Coolie's son left school after failing Class 6; one teacher changed his life, leading him to IIM Bangalore and a Rs 681 crore business

What happens when a child who once left school to earn money ends up studying at IIM Bangalore and building a business worth hundreds of crores?

PC Musthafa's journey from a financially struggling family in Kerala's Wayanad to becoming the founder of iD Fresh Food is one of those stories that sounds almost too unlikely to be true. But behind the headline is a long chain of setbacks, second chances and some seriously hard work.

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Musthafa grew up in Chennalode near Kalpetta, where his father worked as a coolie on a coffee plantation. After failing Class 6, he left school to help his father earn money. Years later, he would return to education, study engineering at NIT Calicut, complete an MBA at IIM Bangalore and eventually build a fresh-food company that reported Rs 681.38 crore in revenue in FY25.

The story was recently shared on X by user @VikasAlwys, bringing renewed attention to Musthafa's remarkable journey.

How PC Musthafa went from a plantation worker's son to IIM Bangalore

Musthafa's early life was far removed from the world of business schools and start-ups.

His father had studied only until Class 4 and worked as a plantation labourer, while his mother had never been to school. With the family struggling financially, Musthafa, the eldest of their children, left school after failing Class 6.

Instead of spending his days in a classroom, he began working alongside his father on the coffee plantation.

For Musthafa, education appeared to have come to an end.

Then a teacher stepped in. The teacher who gave Musthafa a second chance

A teacher who was searching for children who had dropped out of school eventually found Musthafa working.

After learning that financial hardship, rather than a lack of interest in studies, had forced him to leave school, the teacher persuaded his parents to send him back.

The teacher also helped pay for his books. That small intervention changed the direction of Musthafa's life.

He returned to school, caught up with his studies and eventually began excelling academically. His journey took him to the National Institute of Technology, Calicut, where he studied engineering.

He later secured admission to the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore and completed his MBA.

Not bad for someone who had once thought school was behind him.

Why Musthafa returned to India after working abroad

After completing his studies, Musthafa entered the technology sector and worked as a software engineer. He also took up jobs abroad.

But a comfortable career overseas wasn't where he wanted the story to end.

In 2005, he returned to Bengaluru with an entrepreneurial idea and joined forces with his four cousins: Abdul Nazer, Shamsudeen TK, Jafar TK and Noushad TA.

Together, they decided to tackle a very everyday problem: making fresh South Indian breakfast staples easier to prepare.

How iD Fresh Food started in a tiny Bengaluru kitchen

The cousins started iD Fresh Food from a tiny 50 sq ft kitchen in Bengaluru.

Their first product was idli and dosa batter. The concept was wonderfully straightforward. Instead of asking busy households to soak rice and lentils, grind them and wait for the batter to ferment, the company would do the work and sell fresh batter ready to use.

It was hardly a glamorous beginning.But it was a useful product, and that mattered.

The company gradually expanded its range beyond batter, moving into products such as parotas, paneer, curd, chutneys, sambar, ready mixes and filter coffee.

From Rs 10 a day to a Rs 681 crore company

The numbers now look very different from Musthafa's childhood.

According to the company's FY25 financial figures, iD Fresh Food's revenue from operations increased 22 per cent to Rs 681.38 crore, compared with Rs 557.85 crore in the previous financial year.

The company reported a net profit of Rs 50.75 crore. However, the profit figure received a boost from a one-time deferred tax credit of Rs 24.89 crore. Excluding that impact, the underlying profit was around Rs 26 crore.

What started with a handful of cousins and a tiny kitchen had become a sizeable fresh-food business.

Where iD Fresh Food operates today

iD Fresh has expanded well beyond Bengaluru and now sells its products across India as well as international markets.

Its overseas presence includes the UAE, UK, US, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar, Ireland and Singapore.

The business continues to focus on fresh and ready-to-cook food products, turning everyday staples into convenient options for urban consumers.


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