Dream on

“When I started my Master’s in Biotechnology, it was still an emerging field and most people discouraged me from pursuing it. I also got married around the same time, at the age of 23, and had to leave the program midway. But I was determined to pursue higher studies and kept looking for other options. I eventually enrolled for a Master’s program in Biochemistry. It so happened that I delivered my baby one day before my final exams. Fortunately, the college authorities understood my situation and allowed me to appear for the test on a later date. So after a lot of hiccups, I finally managed to get my Master’s degree.

I immediately got a job after my post-graduation at a biotechnology firm that manufactured herbal products and cosmetics. I also did a brief training on fish genetics from National Bureau Fish Genetics Resources, and perhaps around the same time, I felt like I should opt for a PhD in a similar field. It was not an easy decision. I had familial responsibilities and balancing those with a PhD, which in itself is a mammoth task, was going to be challenging. But I believe when you dream of something, you should also be ready to fight for it. That’s what I did.

My PhD topic was aimed at screening antiviral agents against betanodavirus that causes viral necrosis in fishes and a high mortality rate. Since a large number of commercial fishes are affected with this disease, there is a huge push to…