IIT Bombay Gold Medalist Rejects Rs 1.6 Crore Foreign Job Offer to Care for Ailing Parents Vivek Sharma, an IIT Bombay gold medalist, turned down a lucrative Rs 1.6 crore job offer from San Francisco to stay in Kanpur and nurse his ailing parents through severe illnesses. My name is Vivek Sharma and I am 32 years old. Whenever people ask me what I do for a living, I tell them that I run a neighborhood grocery store. They usually laugh in disbelief because they know very well that I graduated from IIT Bombay as a computer science gold medalist, and the offer letter from a San Francisco-based firm offering an annual salary of 240,000 dollars still sits inside my cupboard. I have never torn that letter apart, but I have never used it either. Humble Beginnings in Kanpur This story dates back to 1998 in Kidwai Nagar, Kanpur. We lived in a two-room house topped with a tin roof. My father worked as a clerk in the railways while my mother taught local tuition classes. I was their only child. My father's monthly salary was 8,000 rupees, and my mother's tuitions brought in another 2,000 rupees. We were not even middle class; we belonged firmly to the lower middle class. Despite the financial constraints, my father harbored a grand dream that his son would grow up to achieve great things. He never pressured me to become a doctor or an engineer. Instead, he always told me to study as much as I wanted and never worry about the money. The Road to IIT Bombay I kept studying diligently through the years. I scored 95 percent in my tenth grade and 97 percent in twelfth grade. Coaching classes cost around 1 lakh rupees back then. To pay for it, my father withdrew money from his provident fund and my mother sold her bangles. I moved to Kota for my preparations. For two years, I studied under a ceiling fan, enduring endless mosquito bites. When the results were declared in 2012, I secured an All India Rank of 147, earning a seat in computer science at IIT Bombay. The day the acceptance letter arrived, my father bought a box of sweets and distributed it across the entire neighborhood, while my mother wept with joy and declared that her son was finally going to America. The Lucrative Overseas Offer My college years at IIT were filled with coding sessions, hackathons, and internships. By my third year, I secured a summer internship at Google with a stipend of 1 lakh rupees. From my very first paycheck, I bought a phone for my father and a washing machine for my mother. My father told me over the phone that he could finally relax after his retirement. As final year placements approached, I prepared day and night. In December 2015, I interviewed with Stripe, a prominent payment startup based in San Francisco. After four rigorous rounds, the Chief Technology Officer told me that they wanted me on board. The official offer arrived featuring a 240k dollar salary package, along with an H-1B visa and relocation support. A Sudden Medical Crisis I shouted with joy in my hostel corridor and called my father late that night. He remained quiet for a moment before saying it was a huge milestone, while my mother urged me to get my passport made. I started checking flight tickets with a joining date set for August 2016. However, when I returned home for Holi in March 2016, I noticed my father looked noticeably weak and was suffering from a persistent cough. When I asked him to see a doctor, he brushed it off, claiming it was just a seasonal cold. My mother looked fatigued too, but I dismissed it as a byproduct of aging. Hospital Visits and Mountings Debts In April, I received a frantic call from my mother saying my father had collapsed and been rushed to the hospital. I rushed home immediately. The doctor diagnosed him with a severe lung infection coupled with heart complications, requiring an immediate angioplasty that would cost 3 lakh rupees. Although my father had medical insurance, it only covered half the expenses. I withdrew my internship savings of 2 lakh rupees to cover the rest. The surgery succeeded and my father survived. I returned to Bombay to finish my final project, but in May, another call informed me that my mother had experienced severe dizziness. Tests revealed she had stage 2 breast cancer. The doctor advised immediate chemotherapy spanning six cycles at 80,000 rupees per cycle, totaling 5 lakh rupees plus surgery costs. Weighing Career Against Family I was completely numb. My father had already retired with a meager pension of 12,000 rupees, and all family savings were exhausted. I borrowed money from friends, managing to raise just 1 lakh rupees, leaving a massive deficit. By June, I was sitting at home with the job offer letter in hand, a visa interview scheduled for July 15, and a flight booked for August 10. My mother's first chemotherapy session was set for June 20. When I suggested taking out a loan, my father asked who would grant it without mortgaging our home. When I offered to mortgage it, he refused, reminding me that the house was his wife's final keepsake. Canceling the Visa Interview That night, I sat alone on the rooftop watching an airplane streak across the sky, realizing that this was the exact plane meant to fly me away, while my mother suffered in pain downstairs. I emailed my mentor asking if my joining could be postponed by six months, but the reply was a polite refusal stating they needed people immediately and I could reapply next year. I emailed back asking about remote work possibilities. It was the night of July 14. My visa interview was the next day, and my mother's second chemotherapy was the day after that. When my father returned from fetching medicines and dropped his prescription slip because he was too weak to bend down and pick it up, I picked it up for them. In that defining moment, I realized how they would survive if I left. Starting Over with a Local Grocery Store My father was retired and ill, my mother was undergoing chemotherapy, I had no siblings, and our relatives offered no help. Who would take them to the hospital, fetch medicines, or give them a glass of water at night? The next morning, I canceled my visa interview. I emailed the company thanking them for the offer and explaining that I could not join due to a family medical emergency. Friends called me crazy for walking away from a 1.6 crore job, but I stood my ground. I didn't tell my mother; I only told my father. He stayed silent before noting that my career was ruined, to which I replied that careers can be rebuilt, but parents cannot be replaced. Building a New Life Locally I began searching for employment right there in Kanpur. I secured a job at a local software company paying 35,000 rupees a month and joined immediately. My daily routine involved working at the office from 9 AM to 6 PM and rushing to the hospital afterward. When my mother lost her hair due to chemotherapy and wept, I brought her a wig. I made sure my father took his medicines on time. Between 2016 and 2018, those two years passed in a blur of relentless struggle. Eventually, my mother underwent surgery, recovered steadily, and her cancer went into remission. My father's health stabilized as well. Opening the Neighborhood Store Despite surviving the medical ordeal, our finances were completely depleted, forcing me to take out a 7 lakh rupee loan. In 2018, the local software firm shut down, leaving me unemployed once again. Although an interview yielded an 18 lakh rupee job offer from Bengaluru, I turned it down. When my father asked why, I explained that I could not leave because my mother needed checkups every three months and my father required diabetes management. Friends accused me of destroying my own career, but I maintained that my career belonged to me, and so did my parents. Founding Sharma General Store I opened a small shop right beneath our house, naming it Sharma General Store after my father. Leaving computer science behind, I started selling lentils and rice. On the very first day, I felt deeply embarrassed that an IIT graduate was running a provision store. But then an aunty walked in and told me that my mother had once tutored her, urging me to keep the store open so she could buy her supplies exclusively from me. Gradually, the business picked up pace. I would visit the wholesale vegetable market at 6 AM, stock up goods, manage the shop all day, and write freelance coding projects at night to build websites for 500 dollars. Finding Peace and Stability By 2019, my mother had fully recovered, with doctors declaring her completely cancer-free. That day, I closed the shop early, visited the temple, and offered prayers. When I returned home, my father remarked that I had sacrificed everything for them. I corrected him, saying I hadn't sacrificed my life; I had simply redirected it. When the lockdown was imposed in 2020, our grocery store remained open under essential services, allowing us to supply rations to the local community. What this means for you Across India: This narrative highlights the profound personal sacrifices individuals make when balancing lucrative career ambitions with family duty during health crises. In Kanpur: Local readers are reminded of the importance of community roots and standing by aging relatives when unforeseen hardships strike. Questions & Answers 1. Which company offered Vivek Sharma the lucrative job? Vivek Sharma received a job offer from Stripe, a San Francisco-based payment startup, worth 240,000 dollars annually. 2. Why did Vivek reject the foreign job offer? Vivek turned down the foreign job to stay in Kanpur and take care of his ailing parents during severe medical emergencies. 3. Where did Vivek complete his higher education? Vivek graduated from IIT Bombay as a computer science gold medalist. 4. What business did Vivek start upon returning to Kanpur? After working briefly at a local software firm, Vivek opened a neighborhood grocery shop named Sharma General Store beneath his house. Inspiration & Lessons Family First: Careers and financial milestones can be re-established over time, but the presence of parents is irreplaceable. Resilience in Adversity: When unexpected life events derail grand plans, adapting quickly and embracing local opportunities can build a stable path forward. Unyielding Dedication: Rising from lower-middle-class roots to conquer competitive exams proves that sustained hard work overcomes systemic barriers. https://trendkia.com/en/success-stories/iit-bombay-gold-medalist-rejects-rs-1-6-crore-foreign-job-offer-to-care-for-ailing-parents-13333 TrendKia — Har trend, sabse pehle.