Newcomers at IIMB look to move beyond their comfort zone

The new batch for Masters of Business Management at Indian Institute of Management-Bangalore (IIMB) for the 2026-28 academic year has students from diverse backgrounds, who have challenged themselves in various ways to pursue a dream.

Born in a small village in Bihar, Reema Kumari, 22, is visually challenged. She lost her vision in 2015 when she was 12. “We moved to Noida in Uttar Pradesh in search of better opportunities for studies and medical care. When I lost my vision completely, my family was clueless about the next step. Saksham, an NGO, helped me learn Braille and introduced screen reader software, using computer and phone independently. Later, I prepared for IPMAT and CAT,” she said.

After clearing IPMAT, Ms. Kumari joined IIM-Rohtak for her BBA, an experience that shaped her early understanding of management. “In my third year, I appeared for CAT and secured admissions to IIMB,” she said.

She hopes to gain a meaningful experience in the corporate sector, while also working towards creating opportunities and support systems for children facing similar challenges.

Kunal Jain, who grew up in Bhagalpur, Bihar, is an openly queer person. He moved to pursue Bachelors in Statistics at Hindu College in Delhi. He observed that studying at Hindu College changed things for him.

“Firstly, I looked for people people like me who were doing well in the corporate world. But didn’t find any. Secondly, I started expressing my identity louder. I felt lighter than I had in my life,” he said.

After graduation, Kunal moved to Bengaluru to work in corporate companies. “I wanted a career in strategy and finance, in the rooms where decisions are made for a greater good and this is what brought me to study at IIMB,” he said.

For Ritika Kapoor, the journey to IIMB began, not in a classroom, but on the film production sets. “My entrepreneurial challenge and journey began with independently producing an award-winning short film. Demanding timelines taught me to view every project as a business.”

However, she was left with questions such as why talented teams performed differently under different leadership, and how organisations navigated uncertainty, and more. “This led me to join MBA and find answers to my questions through classroom debates, diverse perspectives from peers across industries and geographies. The programme is helping me move beyond experience-based intuition towards a more structured understanding of organisations and strategy,” she said.

Ramanuja Desikan C.R., also part of the new batch, left the comfort of a Central government job to pursue his passion. He was an Inspector of Customs at Chennai customs till May, 2026, and resigned to pursue MBA at IIMB.

“The diversity of people and situations at customs helped me appreciate the importance of empathy and authority. I learnt that effective administration is not merely about applying rules, but about understanding their impact on different stakeholders, while maintaining integrity and accountability,” he said.

For Abhimanyu Timbadia too, the shift was significant, having studied BA Hons in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics and a postgraduate diploma in Computer Science. He graduated from Ashoka University as a gold medallist. “At Ashoka, I worked on post-quantum cryptography research with the DRDO. This combination of humanistic reasoning plus technical fluency shaped my career choices,” he told The Hindu.