“Why me?” Suraj has been asking this question to himself, ever since he was 7-year-old. Born in 1997, his family included a passionate father, a doting mother and a newly born sister. He was a title-holder for scoring a perfect 100 in English, three years in a row, from one of the best schools of Kolkata, St. Lawrence. He still proudly boasts about it. In the year 2004, this enchanting world of Suraj came crumbling down, when both his parents expired four months apart, due to ill-health. But this did not deter Suraj from persevering and hoping for the best!
Suraj and his sister, were adopted by his uncle, the only relative he had besides his maternal grandparents. Suraj was sent to a Bengali medium school, as his uncle’s financial standing wasn’t good. He could only speak in Bengali, not read or write. This was just one of the many setbacks of his life. Money was not something that easily came to him; he survived on books from seniors and just had enough money to buy two notebooks.
He says, “there has not been a day when I have not cried myself to sleep and awoken with tears in my eyes. My life seemed meaningless.” However, he tried to maintain his spirit at the thought that, “God sent me in this life to struggle, I am sure he has something in store for me.” He has learnt to be his own support.
After 10th standard, he started preparing for medical entrance and got through one of the dental colleges. In 2016, from the date to when the results were declared to the date of his admissions – both his grandparents passed away. His world came to a standstill. The slight hope he had, was also overthrown in an instant.
Going to a dental college was then out of the question, as he had no funds. He couldn’t concentrate on his studies any longer. In order to compensate for his living, he started tutoring 9 to 11 standard students.
In January 2019, he came across an advertisement – free courses being offered by the IL&FS Skills in Kolkata. This got him curious and without wasting any time he instantly visited the center. After evaluating all the options available, he opted for the Retail Course.
Post-training, he got placed in Bata, Bangalore, for an annual pay package of Rs. 1.8 lakhs, but only in a span of two months he received another offer from one of the best sportswear manufacturers of the world – ‘Adidas’ as a sales specialist at a 10% hike.
Suraj Kumar Chakraborty’s story accurately resonates with J.K Rowling’s famous Harry Potter series, “We do not need magic to transform our world. We carry all the power we need inside ourselves already.”
Author: Mohini Singhal: For more information please write to Mohini at mohini.singhal@ilfsindia.com
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