All five toppers from AP want to join IIT-Bombay.

HYDERABAD: The IIT toppers from Andhra Pradesh are an unusual bunch. Contrary to the stereotypical image of students burning the midnight oil to make it big in the IIT entrance, the AP boys spoke of their love for all things forbidden Telugu films, IPL matches and outdoor sports.

The five rank holders from the state do not have stories of spending long hours, devouring books and making personal sacrifices to get the top scores. “Perhaps they want to strike a contrary note. I can’t believe that they did not study long hours,” said a parent of an IIT hopeful.

In fact, the toppers insisted, that their secret was “keeping it cool” or so they said amidst celebrations by friends and family, not to mention the coaching centres that burst crackers and made them cut cakes.
Just minutes after the release of results, Tej, the JEE topper, stated that he does not want to pursue a career as an engineer.

In fact, he thinks that the most prestigious tech college in the country IIT-Bombay is only a pit stop, a place to prepare for UPSC (civil services). He said that since his childhood, he had nursed only one ambition, to become an IAS officer. “I scored well because IIT was not the be-all and end-all of my life,” he said.

Even a day before the examination, Tej was watching the IPL match. He is a student of Sri Chaitanya Junior College, Vijayawada.

In fact, Tej had a matter-of-fact way of looking at even his success in JEE. Soon after the release of results, Tej went to the city’s passport office to submit his application for a passport to attend an international Olympiad in Thailand.

The third rank holder, V Shaimak Reddy, a student from the city, stated that he liked both Tollywood and Hollywood flicks and watched movies even after joining Narayana Junior College, Dilsukhnagar. “Even if you spend 10 hours reading your books in a day, you might not crack IIT. But if you relax and take your examination with a confident cool mind you have a better chance of cracking it,” he said, adding that other social activities are important to keep oneself at peace.

The fourth rank holder, B Saikiran from Narayana Junior College, stated that he was only an average scorer till class X. “I had done my schooling from my hometown in Nalgonda and scored 91% in SSC, which was not good enough. I did not lose heart and prepared well for the IIT entrance and HSC, where I scored 97%,” he said.

What all the rank holders have in common is an interest in sports and a liking for healthy living. “I used to play badminton with my mother and then continued to do so to stay fit. It is a matter of personal discipline and it had helped improve my concentration,” said T Bhargava Reddy, the eighth rank holder. J Varun, the ninth rank holder, stated that he was more interested in medical field than engineering. “But later I started liking Maths and then decided to try for IIT admissions,” Varun said.

All the five rank holders plan to take admissions in IIT-Bombay.

Source : TOI