There is a famous quote of Buddha that says: “Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared.” Today, the story we are presenting before you is about friends lighting candles for each other and celebrating the joy of UPSC CSE success together, giving us a glimpse of sharing and caring of a different level altogether.
Akhil V Menon and Sreekumar Raveendrakumar from Kerala met each-other four years ago. Akhil is from Thrissur and Sreekumar from Kozhikode. Soon they started to discuss the hiccups of life and came to know that both were going through the same phase. Henceforth, they decided to embark on their UPSC journey together and started living in the same apartment. With time, they became more than flatmates, they became a helping hand to each other.
In UPSC CSE 2021, Akhil got the India rank 66, while Sreekumar got the all India rank 192. They have one other flatmate named Ajay. Unfortunately, Ajay could not pass the exam this time. However, both his CSE achiever mates are now determined to help him crack the exam in the next attempt. Indian Masterminds presents this touching and inspiring story about friendship that proves how sharing the joys of success together makes one’s happiness double and more meaningful.
EARLY LIFE
27-year-old Akhil, who is from Thrissur district, graduated from the prestigious National University of Advanced Legal Studies in Law. This UPSC CSE was Akhil’s third attempt. He failed twice earlier to clear this prestigious exam. Before cracking UPSC CSE 2021, Akhil also topped the Kerala Administrative Service (KAS) examination with 6th rank last year. He loves to write and regularly wrote blogs on law and various other topics.
26-year-old Sreekumar Ravindra Kumar is from Kozhikode district. His father was a migrant labourer in Qatar, Doha. So, he spent 13 years of his life in the Middle East and studied there. His mother is a primary school teacher. He was an alumnus of the prestigious MES Indian School, Doha, Qatar.
Sreekumar was commerce stream student and scored 93.4% in the Class XII board exams. He represented the school and won accolades in various inter-school competitions and activities, apart from being an active participant in various conferences. He is also very fond of cricket.
When they met four years ago, Akhil and Sreekumar realised that their thoughts about life and the future were somewhat similar. They also got to know that both were inclined towards UPSC and were preparing for this prestigious exam in their own way. Henceforth, both of them took the decision to rent a flat together in Thiruvananthapuram for preparing for the exam together. And they did. But, fate had other plans for them. A few months later, the pandemic started in 2020 and both had to move away to their respective hometowns.
PREPARED FOR UPSC TOGETHER
Akhil gave his first attempt in 2019, but could not clear prelims. In his second attempt in 2020, he cleared it, but failed in mains. Sreekumar also failed in CSE 2020. But, both of them managed to crack the 2021 exam together. Their UPSC preparation had many similarities. Their optional subject was Political Science and International Relations (PSIR) and they kept their strategy simple. They took coaching and gave as many mock tests and solved as many previous years’ question papers as possible. And, they also discussed together what to read. These discussions helped them come up with a common strategy that went a long way in helping them both to crack the tough exam.
The journey that started with a discussion on UPSC goals turned into a close friendship as time went by. Their better understanding about each other led them to study better together. Akhil said, “We have failed many times. But these failures created a stronger bond between us. When we met first, we understood that we had similar problems in terms of preparation and general things which we were facing every day. We cleared prelims earlier, but failed in mains. This time, we made a very concerted effort and that, ultimately, helped us in securing a rank.”
As Sreekumar’s aim is Indian Foreign Service and his rank might not be up to that level, so, perhaps, he might not be allocated IFS this year. That is why he will be giving UPSC CSE exam one more time.
COVID IMPACT
When everything was going good and according to their plans, the pandemic suddenly hit the country. It was a sad time for them as they were forced to head back to their homes. It impacted their studies too at some level. But, they could do nothing as the world was under lockdown. Everyone was at home and waiting for the pandemic to end or at least slow down. When the country opened up and they sat for the UPSC exam in 2020, they could not give their best and failed to qualify.
Sreekumar said, “We used to come on weekly catch-up calls through Zoom to discuss about studies or how much we had prepared. We tried our best to ensure that we could study together and synchronise our preparations. But, in Covid times we could not do much.”
Akhil recalled: “That was a very sad phase in our lives. We were failing, disturbed with our study as pandemic created havoc around us. We were not able to clear the exam and had almost given up. But, we knew we had some gaps, especially in terms of the mains exam. And we decided to come together and attempt the exam once again. Finally, we came back to our flat and did it. Completed our dream.”
WILL HELP THEIR FRIEND NOW
Akhil and Sreekumar get very emotional when they talk about their third roommate, Ajay,who had joined them at a later stage. Ajay could not clear the exam this time, but his flatmates said that they will help him to clear the exam soon. Sreekumar said, “We will study together with Ajay to help him. This year, we have been successful and Ajay had a very big role in this. He was much disciplined. He woke us up on time and also made sure we reached our exams on time. It may seem like a small thing, but it made a big difference. In such a situation, it is our moral responsibility to stand up for him also. And we will.”
ADVICE FOR ASPIRANTS
Both the friends agreed that consistency and hard work are necessary to get success in this exam. They said that this exam takes time and it should be considered as a marathon, not a sprint. They advised aspirants that for the preparation, they have to focus on building mental strength. They also said that even though there will be failures, one should never give up. There will be phases when you feel that this is the end, but never stop and keep moving. It is important to fail gracefully, accept mistakes, and learn from those mistakes.
