Diwali, crackers, cousins vs CA finals: How she fought distractions, celebrations, and temptation to ace her exams

While most people light diyas and binge on sweets during Diwali, some students are busy battling a very different kind of fire — exam stress. For then, CA aspirant Meenal Goel, Diwali 2018 wasn’t about celebrations at all. It was about silence, self-control, and serious focus. As the world outside sparkled, she sat in her room, fighting noise, FOMO, and a ticking clock to ace one of India’s toughest exams.

CA Meenal Goel shared on LinkedIn that Diwali 2018 looked very different for her. While others were celebrating, she had locked herself in her room to prepare for her CA final exams. Diwali fell on November 7, and her CA final law paper was just two days later — focus felt nearly impossible.

She recalled how the festive buzz made studying a real struggle — crackers going off outside, everyone dressed up and laughing, cousins giggling together. Even though her mother kept asking everyone to stay quiet because Meenal was studying, the noise still seeped through the walls.

“I shut myself inside the room and kept trying to focus,” she recalled. “It was Diwali and I just couldn’t.” So she did what every determined student eventually learns to do — talk herself into discipline.

She kept reminding herself:
→ Work hard this year, Diwali will come every year.
→ CA final exams are the last mile of a five-year race.
→ Your parents are also sacrificing, at least focus now.
→ It’s do or die.



Meenal pushed through that night. No sweets, no selfies, no celebration — just focus. Two months later, all that effort paid off when she finally earned the title of CA. She ended her post with a heartfelt message for students writing their exams this Diwali: “Honest hard work pays off."