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Techie says his father's failed IIT-JEE attempt was 'best thing' that happened to him: 'Zero downside. Historic upside'
The techie said that despite the failure, his father never carried any bitterness over the result. In fact, he admired IIT graduates throughout his life.
A New York-based techie has caught the internet's attention after sharing why he believes the best thing that ever happened to him was his father's failure in the IIT Joint Entrance Examination (JEE).
Taking to X, Akash Sampurnanand Pandey, a New York-based software engineer and IIT BHU alumnus, recalled how his father travelled nearly 200 km by hitchhiking with just ₹10 in his pocket to reach the IIT JEE examination centre in the summer of 1980.
"The best thing that ever happened to me was my father failing the IIT JEE," Akash wrote in the X post.
"In the summer of 1980, he hitchhiked 200 km with 10 rupees in his pocket to reach the exam center. He had learned what JEE was just 6 months ago and sat it cold because he was the smartest guy in his humble village," he added.
However, he said that his father could not clear the examination. "Failed. Spectacularly. Couldn't crack a single question, he says," the techie wrote, adding that despite the failure, his father never carried any bitterness over the result. In fact, he admired IIT graduates throughout his life and often spoke of them with great respect.
"No bitterness ever. Only awe. Throughout my childhood, he described IITians like celebrities," Akash wrote.
The techie said that his father's failed attempt became an unexpected gift. Since there was no IIT legacy to live up to, he never felt pressured to crack the exam. "His JEE failure handed me a strange gift too. Zero pressure. Fail, and I'd be like him, still doing fine. Crack it, and I'd be the first in my entire bloodline," he wrote.
He said that the situation gave him "zero downside" and a "historic upside," allowing him to become deeply invested in the exam without fearing failure. Akash also recalled that his father would often remind him that he could not pressure his son to clear an exam that he himself had failed.
"I cracked JEE in 2012, in my first attempt. My dad lost it. Went almost crazy celebrating it," he wrote.
"Sometimes I wonder what would have happened if he had cracked JEE in 1980," he added.
Social media reactions
The post resonated with many users, who shared similar stories about IIT, family expectations and financial constraints.
"Internet has changed everything, else forget about guiding students on analytical pattern solving, most were not even aware of JEE. Yr 1997. AI will place humans at another level. Some are going to be super rich and have & have not gap going to increase. Counties will struggle," one user wrote.
"My dad got admission in REC Warangal and IIT Madras in the '60s. He had ₹20 with him and he chose Warangal because that meant he could afford mess fees for two months while he cracked merit scholarship. I couldn't crack IIT but this lesson stayed with me," commented another.
