Inspired by the ‘American Dream’, Jyothi Reddy completed a post-graduate diploma in computer applications and moved to the US where she initially took on odds jobs like babysitting, working at a gas station, before eventually landing a stable job.
You may have come across hundreds of rags-to-riches success stories of people fighting against their fate to change their station in life, but there are some inspiring tales which are not only truly inspirational but also heart-touching. One such story is the journey of Jyothi Reddy, who once worked as a daily-wage labourer, earning a meagre Rs 5 per day, and now owns a billion-dollar IT-company in the United States.
Who is Jyothi Reddy?
Jyothi Reddy was born in an underprivileged family in a village in Warangal, Telangana in 1970. When she 8 years old, her father, a daily-wage worker, sent Jyothi and her sister to live in an orphanage as he could not afford two square meals for his children. While living at the orphanage, Jyothi attended a government-run school and studied there until Class 10.
Each day, Jyothi had to commute barefoot for over 5kms to and from school in order to receive a basic education, an ordeal which she said taught her to become self-dependent.
After completing her Class 10, Jyothi wanted to pursue further studies but her family forcibly married her off to a poor farmer when she was 16 and had given birth to two daughters by the time she turned 18. Faced with crippling financial situation, Jyothi started working as a daily-wage farm labourer for a meagre Rs 5 per day to help make ends meet.
Jyothi often faced domestic violence from her husband as she raised two children and worked in the fields to earn a living. The young woman, distraught with hardships, was constantly searching for a glimmer of opportunity which would help lift her out of this crushing poverty.
Her first opportunity came via a government scheme through which pursued a teaching job, but the salary was still paltry, prompting her to take up tailoring as a side-business to earn some extra income.
However, despite all the odds, Jyothi never halted her quest of pursuing an education, and in 1994, earned a Bachelors degree from the Dr. BR Ambedkar Open University, and a post-graduate degree in 1997 from the Kakatiya University.
From labourer to CEO
After her PG, Jyothi landed a teaching job at a government but still struggled to make enough money for a decent living as her monthly salary was just Rs 398. However, in 2000, a surprise visit from her US-based cousin would prove to be the ray of hope she was always looking for, as she told her to look for opportunities beyond India, especially in the United States.
Inspired by the ‘American Dream’, Jyothi Reddy completed a post-graduate diploma in computer applications and moved to the US where she initially took on odds jobs like babysitting, working at a gas station, before eventually landing a stable job.
By 2001, Jyothi Reddy had saved around $40,000, which she used to launch her own company, Key Software Solutions. Over the years, her IT company started churning out huge profits, and by 2017, became a billion-dollar business.