'UPSC is much tougher than IIT JEE': IIT graduate who took both exams tells Anand Mahindra

Anand Mahindra sought feedback about the IIT JEE and UPSC exams after watching the film '12th Fail'.

Anand Mahindra, who has in the past praised 12th Fail and actor Vikrant Massey for his performance in the film, on Sunday shared that the movie inspired him to seek more details about how aspirants prepare for the exam and how difficult it is to clear it. In doing so, an IIT graduate who had also taken the UPSC exams apparently told him that the latter was more difficult.

The film that triggered the discussion, 12th Fail, is based on the life of IPS officer Manoj Kumar Sharma, who overcame extreme poverty to become a police officer.

"After seeing 12th Fail I checked around and spoke to a number of young people about the relative difficulty of our entrance exams. One of them was a graduate of IIT who is involved in a business startup but who has also taken the UPSC exam," Anand Mahindra wrote on X. "He stated EMPHATICALLY that UPSC is much tougher than the IIT JEE."

The Mahindra Group chairperson also shared a post on 10 of the toughest exams in the world which featured three from India -- IIT JEE at number 2, UPSC at number 3, and GATE at number 8. Mahindra said that if the feedback he received was true then the global rankings should be updated to reflect it.

After seeing #12thFail I checked around and spoke to a number of young people about the relative difficulty of our entrance exams.

One of them was a graduate of IIT who is involved in a business startup but who has also taken the UPSC exam.

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He stated EMPHATICALLY that UPSC is… https://t.co/NvGTIHWkrz

— anand mahindra (@anandmahindra) February 4, 2024

Reacting to the post, X users, however, differed in their opinions about the exams.

"One of my relatives cleared IIT in the first attempt and cracked UPSC in 4th attempt. He always says that UPSC is the 'mother of all exams'," commented Neetu Khandelwal (@T_Investor_). Another user and government official Rahman Sheikh (@rahmanology) wrote, "The exam itself is not tough but it has 3 stages and every graduate can take it which makes the competition very tough. One small mistake and you are out of the race. But if the difficulty level of question papers is compared, of course, JEE is much tougher."

Read more: Anand Mahindra reacts after '12th Fail' wins Best Film at Filmfare Awards. See post