Thiruvananthapuram: The journey of Kerala’s Ranjith P. Panathur from a small Kasargod village to two prestigious institutions of the country is nothing short of a fairy tale. The 28-year-old was recently appointed assistant professor at the Indian Institute of Management, Ranchi.
Soon after his appointment, Ranjith expressed his joy and also detailing his struggle on Facebook, with a snap of his humble house. The post soon went viral, with over 6,000 likes and nearly 10,000 shares.
Being the eldest of the three siblings, Ranjith had to support his family and studies as the family found it difficult to make both ends meet. His father is a tailor and mother a daily wage labourer. Ranjith graduated in BA Economics from St Pius X College and then MA from the Central University of Kerala.
While doing PhD from IIT, Madras, Ranjith almost dropped out before being motivated by his guide to carry on.
Here’s Ranjith’s Facebook post, translated from Malayalam by The Week:
“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.”
