I shall overcome some day!

“I had got through a dental college, but decided not to pursue it and instead enrolled myself for a Bachelor’s in biology. I was the university topper and the streak of coming first continued in my Master’s as well. But my university barely had any practicals. I was just learning theory which I knew wouldn’t help me much if I wanted to go into research.

In order to gain practical exposure, I applied for a project staff position in one of the most reputed institutes of the country. I was initially scared and told my supervisor that I had absolutely no clue how things worked in a laboratory. He was extremely calm about it and said it was okay, that the seniors in the laboratory would teach me everything. It was a big relief. I loved the environment so much that I was determined to do a PhD under him.

I was eligible for the DST-INSPIRE fellowship since I was the university topper but it didn’t get activated when I appeared for the PhD interviews. Although my interview went really well, my supervisor was hesitant to take someone without a fellowship. I was moments away from a rejection when I received the DST email. It was destiny!

I have been working hard since the very beginning and have a positive attitude towards PhD but last year, the project that I was working on got published from a different laboratory rendering my work completely useless. I…