Photo of Sateesh V Menon with his family members
For Sateesh V Menon, success in the civil services exam has come against all odds. Being a son of a daily wage labourer, living in Kerala's rural Ernakulam, he never gave up his dream of making it big one day.
The 26-year-old couldn't pursue Engineering after school sue to lack of funds, but he didn't give up hope. He studied Physics instead, and gave tuitions through the day, while studying at nights. When he couldn't buy the books he needed, he would spend hours in different libraries.
"It was very difficult for me in the beginning to adjust with my financial exigencies. I had to provide for my family, couldn't buy all books... couldn't attend coaching classes... but the struggle eventually turned out to be a blessing," says a calm Sateesh.
The family had to go through tough times, his father, Vishwanathan Menon, had to sell off all his land for his daughter's wedding. The Menons moved to rented accommodation, and junior Menon had to provide for with his monthly income of Rs 10,000 he earned through tuitions, the family's only stable income.
"There were doubts even in my family; my father is illiterate, mother has studied only till elementary education. They often wondered how a man with this background could crack civil services. But I didn't give up. My strength has been my ability to move on," said Sateesh.
This was Sateesh's third attempt, but he is still not satisfied with his rank of 432. His aim is to top the exam and get selected for the Indian Foreign Service next time around.