In the quaint village of Neyyattinkara, Kerala, R Vishwan’s life began under a cloud of superstition, where he was unjustly labelled as the bearer of bad luck.
Things took a turn for the worse when his father’s business began to suffer sudden losses, and Vishwan was blamed for this misfortune.
“At just seven years old, my family abandoned me, leaving me on the streets to fend for myself,” he says. Left to survive alone, hunger forced him to steal.
Once, a chance encounter with honeycombs while grazing cattle became a turning point for him. This seemingly small discovery led him to a path that would eventually transform his life.
With no initial knowledge of beekeeping, young Vishwan casually housed bees in a makeshift box.
At just 13, he showed impressive entrepreneurial skills by selling his first tin of honey to the Kozhikode Sarvodaya Sangham. He earned Rs 328 from the sale, which became the seed capital for his successful journey.
Lacking formal education and guidance, Vishwan’s venture into honey farming became his classroom, teaching him the intricate art of beekeeping organically.
Today, Vishwan oversees an impressive 6,000 beehive boxes, yielding 90 to 110 tonnes of honey annually.
Selling honey to the Kerala Khadi Board and pharmaceutical companies in Chennai and Bengaluru resulted in a remarkable annual profit of up to Rs 25 lakh.
Sharing one of the most important learnings from his life, he says, “The biggest lesson is to keep going. There is nothing stronger than a person’s strength of will and determination. If you keep moving forward, success will follow.”