Dr A Velumani, the billionaire founder of diagnostic giant Thyrocare, has called on young people to embrace hardship, arguing that discomfort in the early years of life is a long-term investment in character and resilience.
In a recent post on X (formerly Twitter), Velumani said most people in their teens and twenties seek comfort, but those who experience poverty, difficulty and setbacks gain qualities that cannot be acquired through a life of ease. “It worked for me,” he wrote.
He listed the attributes he believes are built in adversity — stamina, patience, persuasive skills, focus, frugality, discipline, clarity, wisdom and courage — adding that these traits are forged in hardship and eroded by luxury. Comfort, he warned, can weaken both mind and body, while discomfort strengthens them.
The 64-year-old advised parents to avoid overindulging their children and urged young adults to reframe every obstacle as an opportunity for growth.
Velumani has long shared anecdotes from his own life to illustrate this philosophy. One example, dating back to the early 1980s, involved his time working at the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC). Despite holding a stable government post with a steady salary, his income was not enough to support his large family. To supplement it, he began offering private tuition.
Among his students was the son of a wealthy woman living in Mumbai’s Shivaji Park. The boy had already been through three different tutors in a single year. The mother’s only request to Velumani was unusual: keep her son “happy” — whatever that required.
He soon realised the role had little to do with academic guidance. Instead, he was asked to complete the boy’s homework in his own handwriting, eat snacks intended for the child so the latter would not feel obliged to consume them, and spend most of the lesson telling humorous stories. The child had no interest in learning, but enjoyed being entertained — and Velumani obliged.
Ironically, the unconventional tutoring arrangement proved lucrative. His earnings from the role exceeded his monthly salary at BARC, and he enjoyed added perks such as car pick-ups, lavish refreshments and an opportunity to improve his English. However, the academic outcome was poor. The boy failed to pass his 12th standard examinations.
Years later, Velumani learnt that the once-wealthy family had fallen on hard times. In a twist of fate, his wife later offered the same boy — now an adult — a position at Thyrocare.
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