Bengaluru mother clears ₹43 lakh ISB loan after 8 years, takes 3-year-old son to bank for this special reason

A Bengaluru-based impact consultant has shared how she repaid an education loan of approximately ₹43 lakh over eight years, despite career setbacks, a failed entrepreneurial venture and a period without income around childbirth.

Arpitha Rao, who pursued an MBA from the Indian School of Business (ISB), took her three-year-old son to the bank when she finally closed the loan, saying she wanted him to witness the milestone and understand the importance of financial independence.

In a LinkedIn post, Rao spoke about the challenges she faced while repaying the loan and how her financial situation differed from that of several of her classmates, some of whom cleared their education loans within two to four years with family support.

‘My father stopped supporting me financially when I was 18’

"For some of my ISB MBA classmates, paying off their education loans took 2-4 years. They had family support, financial cushions and the privilege of not being the sole breadwinner in their families. I had a very different starting point. My father stopped supporting me financially when I was 18," she stated in her post.

Read  the viral post here:

Rao's professional journey also included several setbacks. She spoke about having to accept a lower salary during a career transition, difficult partnerships and mistakes in choosing a founding team.

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She continued rebuilding her career, changing directions and taking risks while working towards becoming debt-free.

Eight years of loan repayment

Rao worked with impact consulting firms such as Sattva, Intellecap and Sagana. Her projects covered education, gender, climate, energy transition, circularity and the broader impact ecosystem, advising funders and organisational leaders.

Her journey also included a period without income around the time of childbirth.

Why she took her son along for the final payment

When Rao finally visited the bank to close her loan, she took her three-year-old son along. She wanted him to witness the completion of an important chapter in her life.

She said her son had already seen her working, coaching and training people. The bank visit was an opportunity to show him what financial independence could mean.

Rao said she hoped he would grow up understanding the importance of earning, building one's own life and creating value.

However, her son had a different highlight from the visit. Rao said he was particularly excited about getting to touch the real gun carried by the bank's security guard.

Now debt-free, Rao is working towards building her own coaching and advisory practice. She also mentioned a six-week learning programme for impact professionals covering impact consulting, impact investing, impact finance, professional positioning and writing.