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Indian techie in US shares how he went from ₹3.2LPA salary to ₹1.7 crore in just 3 years
An Indian techie in the US shared how he jumped from a ₹3.2LPA salary to earning ₹1.7 crore within three years through relentless upskilling and networking.
An Indian software engineer has caught the internet’s attention after sharing an extraordinary account of how he went from earning ₹3.2 lakh per annum in India to paying $48,000 (approximately ₹42 lakh) in income tax alone in the United States, all within just three years.
In his post, the techie revealed that he graduated from a tier-3 engineering college with 17 backlogs, some of them repeats. “I was not even allowed to sit for on campus placements,” he said. But despite the academic setbacks, he said he always had strong fundamentals in computer science. “So from 2020 to 2022 I worked my a** off, putting in 10-14 hour days, weekends included, for a salary of 3.2 LPA,” he wrote, adding that those two years laid the foundation for everything that followed.
Today, the techie says he is writing from his 15th-floor apartment in downtown San Francisco, having just calculated his US income tax bill. “Those 2 years of relentless work made all the difference. To everyone who’s looking forward to hustle - Tu bas kaam kar bhai, fal ki mkc bazaar se kharid lenge,” he said.
(Also Read: Investment banker explains why ₹70 LPA 'feels middle-class' in India: 'International costs but broken infrastructure')
From ₹3.2 LPA to $200k salary
In the comments, the techie went on to reveal that his real “flex” was the jump from ₹3.2 lakh to a $200,000 salary (approximately ₹1.78 crore).
Detailing his journey, he explained that he spent two years working across mobile, web and cloud stacks, learning full-stack development and engineering. Then in 2022, he moved to the US for a master’s degree, where he began experimenting with large language models (LLMs) and modern technologies like Next.js.
With no job in hand, he launched a startup, freelanced for media companies in Los Angeles, and later moved to Silicon Valley. He briefly worked on contract with a FAANG company before being laid off. But the network he had built on LinkedIn, including several Y Combinator founders, proved crucial. He reached out with his portfolio and eventually secured a role with a YC-backed startup that raised a Series B round last month, landing both a strong salary and equity.
The user also shared that he comes from a middle or lower-middle-class family with no property or investments. “I still know my privilege of having access to a engineering degree, internet and smart people around me. I did take a hefty loan and covered my expenses with dining job while in uni and without my friends in California i would have to come home in my broke days or probably not here. So as to say, god has been kind enough,” he shared.
(Disclaimer: This report is based on user-generated content from social media. HT.com has not independently verified the claims and does not endorse them.)
