【Dear Utol (2025): Maniac Photographer Episode 26】

As you sow so shall you reap.

The Dear Utol (2025): Maniac Photographer Episode 26old English proverb came to life for Mumbai-based Shyam Kumar, a peon at mobile wallet firm Citrus Pay. He became a millionaire after his employer was acquired by Naspers-backed online payments company PayU in a $130 million deal last year.

42-year-old Kumar, a migrant from Uttar Pradesh, had joined Citrus Pay for a salary of Rs. 8,000 ($120) in 2010 when it was a lesser-known entity and e-commerce in India was just about finding its feet.

After the Naspers buyout, he was rewarded with employee stock options for his unwavering loyalty to Citrus Pay, helping him earn Rs. 5 million ($75,000) in the process!

Kumar's rags-to-riches tale that appeared in local startup news platform YourStory kept Reddit forums and social media busy on Thursday.

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One Reddit user wrote: "Peon or chaiwala. Bohot scope hai!" (Peon or tea-seller. There's a lot of scope) alluding obviously to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi whose rise from a tea-seller to the country's topmost designation is the stuff of legends.

Kumar's story is particularly inspiring given the modest life he'd led prior to that.

He reportedly spent his childhood in a 100 square feet room in a Mumbai slum (does that remind you of Slumdog Millionaire?) along with 10 other people. He had to drop out of school because of his father's illness and was struggling to find a job until Citrus Pay came knocking on the door in 2010.

And the rest as they say is history!