At 23, I carry two landscapes within me: the quiet of Rowduargaon in Numaligarh, Assam, and the sprawling, tree-lined campus of IIT Madras. Growing up in a small town and then moving to structured environments taught me early lessons in independence, adaptability, and belonging.
I grew up in a home where education was always taken seriously, but choice was mine. Both my parents are working professionals, and they encouraged me to choose my own path and stand by it. That foundation shaped much of who I am today. My schooling at The Assam Valley School in Upper Assam further strengthened it. Being in a residential school taught me independence early, but it also meant navigating different social contexts while staying rooted in where I came from. That experience shaped how I think about identity and belonging.
‘Ease of not being misread’
I miss my hometown for the ease of not being misread. Outside Assam, people often assume I am from somewhere else entirely based on how I look. In Numaligarh, there is no need to clarify where you belong. Identity is simply understood. That absence of constant explanation is something I value deeply now that I live away from home.
My road to IIT Madras
In 2021, I appeared for the Humanities and Social Sciences Entrance Examination (HSEE) for the Integrated MA programme at IIT Madras. I knew I wanted to pursue the humanities seriously, but didn’t want to study them in isolation from larger institutional and technological conversations. IIT Madras offered a space where literature and social theory exist alongside engineering, scientific research, and innovation. I was drawn to the question of how cultural inquiry could remain rigorous while being situated within a technical ecosystem.
Read More | Life in an IIT | How this student’s passion for people and sports blossomed at IIT-Madras
Preparing for HSEE required sustained reading and careful writing. The exam tested comprehension, analytical reasoning, general studies, and essay writing. I focused on reading across literature, history, and contemporary issues while practicing structured argumentation. The bigger challenge, however, was not academic. Choosing a humanities degree in an unconventional setting meant committing to a five-year programme with no exit option. I had to be certain of my choice before even beginning.
Story continues below this ad
Why I chose the programme?
I chose English Studies because of the programme’s unique structure. It is not confined to canonical literature; it is strongly informed by cultural studies, sociology, and linguistics. It examines how language operates within systems of power, media, identity, and history. That theoretical grounding appealed to me. I also considered Development Studies, but English Studies allowed me to engage closely with questions of language and culture while still engaging with broader social theory. Studying this in a technical institution adds another layer: one is constantly aware of how technology shapes society, and that awareness feeds back into the humanities classroom.
Read More |IITs to allow undergraduate students to study across 23 campuses
My initial days at the campus
I joined IIT Madras in 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic. My first semester was entirely online, so IIT began as a login screen before it became a place. Campus only became real in my second semester. I had lived away from home before at boarding school, but IIT felt different. School has structure; IIT hands you autonomy immediately. You are responsible for your time, your direction, and your community.
Adjustment was less dramatic than people imagine. Food was the first real friction point. Like many North Eastern students, I missed home flavours. Bhut jolokia is not just a chili – it carries memory. Over time, I discovered North Eastern cloud kitchens in Chennai. Every year, more seemed to appear. That changed everything. I introduced almost all my friends to Naga and Manipuri food, and watching them order it independently later felt oddly satisfying. I still think Chennai deserves a proper Assamese restaurant. I realised that the key is to find fragments of home rather than wait for it to arrive whole. Once I did that, the city became easier.
Story continues below this ad
Read More |IITs see female enrollment double in 7 years, yet the gender gap has hit a record high—here is why
When I first came to campus, my buddy mentor asked me what I genuinely enjoyed doing. I said writing. That question led me to The Fifth Estate, and later to Chennai 36. Working on projects like 36 Questions, which crossed a million views, was unexpectedly exhilarating. It showed me how storytelling within an institute can travel far beyond its physical boundaries, and it taught me the power of collaborative work done consistently over time.
Parallel to this, I became involved with teams under International and Alumni Relations (IAR). I was drawn to the institutional side of the institute early on, and over time, that involvement deepened. I eventually stepped into the role of International and Alumni Relations Secretary. The journey from a hesitant first-year student to standing confidently in institutional spaces is something I will always associate with my time here. Balancing council work and academics required setting boundaries – you have to ensure you don’t get swept away by everything happening around you.
A day in my life
My daily routine moves between classes, meetings, writing, and research. I have a long-standing obsession with food – I even maintain an Excel sheet of every restaurant I’ve eaten at in Chennai. Mapping cities through what they feed you is a hobby, of sorts. On free days, my friends and I are committed to Nandhini in Velachery. On difficult days, we’ve walked from GC to Velachery just forpanipuri. The walk matters as much as the food. And then there is Besant Nagar beach. Sitting there long enough for the shoreline to shift slightly toward you does something to your perspective. Chennai feels most honest by the water.
Story continues below this ad
Hostel life keeps basic costs predictable, so I plan around that. I track my spending closely. I also take on paid projects and internships alongside academics, which gives me financial independence. If a project is research-related or institutionally linked, I plan in advance and explore formal support channels. I don’t play competitive sports, but long walks across campus are my daily physical activity.
‘My professors are remarkable’
In a place where some teach hundreds of students, you can feel like just another face. But one memory stands out. A professor who taught me in my first online semester also taught me in my final semester. I had never unmuted in the first class. After my final presentation, he told me I seemed much more certain of my thoughts now, that I had come a long way. It felt like a marker of time at IIT Madras.
Read More |IIT-Madras Professor B Ravindran appointed to UN’s AI scientific panel
I’ve done internships largely at the intersection of culture, research, and communications. Working outside the classroom showed me how ideas are negotiated in institutional settings. Theory doesn’t disappear in practice – it adapts. These experiences clarified that I want to work where scholarship, public culture, and institutional strategy meet. They also made me more pragmatic; you begin to understand timelines, stakeholder expectations, and how projects are sustained beyond conceptual strength.
Story continues below this ad
‘IIT Madras made me more articulate and self-aware’
Being at IIT has changed me in ways that are hard to dramatise. It has made me more articulate and self-aware. Studying the humanities in a predominantly technical institution forces you to defend your intellectual space clearly; you cannot rely on assumed agreement. It has also made me less intimidated by institutional spaces. But perhaps the most meaningful parts of this place are relational: unexpected mentors, seniors who become friends, peers who remain constants across years. Institutional life is large, but actual experience is built through these smaller, durable connections.
Being a student at IIT Madras has also opened doors. Being from this institute changes the first response you receive: emails are answered, meetings are granted, conversations open more readily. The institute doesn’t hand you outcomes, but it places you within networks where outcomes become possible if you are attentive.
Looking ahead
Looking ahead, I see myself continuing at the intersection of research and public culture. My interests lie in language, memory, and cultural transmission. I hope to pursue advanced research, ideally through a PhD, while staying engaged with work that has a tangible public impact. I do not see academia and practice as separate tracks. I want to move between them – developing research around cultural memory, writing, or working on projects that shape how culture is documented and experienced. The direction feels clear, even if the exact form is still evolving.
If there is a through-line to my journey, it is this: I am always negotiating space – between Assam and Chennai, between humanities and technology, between theory and practice, between silence and articulation. And in that negotiation, I have learned not just how to belong, but how to define belonging on my own terms.
