I had nobody to guide me. I was moving with the flow. But every shore I reached, taught me beautiful lessons. Pius College taught me how to be a good public speaker. The Central University of Kerala showed me that there is a world beyond Kasaragod. And, eventually, I made it to IIT Madras.
It was like an alien place for me initially. I had doubts and confusions; I had fears about whether I would be able to compete in that atmosphere. I was not fluent in English. I felt doubts about the path I took and thought of giving up my PhD halfway. But my guide, Dr Subhas, asked me to put up a fight before I give up. His words made me determined.
My journey started from the hilly and thinly populated town of Panathur. The journey from our hut to IIM Ranchi was not easy. My parents also suffered a lot with me on this journey.
There are thousands of huts like this; the huts in which dreams had to die even before they could materialise. Now, we want more stories of success from these huts. There may be crumbling walls all around you. But let that not stop you from dreaming high. One day all your dreams will come true.”
