'They are nowhere near being modest until...': IITian's humorous take on modesty sparks debate among netizens, Ankur Warikoo weighs in

A joke made by an Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) alumnus about the modesty of IITians has sparked a lively debate on social media.

The IITian's humorous post about the modesty of IIT alumni has sparked conversation on X, drawing attention from users including author Ankur Warikoo. Warikoo chimed in with a story about an unassuming IIT graduate working at Hindustan Unilever (HUL) who left a lasting impression on him, further fueling the discussion.

It all began when Jay Modi, an IIT Roorkee graduate (@jay_modi6), shared a screenshot of a post where someone recounted a man introducing himself simply as a student from "a college in Kanpur." It was later revealed the man was from IIT Kanpur and had a top-100 JEE rank. Modi jokingly captioned the post, "IITians are the most modest creatures out there." He later clarified in separate posts that his comment was meant as satire.

Many users chimed in with their own encounters of modest IIT graduates they had met.

One user, Hemu (@itsHemu2K), shared, “A friend of mine from school was AIR 17 and probably the most down-to-earth, friendly person you could ever meet. Though to be fair, most of them can be a bit annoying.”

Another, Mr.Wayne (@Ashwinnn_007), added, “We recently made a new friend who does the same. Whenever someone asks about his education, he just says he did engineering in Kanpur, never mentioning it’s actually IIT Kanpur.”

Ankur Warikoo shared a memorable experience about meeting a young man during a flight from Delhi to Mumbai who left a strong impression on him with his calm demeanor, yet never mentioned his prestigious background.

Warikoo described sitting next to this sharply dressed man who, as soon as the seatbelt sign turned off, quietly opened his laptop and worked through what appeared to be a complex Excel sheet. Assuming the man was preparing for a big presentation, Warikoo struck up a conversation. The young man confirmed he was indeed nervous, but in a "good way," similar to how top athletes feel before a big performance.

"Was sitting next to a young, sharply dressed guy on an early flight to Mumbai. Calmly opened his laptop, as the seat belt sign went off, working on what looked like a complicated Excel sheet. Worked through the flight," Warikoo wrote. "We got talking. I presumed he was preparing for an important presentation. He confirmed. He was nervous, he mentioned. But felt good nervous. 'That’s what the best athletes tell themselves' I found myself thinking."

During their chat, the man shared that he lived in Delhi, was in Mumbai for work, and had graduated from a college in Gujarat five years earlier. However, he never mentioned his employer, leaving Warikoo to assume it was a smaller company. Warikoo admitted that his initial judgment was clouded by assumptions, thinking maybe the man had some connections or came from a wealthy background, hence the polished appearance despite working in what Warikoo thought was an unknown FMCG company.

It wasn't until they parted ways and the man handed over his business card that Warikoo realized how wrong his assumptions were. A quick LinkedIn search revealed that the man had not only studied at an IIT and an IIM but was also working for a prominent FMCG company—something the young man had never boasted about during their conversation.

The man was employed at Hindustan Unilever, one of India's largest FMCG companies, and had impressive credentials, having studied at both IIT Bombay and IIM Ahmedabad.

However, other users on X noted that not all IIT alumni display the same level of modesty.

"One or two out of the hundreds - IITians are nowhere near being modest until it comes to the ones who just took the last branch for the sake of getting into IIT," a user wrote.