WHO CAN PUT A HURDLE BEFORE YOU BUT YOU?

Srikant Bolla’s life is an example of the above statement. He is a blind CEO who heads the Rs. 50 crore Hyderabad based Bollant Industries. This company is a haven for the disabled and uneducated people who can earn a living in a dignified way.

Srikanth Bolla’s life was full of discrimination and rejections.  When he was born blind, the neighbours advised his parents to let him die; but the parents did not heed to it.  When he started to go to School, he was looked down upon with scorn and always given back bench to sit and denied the opportunity to participate in games. But, these didn’t deter him. He excelled in studies and topped the Class 10 board exams in his school. When he wanted to do Science in Intermediate level, the Andhra Pradesh Education Board refused to admit him saying that the blind cannot do Science stream; but he challenged it in the Court and got into Science stream.  Srikanth topped his Class 12, securing a 98%.

The row of hurdle did not stop there. When he decided to study engineering at the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology, he faced discrimination again. He was denied an admit card to the IIT entrance examination. That is when Srikanth decided, “If IIT doesn’t want me, I don’t want IIT either!” He applied to schools in the United States for an undergraduate programme and secured admission in four of the top schools – MIT, Stanford, Berkeley, and Carnegie Mellon. He eventually chose MIT and became the school’s first international blind student.

“The world looks at me and says, ‘Srikanth, you can do nothing.’ I look back at the world and say ‘I can do anything’.”

After graduating from MIT, Srikanth was offered opportunity in USA in multinational companies where he could earn much, but he opted to return to India and do his share of helping the disabled who are otherwise discriminated.   He started Samanvai, a non-profit organization in Hyderabad, to provide individualized, need-based and goal-oriented support services to students with multiple disabilities. He promoted Braille literacy, a digital library and a Braille printing press/library to provide tutorial services for such students. Through Samanvai, Srikanth has managed to mentor and nurture over 3,000 students so far.

In 2012, he started Bollant Industries Pvt. Ltd with the aim of providing livelihood opportunities to the physically challenged. The company manufactures eco-friendly products such as areca leaf plates, cups, trays, and dinnerware, betel plates, and disposable plates, spoons and cups. The company also manufactures adhesives and printing inks/printing products. So impressed was angel investor Ravi Mantha with Srikanth’s business model and vision, that he not only invested in the company but is also his mentor. Today, Bollant employs over 150 disabled individuals and has five manufacturing units. Its annual sales have already crossed Rs. 70 million.

Srikanth’s vision about the future is to build a sustainable company with a workforce comprising 70% people with disabilities. He, no doubt has come a long way in changing people’s perceptions about the capabilities of the differently-abled.

Srikanth’s life tells us that disability is not a hurdle, but only a challenge. If disability has not affected your mind, it cannot deter you from excelling in life.