{
  "id": 1638225,
  "title": "Twice‑failed JEE aspirant earns Rs 2 lakh a month: Ankur Warikoo on talent beyond degrees",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/18/twice-failed-jee-aspirant-earns-rs-2-lakh-a-month-ankur-warikoo-on",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-18T04:49:54.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Indian Express",
    "slug": "the-indian-express",
    "url": "https://indianexpress.com/article/trending/trending-in-india/twice%e2%80%91failed-jee-aspirant-earns-rs-2-lakh-a-month-youtube-ankur-warikoo-post-10838070/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Entrepreneur and author Ankur Warikoo recounted the inspiring tale of a young designer from Indore who, despite failing the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) twice, achieved remarkable success in the field of product design. In his post, Warikoo detailed how the student taught himself design skills through free YouTube tutorials while studying at night after his JEE failures. He eventually transitioned into freelancing and now earns approximately Rs 2 lakh per month.\n\nWarikoo used this example to challenge India's persistent focus on academic credentials and the reputation of institutions. He argued that the country's talent pool is undervalued due to an overreliance on labels such as prestigious university degrees and corporate job titles when judging an individual's abilities. Warikoo pointed out that traditional credentials primarily indicate where someone has been rather than their potential future growth. \"India doesn't have a talent problem; it has a label problem. We've been trained to recognize talent only when it comes stamped with the right college, degree, or company. That's why some of the country's best talent remains hidden,\" he wrote in the post's caption.\n\nThe post sparked a lively debate among users, with some defending Warikoo's perspective and others questioning his approach to Indian academic institutions. Critics argued that the 17-year-old's exceptional abilities should not be diminished because he chose a different path compared to traditional college admissions. Others applauded the designer's decision to pursue his passion independently, considering it a wiser choice than attending a lower-ranked engineering college.",
  "summary": null,
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}