You know, people often say that your background defines your future. But I’ve always believed the opposite — it’s your mindset that does.

I grew up in a small village where dreams were a luxury, not a right. My father was a cobbler, and my mom worked in people’s homes. We never had much, but they gave me the one thing that mattered — belief.

From an early age, I knew I wanted to become an IAS officer. Not for the title, but because I wanted to prove that someone from “nothing” could become something. We didn’t have proper schools, no coaching centers, not even electricity at times. But I had borrowed books, a clay lamp, and a dream that refused to die.

I remember one night so vividly. I was studying under the dim light of a diya when an old devotional song played on our ancient radio. I wasn’t paying much attention until the words “adharam madhuram, vadanam madhuram...” floated in. It wasn’t the lyrics themselves — it was the peace they brought. For some reason, it felt like a sign… that even in chaos, sweetness exists. That night, I stopped resenting my situation. I started embracing it.

Fast forward five years. After countless failures, rejections, and breakdowns — I finally cracked UPSC. I didn’t have the best resources, but I had relentless consistency. That was enough.

During my interview, someone asked, “How did you manage with so little?”

I smiled and said, “When you have no distractions, you have no excuses.”

Today, I am the first IAS officer from my village. And guess what? I opened a free library there — not out of charity, but out of purpose. I named it “Madhuram Pathshala” — a tribute to that night when a song reminded me that struggles can be sweet if you change your lens.

Final thoughts:

If you're going through tough times, just remember this: success doesn’t come from comfort — it comes from chaos. Own your story, don’t run from it. Your roots aren’t your weakness; they’re your power.

Keep grinding.

– Ravi (but honestly, this could be you)