The interviews and reporting for this story were conducted in December 2024.

“Building a mudhouse is tougher than cracking JEE,” say IIT toppers Sakshi Bhatia and Arpit Maheshwari, who traded their high-paying corporate jobs in the US for a simpler, more fulfilling life in rural India.

In search of a balanced lifestyle and a deeper connection with nature, the couple settled in Badnagar, a small village in Madhya Pradesh, and began their journey towards sustainability by establishing a farm called ‘Jeevantika’.

Their transformation began in 2015 when travels across South America prompted a major shift in their worldview. “The futility of consumerism started to gnaw at us,” recalls Arpit. Before leaving for South America, they sold most of their........

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