Hard Work > Circumstances: Farzan Shaikh’s Path to MBA Success
“Never be ashamed or proud of things you are born with or currently have no control over. Be it your religion, wealth, looks etc” – Farzan’s mom
This is not easy for me to share, but I feel it is needed. I still have a long way to go in life, but I have come far, and I know that coming ahead and sharing my story will help many who are just like me.
I was born in a lower-middle-class family. It was 1997, my parents had just migrated to Mumbai from Bihar to earn a living. Things were not easy, my father just made enough to live from one pay to another. We did not own much, we lived in a 150 sq. ft room with a small kitchen in a corner and a common bathroom 50 meters away from home.
Amidst all of this, one thing my parents ensured was to send me to one of the best possible schools in that area. My classmates were from rich affluent families, arrived in expensive cars and as a kid, I wondered why we do not have any of this. Initially, I was ashamed at inviting them to my house for projects, get-togethers, etc. but one teaching from my mom that I still keep close to my heart gave me the confidence to survive –
“Never be ashamed or proud of things you are born with or currently have no control over. Be it your religion, wealth, looks etc”
I wasn’t born in wealth but I knew I had to make it on my own. Education and especially engineering (read as IIT) looked like the way out. I studied on my own, cleared both JEE Mains and Advanced but my rank was not good enough to get a seat at the IITs. Dropped a year, worked harder, and again my rank was not good enough for a general seat at IITs, chose to continue with NIT Nagpur. I had failed to become an IITian, but I wanted to become better than them now. It was a childish goal, but it was important to me.
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Surviving in college with the kind of pocket money I received was difficult, I was broke most of the time. Decided to start my own business to sell T-Shirts for college fests and coupon books to new students in town. The business did better than I had ever anticipated and I not only funded my education and living expenses, I also bought my own motorcycle (Proud moment xD)
These experiences along with constant efforts to improve myself landed me a well-paying consulting role on day zero of campus placements.
After two years of working in consulting, balancing CAT prep with 14-15 hours of work every day (thanks to the support and motivation I received from iQuanta and the people on this group), I did fairly well in CAT but being a GEM I knew it was not enough for me (98.35 percentile)
Did not give up, topped XAT, aced GMAT, and will finally attend ISB Hyderabad in 2022. Also received a double promotion at work and my salary is already as good as MBA grads from top-tier institutes. I also wanted to experience business from its very roots before embarking on my MBA journey, and since I loved the vibe I had with Indrajeet sir and team as a student, I requested him to give me a chance to work with him and the learning has been phenomenal. 60% MBA unhone hi karwa diya iQuanta ke through 
Up until January this year, I was worried I might end up taking one more year to get into a BSchool and thought I was a failure. It was depressing and I felt hopeless, right now I am sharing this story because you might be feeling hopeless too. We are not very different, we have our own past baggage, struggles, and shortcomings to fight. But trust me, keep your head down and work like your life depends on it.
Farzan Shaikh
CAT OA – 98.35 percentile (99.94 percentile in VARC)
XAT OA – 99.94 percentile (99.99 percentile in VA)
GMAT – 720
XLRI Jamshedpur and ISB Hyderabad convert
NIT Nagpur (2019 batch) – Chemical Engineer
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