The Blind CEO Who Changed Destiny

The inspiring story of Srikanth Bolla

If the "world looks at me and says, 'You can do nothing,' I look back at the world and say I can do anything."

The luckiest person alive:

Srikanth Bolla is the CEO of Hyderabad-based Bollant Industries, a company that manufactures eco-friendly, disposable consumer packaging solutions. But he is not your usual entrepreneur or CEO. Srikanth was born in a village near Machilipatnam, a small city in Andhra Pradesh in a farming family. When he was born villagers suggested his parents to smother him. To smother means to kill someone by suffocating by covering nose & mouth. Reason being, Srikanth was born without eyes.

Srikanth's parents had a big dilemma in their hands. Would they let their child suffer all his life without eyes, as prophesied by many, or let him live his life? Everyone else called the little boy names like burden, useless. Fortunately, Srikanth's parents who were uneducated, poor and earning just about Rs.20,000 a year, did not listen to anyone. They decided to raise the child to the best of their abilities. This was indeed a brave decision for someone with his parent's background in rural India. Srikanth considers himself to be the luckiest person alive, not because today he is a millionaire, but for what his parents decided that day – to not kill him but to raise him with love and affection. "They are the richest people I know," says Srikanth.

Formative Years:
Being born in poverty is a huge challenge in a country and society like ours, but to be also born without eyes, makes things that much more difficult. In India, the isolation and discrimination of differently-baled people starts at birth. Little Srikanth too faced challenges right from day one. In school, he was made fun of, pushed to last benches. He was not acknowledged, allowed to play with others and had hardly any friends. There was no concept of inclusion and acceptability in the village & society were he lived.

Srikanth's school, the nearest one in his village, was five kilometers away and he had to make his way there mostly on foot. Srikanth's father, a farmer, would often take Srikanth with him to fields but little Srikanth couldn't offer any help and would sit quietly while his father toiled. His father then decided that education is the best thing that Srikanth could do well with. Having understood that there is little that Srikanth is learning at this local village school, his father took him to a special needs school in Hyderabad.

At this school, Srikanth received care, compassion that he missed earlier from others. In Hyderabad, Srikanth learned to play chess and cricket and also excelled in them. Srikanth had focus in his studies and often came at the top of his classes. Srikanth was finally finding his footing and he even took an opportunity to work late President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam in the Lead India project. But just then, life threw another challenge at him.

Srikanth scored over 90% in the Andhra Pradesh class X board exams, but was denied to take admission to the science stream in class XI. Arts subject was the only option given to him. Rather than Srikanth's blindness, it was the perception of the people of his blindness that was stopping Srikanth. Denied the opportunity to study his favourite subject, Srikanth decided to fight it. Srikanth sued the government and fought for six months before finally, the government relented saying that he could take up science at his own risks!

There was no holding back Srikanth and he wanted others who doubted him to be proved wrong. He began by first getting all his books converted into audio files and worked day and night to excel in studies. Finally, in class XII board exams, Srikanth secured ~98%.

Time to fly!
Life is not a journey to be defined in straights lines but a curvaceous one with many ups and downs. Even after doing exceedingly well in XII, the happiness did not last long. Life again threw a challenge. Srikanth had applied to top engineering colleges like IIT, BITS Pilani and so on. The colleges wrote to him reminding him again that he was blind and therefore could not take their courses. Srikanth said to himself, if IITs did not want him why should he want IITs? There is no point fighting them. It was time for him to choose his battles.

Srikanth went back home to researched to find the best engineering colleges in the world suitable to a person like himself. He decided to apply to them and got acceptance from four - MIT, Stanford, Berkeley, and Carnegie Mellon – the best schools in the world! Srikanth chose MIT and he even got scholarship. Srikanth was the first international blind student in the school's history.

Dream big:
After doing well in MIT with studies, Srikanth faced the big question – what's next? He had few options before him. He could have taken the 'golden' opportunity of a wonderful life in US or get back to India. Coming back to India had many questions. How could he live an independent life of dignity? How could he be productive and contribute to the Indian economy?

Srikanth decided to come back to India and be the change he always wanted in society. He set up Samanvai, a non-profit organisation, which is support service platform to rehabilitate, nurture and integrate differently-abled people in society. Additionally, he also provided tutorial services to such students by promoting Braille literacy and a printing press/library. The initiative helped about 3,000 students in acquiring education and vocational rehabilitation. But then Srikanth realised that education was not enough and the employment question also had to be answered.

In 2012, Srikanth started Bollant to provide livelihood and employment to different-abled persons. The company started in a small tin-roof tent in an industrial area near Hyderabad but they did well. Soon there were 8 employees and three machines in the shed. When an angel investor, expecting just a vision to make social impact, came by, Srikanth came across as a person with great business clarity, strong technical understanding and a burning desire to grow the company big, unseen in someone so young. The investor was so much impressed and not only decided to invest in the company but to also become a mentor to Srikanth.

Today, Srikanth's company has five production plants spread in different cities in southern India. Bollant Industries, provides employment to several hundred people with disabilities and is worth over Rs.50 Crores. Srikanth has also received funding many investors, including from Ratan Tata. For the future, Srikanth has a vision of building a sustainable company with a workforce comprising 70% people with disabilities and to have an IPO for the company. Srikanth's inspiring story has made him receive numerous accolades, awards and recognitions from across the world.

Shrikanth, only of 24 years, is the living example of the fact that talent, hard work and determination can get you past any difficulties. Nothing is impossible in life and one is only limited by his own goals in life.

Srikanth says his three most important life lessons are -

• Show compassion and make people rich
• Include people in your life and remove loneliness and lastly
• Do something good; it will come back to you