Sonam Wangchuk: Engineer and educator leading India’s student-led protest movement

As India witnesses a fresh wave of agitation over educational reforms, the cancellation and controversy surrounding the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET), and growing anger among young people over corruption and governance, one figure has emerged as the movement's most trusted public face: Sonam Wangchuk. He does not belong to the generation leading the protests, but student groups and activists associated with the agitation have increasingly rallied around the Ladakh-based engineer and education reformer. Because they see him as a credible voice untainted by mainstream political rivalries. After participating in an indefinite hunger strike in Delhi for more than twenty days, Wangchuk was reportedly moved to a private hospital following court intervention. The events have once again brought national attention to a man who has spent decades working on education, sustainability and regional development in India's Himalayan frontier. Early life and education Born in 1966 in the remote village of Uleytokpo in Leh district, Sonam Wangchuk grew up in what is now the Union Territory of Ladakh. His father, Sonam Wangyal, was a politician from the Indian National Congress who became a minister in the Jammu and Kashmir government. As a child, Wangchuk moved to Srinagar with family and enrolled in a school there. By his own account, this was an experience that proved difficult because of language barriers and ethnic differences. The challenges he faced in the education system would leave a lasting impression on him and later shape his life's work. In 1977, Wangchuk moved to New Delhi and studied at a Kendriya Vidyalaya before pursuing Mechanical Engineering at the Regional Engineering College in Srinagar, graduating in 1987. Decades later, he expanded his expertise by undertaking two years of higher studies in Earthen Architecture in France, completing the programme in 2011. Abhijeet Dipke, head of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), holds the hand of Sonam Wangchuk, who has been on hunger strike, at Jantar Mantar, on July 18, 2026. (File photo: Reuters) Unconventional choices Rather than pursuing a conventional engineering career, Wangchuk turned his attention to Ladakh immediately after graduation. In 1988, he founded the Students' Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh, better known as SECMOL. The organisation aimed to address the educational shortcomings faced by students in the region and soon became one of the most significant experiments in alternative education in the Himalayas. Over the years, Wangchuk established a reputation as an innovator who sought practical solutions to local problems. One of his most famous inventions is the Ice Stupa, a water-conservation technique designed for Ladakh's cold desert climate. The system stores water in winter as towering cone-shaped ice structures that gradually melt during spring and summer, supplying water when it is needed most. The innovation attracted international attention and strengthened his standing as an engineer focused on sustainability and climate adaptation. His contributions earned him some of Asia's most prestigious honours, including the Ramon Magsaysay Award and the Rolex Award for Enterprise. He also became an adviser and consultant to various governmental and non-governmental organisations involved in the development of Ladakh. Seeking to further transform education in the region, he later founded the Himalayan Institute of Alternatives, Ladakh (HIAL), an institution intended to create locally relevant and innovation-driven models of learning. Bollywood controversy Despite his achievements, Wangchuk is perhaps best known to the wider Indian public because of a long-running debate over the Bollywood blockbuster 3 Idiots , starring Aamir Khan. For years, many viewers believed he inspired the character of Phunsukh Wangdu AKA Rancho, the eccentric inventor portrayed in the film. Wangchuk himself has repeatedly dismissed the claim. The film was a loose adaptation of Chetan Bhagat's Five Point Someone, which contains no character named Phunsukh Wangdu. The controversy most recently resurfaced when an actor of 3 Idiots linked Wangchuk's hunger strike to the film's celebrated protagonist. Aamir Khan stated that he had not met Wangchuk before the film was made, but Wangchuk later revealed that the two had in fact met at an award function before the movie's production began. According to Wangchuk, he had suggested a different film project centred on Siachen and the challenges faced by people living in that region. That project, however, never materialised. In fact, Aamir Khan's production team had visited his school in Ladakh intending to shoot the climax sequence there. However, they were allegedly denied permission because they brought plastic materials to the site, forcing the filmmakers to use another school nearby. When asked directly whether he was the inspiration for Phunsukh Wangdu, Wangchuk offered a simple answer: "No, I am not Phuns