Never let where you come from limit where you can go !
Meet Parul Chaddha, a software engineer, content creator, and quiet force of nature whose journey from the bylanes of Gorakhpur to the halls of Rippling is nothing short of extraordinary.
Growing up in a middle class family in Uttar Pradesh, Parul's early years were shaped by financial challenges, her parents' health struggles, and circumstances that would have discouraged most. But what her environment lacked in ease, it made up for in grit — and Parul had that in abundance.
A turning point came in Class 8, where her admission got cancelled mid-year. Studies stopped. Stability vanished overnight. For most, it would have been a breaking point. For Parul, it became a defining one. That moment gave her a clarity, most people spend years chasing — she understood the true cost of financial dependence, and decided then that she would build a life where her parents never had to rely on anyone again.
The biggest influence in her life has been her elder sister, who silently made sure Parul continued her education, sacrificing her own dream of pursuing engineering so that Parul never had to give up on hers. It is a debt Parul says she can never fully repay — and one that fuels her every single day.
Engineering was not her first choice — law was. But weighing her family's situation against the long runway of a legal career, she pivoted. Without the luxury of a drop year or an IIT seat, she took admission at Banasthali Vidyapith, an all women's residential university known for its discipline and structured environment. What felt like a compromise at the time turned out to be the making of her. The strict campus routine, the absence of distractions, and the focus it demanded shaped her patience, self-discipline, and resilience in ways no shortcut ever could have.
What followed was three years of relentless self-learning. One by one, the doors opened — The D. E. Shaw Group, American Express, Flipkart, & today, Rippling, where she serves as a Software Engineer building technology that matters. Along the way, she also built a content community of 30K followers on LinkedIn, speaking openly about her journey and inspiring others too.
Beyond the code and the career, Parul Chaddha is a storyteller at heart. She loves public speaking, travels whenever she can, creates content that connects, and walks into every room with the kind of confidence that only comes from having built yourself from scratch.
Her people matter deeply to her. Parul is clear — she did not do this alone, and she never pretends otherwise.
Life lesson from Parul? "Stay patient, keep learning & keep showing up. Small efforts, repeated consistently, create extraordinary results."
Growing up in a middle class family in Uttar Pradesh, Parul's early years were shaped by financial challenges, her parents' health struggles, and circumstances that would have discouraged most. But what her environment lacked in ease, it made up for in grit — and Parul had that in abundance.
A turning point came in Class 8, where her admission got cancelled mid-year. Studies stopped. Stability vanished overnight. For most, it would have been a breaking point. For Parul, it became a defining one. That moment gave her a clarity, most people spend years chasing — she understood the true cost of financial dependence, and decided then that she would build a life where her parents never had to rely on anyone again.
The biggest influence in her life has been her elder sister, who silently made sure Parul continued her education, sacrificing her own dream of pursuing engineering so that Parul never had to give up on hers. It is a debt Parul says she can never fully repay — and one that fuels her every single day.
Engineering was not her first choice — law was. But weighing her family's situation against the long runway of a legal career, she pivoted. Without the luxury of a drop year or an IIT seat, she took admission at Banasthali Vidyapith, an all women's residential university known for its discipline and structured environment. What felt like a compromise at the time turned out to be the making of her. The strict campus routine, the absence of distractions, and the focus it demanded shaped her patience, self-discipline, and resilience in ways no shortcut ever could have.
What followed was three years of relentless self-learning. One by one, the doors opened — The D. E. Shaw Group, American Express, Flipkart, & today, Rippling, where she serves as a Software Engineer building technology that matters. Along the way, she also built a content community of 30K followers on LinkedIn, speaking openly about her journey and inspiring others too.
Beyond the code and the career, Parul Chaddha is a storyteller at heart. She loves public speaking, travels whenever she can, creates content that connects, and walks into every room with the kind of confidence that only comes from having built yourself from scratch.
Her people matter deeply to her. Parul is clear — she did not do this alone, and she never pretends otherwise.
Life lesson from Parul? "Stay patient, keep learning & keep showing up. Small efforts, repeated consistently, create extraordinary results."
This story was told by Parul Chaddha and published with their permission by the What's Your Story editorial team.
