Kochi: It is the kind of story you may not believe unless you heard it straight from the hero himself. It’s the story of a boy who grew up in utter poverty, as the son of a mentally unwell father and a mother who attempted suicide thrice. It’s the story of how the boy, who was always called a stupid by his teacher went on to build a business empire. A classic rags to riches story, underlined with piety and perseverance.
When John Kuriakose, the founder and managing director of Dentcare, the Muvattupuzha-based dental tech company which is the biggest in Asia in the sector, narrated his story at Malayala Manorama Sampadyam Kerala Business Summit here on Wednesday, there was only silence, and then claps.
Kuriakose shared his life story with the audience during a panel discussion on ‘From Kerala to the global business arena’ in which he shared the dais with Jackson Mathew, director, Leetha Industries; and Ginu Francis, technical head, Altivate Global.
“I was born in a remote village. We didn’t have means even to find a day’s meal. My father was a mental patient. There was no atmosphere of peace in my family. My mother used to go to other houses seeking food. I did not have any hope in life. I was called a ‘madman’s son’ and I used to walk with my head hanging in shame and inferiority complex,” he started in response to a question on his entrepreneurial journey.
Kuriakose said he was bad at studies and he could just pass the SSLC exam even after trying hard to learn his lessons. “My maths teacher used to call me a stupid,” he remembered.
He said that even though he went to church and attended prayers, he had no faith in god. But that changed after his mother took him to a charismatic prayer session. It was there he regained his faith and found a purpose. His mother who attempted to kill herself three times fearing her son would also become mad, like his predecessors of three generations, used to curse god as a ‘cruel person who would not even allow her to die’. She, however, found a fresh lease of life filled with faith as her husband got cured of his mental illness. She believed that it was her prayers that helped.
After finishing school, Kuriakose did not have the money to join a college. His father advised him to learn rubber tapping which he did. His life took a turn as he got a job as an attender at a dental clinic at Muvattupuzha, a small town in Ernakulam district.
“While working there god gave me a dream. I wanted to start a dental lab of my own. At that time, there was only one such lab in south India and nine out of the 10 implants bought from there were not fit for the patients,” he said.
It was way back in 1983 and his salary then was just Rs 250 per month. It needed Rs 20 lakh to set up a dental lab.
His doctor taught him the technics of dentistry and he earned Rs 5 lakh in a few years and then availed a loan of Rs 15 lakh. With that he started his venture which would over the years become the dental tech revolution of Kerala.
“I imported an induction casting machine from Germany. I started my company with six workers at a 290 sq ft office. Now we have 4,000 employees and over 450 products. I pay Rs 9.5 crore a month in salaries,” he told to a big round of applause.
Kuriakose went on to pass a dental technician course with rank and has travelled several countries.
Dentcare has its units in Bengaluru, Delhi, Hyderabad and Mumbai in India and also in the US, the UK, Australia and New Zealand.
“We are the biggest in Asia now. My dream is to become the number one in the world,” he concluded.
Jackson Mathew of Leetha Industries explained how the paper cup company started by his father got adapted to the changing demands and grew up to be a major global player. Ginu Francis of Altivate Global spoke about her experience of maintaining a balance between her family life and professional ambitions.