Despite sustaining brutal injuries in a caste crime and being hospitalised for months, the 17 year old Chinnadurai from Nanguneri has scored 78% in his higher secondary examination. In August 2023, Chinnadurai and his 13 year old sister were attacked by a group of six minors who barged into the survivor's house and attacked him with machetes. The survivors belong to the Paraiyar community (which is classified as Scheduled Caste in Tamil Nadu) and the alleged attackers belong to the Maravar community (which is classified as Most Backward Class). Chinnadurai was bullied by the boys and discriminated against him in every possible way to make him stop being an extraordinary student in his class. They allegedly attacked him because he excelled in his studies, and his sister sustained injuries while trying to save him.

Speaking to TNM, Chinnadurai said that he would complete his BCom and undergo training for becoming a Chartered Accountant (CA). When asked why, he said, “This is the easiest way to earn more and be economically stable.”

Chinnadurai has scored 469 out of 600 marks in Class 12 exams, the result which was announced on Monday, May 6. He told us that he was able to score this marks because of the consistent support of the teachers and district administration. Between August and December 2023, when the children were in hospital, district collector KP Karthikeyan had made arrangements for the duo to be tutored by teachers in the hospital.