Meet 19-year-old boy who took family responsibilities after his father's demise, cracked JEE Main with 9 to 5 job, his AIR was..., he wants to...

Every year, millions of engineering aspirants appear for the Joint Entrance Exam (JEE), a highly competitive exam which serves as a gateway to some of India’s most reputed engineering institutions. The exam, with two stages, JEE Main and JEE Advanced, is a crucial milestone for those aspiring to pursue engineering in top institutions, including IITs and NITs. In this article, we will talk about one such inspirational story of Surya Chakravarthy, who scored an impressive 95 percentile in JEE Main 2025. 

Surya Chakravarthy’s early life

Born in Andhra Pradesh’s Rajamundry city, Surya has had a difficult childhood since his father passed away, and he had to take the family’s responsibility on his shoulders. He completed high school in 2023 with an 8.1 CGPA and scored 930/1000 in intermediate. To maximise his chances, he appeared in both engineering and medical entrance exams. He said, “I knew both the exams were tough, but I wanted to challenge myself and give it everything I had. Preparing for both meant harder work, but also more chances to succeed,” he was quoted as saying to TimesNow. He credited his mother and brother for their unwavering support in his educational journey. "Every time I felt tired or doubted myself, I thought about my mother and family, and that gave me the strength to keep going,” he added.

How did Surya Chakravarthy prepare for JEE, JEE Main 2025?

Surya began preparing for JEE and NEET in January 2024. He efficiently managed his time between the overlapping subjects of Physics and Chemistry, and the exclusive subjects of Biology and Mathematics. He skipped coaching classes and relied heavily on self-study, online resources, including video lectures, to clarify his doubts. He focused on understanding the basics and stayed regular, giving both exams equal importance. He also took help from his brother, who shared his knowledge on various topics. He found Physics challenging; however, e-learning and his seniors became supportive. Along with his preparation, Surya juggled with 9 to 5 job and studying from 8 pm to 2 am. It becomes exhausting for him; however, he deals with stress by reminding himself of his goal.

What does Surya Chakravarthy want to do?

After clearing the JEE Main with 95 percentile and All India Rank of 55,293, Surya aims to join IIT Bangalore. He wants to pursue Computer Science Engineering. “Technology has always fascinated me, especially how it can be used to solve real problems. Over time, I realised I was more drawn towards building things, creating solutions, and working with tools that could make a real impact. Engineering felt like the right path for the kind of future I want to build. Getting into IIIT Bangalore was a huge moment for me — it felt like everything I had worked for was finally starting to take shape,” he said.