Earning ₹2.5 lakh daily with ‘red lipstick, semi nudes’: IITian slams Apoorva Mukhija, questions her ₹41-crore empire

Apoorva Mukhija, famously known as The Rebel Kid, has taken the social media by storm. The success story of the influential content creator did not seem to go well with an IIT alumnus, who sparked a debate online as she compared difficult journey of traditional education to that of influencers.

Apoorva Mukhija recently appeared on Karan Johar's reality show ‘The Traitors’, set against the backdrop of Suryagarh Palace in Jaisalmer.

Contrasting the two different paths, the first involving physical and mental hard work while the second brought in social media fame and big sums of money really quick, the user named @digitalsangghi on X wrote, “Not even 100 people know me” today.

She recalled how she gave up her social connections and made several personal sacrifices to secure admission in Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur by clearing India’s most difficult engineering exam. This was not enough, her road to professional success involved six years of academic pressure, mental strain and job placement anxiety.

Detailing her life journey that was full of burnouts and hurdles she stated, “Studied 14 hrs a day to crack India’s toughest engineering exam, gave up home, friends, cousins, sleep, and dreams -got into IIT, then fought for 4+2 years with CGPA nightmares, lab viva trauma, and placement tension.”

Meanwhile, The Rebel Kid earns around ₹2.5 lakh per day from her funny viral videos, reality show appearances and brand campaigns, Business Today reported. The IIT Alumnus added, “Meanwhile… reels, red lipstick, semi nudes, and abusing openly, using BC MC as filler can make ₹41 crore empire. World’s truly fair.”

Social media reactions

A flurry of reactions flooded on social media as one user stated, “I am an IITian too. No regrets.” Another user commented, “you chose to study 14 hrs, cracked the toughest exam, it was all your choice, you liked/wanted it. Same way that girl is doing whatever she likes or wants. This isn’t a competition.”

A third user wrote, “Actually, I don’t think ₹41 crore is really worth it. It may sound impressive, but at what cost is she getting that kind of money? Not everyone is willing to lose their self-respect just to say or do nonsense on the internet.” A fourth user stated, “You studied for 14 hours a day for IIT, got selected, will get a good job – that’s what you chased and achieved. Kudos to you. She chose fame, must have worked hard for it and got what she chased – kudos to her. Comparing apples with oranges is ridiculous. Reason of our misery.”