BENGALURU: From a being class 10 dropout to running a business with over Rs 1 crore income annually, Lohith Shetty from Dakshina Kannada proved that learning can happen beyond the classroom. Forced to leave school due to financial struggles, Lohith turned to cultivating exotic fruits like rambutan, dragon fruit, and mangosteen.
It all started in 2006 when Lohith, 42, realised that the traditional crops his family farmed, such as rubber and areca nut, were costly to maintain, with labour expenses cutting deep into profits. Searching for a better way to utilise their family land, he then started research about other crops and then purchased saplings of rambutan and mangosteen from Kerala and planted them on his farm in Dakshina Kannada.
Hailing from a family of farmers, Lohith witnessed the hardwork of his father and uncles on their 21-acre farm. When he could not study further, Lohith ventured into various small businesses, including running a shop and a restaurant, but a job on a farm in Dharmasthala, which his friend recommended, proved transformative.
In about eight years, his expertise in growing these unique fruits expanded, and today, Lohith not only manages his own farm and nursery but also helps other people start their own ventures.
In over a decade, he gained firsthand experience in cultivating exotic fruits, acquiring essential skills and knowledge that would lay the foundation for his future success. “From their ideal growing conditions to their cultivation methods, working on the farm taught me everything about these fruits,” Lohith said.
Lohith returned to Dakshina Kannada in 2016 and leased 20 acres of land, combining it with the 21 acres owned by his family to create a substantial farming operation. He now not only produces these unique fruits for sale but also shares his knowledge with other farmers, contributing to his annual income of over Rs 1 crore.
“We nurture the plants for three years, and once they start yielding well, the owners take over,” he noted, explaining how he has been helping other farmers. Lohith currently cultivates rambutan across 12 acres, maintains 500 dragon fruit plants, and integrates mangosteen as an intercrop within his areca nut plantation. He sells rambutan for Rs 180 to Rs 300 per kg, mangosteen for Rs 350 to Rs 750 per kg, and dragon fruit for Rs 100 to Rs 150 per kg.
