Online classes to YouTube videos: How 20-year-old samosa vendor from Noida cracked NEET

“When I was in 6th standard, I wanted to be an engineer. But after finishing 10th, I selected Biology,” he says.

“He has always been a bright student. In Class 10, he scored 93%,” says his brother, Sagar, 28.

The family, comprising Sunny’s mother and four siblings, live in a two-room rented house on the ground floor of a building in Noida. Sunny’s older sister Anshu is a B Com student while two younger sisters study in a government school. Sagar works as a salesman in a private company. Their father is back at their hometown in Madhubani, Bihar, looking after their agricultural land.

“Hamne kabhi bhi isko padhne ke liye nahi bola (We never had to ask him to study). Anytime I would wake up at midnight, I would find him studying,” says Sagar. Clad in a pair of black trousers and a green and white checkered shirt, Sunny looks busy fussing over his fingers as if he is counting something.

After a pause, he begins to speak. “This was my second attempt,” says Sunny. “Last year I had not prepared much and did not want to waste my attempt. But Bhaiya (Sagar) told me to give it a shot to gain experience. This time I worked hard,” he says.

A student of Saraswati Vidya Mandir, Sunny scored 95% in his Class 12 in 2023 after which he took off a year to study for NEET.

On how he ended up selling samosas, Sunny says that the cart belonged to his uncle who succumbed to Covid in 2020. Since the uncle supported the family financially, Sunny took it upon himself to shoulder that responsibility. “I was in Class 9 then.”

The cart, which he manned from 4pm to 9pm earned him Rs 600 a day. “But the profit would be Rs 200 only. Much of the money also goes in buying groceries for it,” he says.

On how he managed his school and his business, Sunny says, “My school would start at 8am and finish by 3pm. By 4pm, I had to be at the cart. So there was not much time. Every time, when there were no customers around, I would take the (online coaching) classes. Then I would study till 2 or 3 in the morning.”

Sunny, for most part of his preparation, studied in the room where his sisters slept. “He would keep the lights on till 4 in the morning,” Anshu, 21, complains.

“But now we are so happy, he has made us proud.”

On how he prepared for NEET, Sunny says, “My friends were taking online classes from Physics Wallah (an online coaching institute). I did not have enough money to pay for the subscription. So, I used to watch old lectures from Youtube or those available on telegram (an app) after closing my cart for the day.”

Sunny says that his friend Manish Kuntal has been his biggest support in the journey. “In 12th, Manish bought the subscription of Physics Wallah. He used it on his laptop and I could log in from my phone and study,” he says.

Sagar, his brother, bought a second-hand mobile phone for Sunny to study. At times, Sunny would use the phone to play Winzo and Call of Duty, an online game.

For his second attempt, Sunny bought the subscription of Physics Wallah for Rs 4,200. “I took online classes. The fees are high offline, so I chose to go online,” he says.

“The online class would begin at 8am. By 2pm, they would get over. I never took notes during the classes. I would do that at night after I was free from the cart,” he says.

In the first list, Sunny had scored 669 marks. But his score dropped by 5 marks in the re-revised list that was declared on August 26.

“I have known happiness for the first time,” says Munni Devi, his mother, who works as a cook in a few houses in the neighbourhood. “Now, our life will change.”