Sarada Sriram

My name is Sarada. In Sanskrit, it means the goddess who dispenses knowledge. By founding a business with an abacus at the core of it and then running it for the last 17 years, I am doing what my name signifies. I am not a teacher, though I do a bit of teaching now and then. I am an entrepreneur! With my business partner Chitra Ravindran, we founded Ideal Play Abacus India Private Ltd (IPA), which runs a few company-owned and company-operated learning centers. We have also given a franchise to over 1,000 people to run similar centers in India and abroad.

We teach Abacus and other enabling learning skills. It helps kids to develop both the left and the right sides of their brain. Most of our franchisees are one-woman shows! Thereby we have made many women economically self-sufficient.

Over the years, I have come to be known as the lady with an abacus. I was born in Chennai in 1971. That year India helped Bangladesh liberate from Pakistan and become an independent country. My dad, an engineer from IIT, is an entrepreneur who founded a hydraulic company (HVK Systems) and later a software business. My parents are now in their eighties. Still, my father is involved in running the companies, albeit as an advisor, while my husband, a trained engineer, handles operations.

I did my schooling at Rosary Matriculation. I don’t know why, but despite being the daughter of an IIT graduate, I hated Physics. I loved and did well in mathematics, though. When I joined Commerce in Plus 2, I found my mojo in accountancy. After that there was no looking back and I finished with the 2nd rank at the state level. With such success, I thought I could join any college for my graduation. An interview with Sister Helen Vincent, then Principal at Stella Maris College, brought me back to the ground. At the interview, she suggested I join a different college known for its academic rigor. She advised me also to do a bit of teaching to sharpen my skills. I patiently heard her but joined Stella nevertheless. The days at Stella completely changed me and I evolved into a different person. Besides academics, our alma mater was also known for its rich cultural activities.

Many of my friends were pursuing CWA simultaneously. I joined in the flow and completed both my graduation and cost accountancy qualification. What’s more, I topped my CWA final exams and received the gold medal! That’s quite a story, so I save that for later. I simply loved accountancy. The underlying logic whispered into my ears (like Harry Potter speaking to the snakes), and I felt I understood the rules, how-so-ever complex they may have appeared to others, in one go. Learning became fun.