How AIR 2 prepared for JEE: Kabeer Chhillar #iitbombay #jee2027

Main Ideas and Lessons

Kabeer’s Preparation

• Kabeer Chhillar said he began studying through coaching and study materials before fully understanding what JEE was. He studied FIITJEE material in school, attended coaching in Delhi, and moved to Kota around the start of Class 11.
• He focused on completing the homework assigned by coaching and keeping up with the lessons being taught.
• He described his motivation as being goal-oriented: he enjoyed finishing the work and reaching his goals, even when studying itself was not always enjoyable.

Subject-Specific Advice: Organic Chemistry

• Learn reactions through logic rather than relying mainly on memorization. Kabeer said that teachers who explained concepts logically made reactions easier to understand.
• Read NCERT carefully, including line by line. He felt students can underestimate how much useful material it contains.
• For reactions beyond NCERT, study the mechanism and ask why each step occurs—and why other possible reactions do not.
• Build understanding gradually by reasoning through reaction steps.

Revision and Tests

• During the initial syllabus period, Kabeer usually reviewed what had been taught in class that evening but did little revision of older chapters.
• Once formal revision began—around September or October, according to the discussion—he followed a weekly chapter-revision target.
• He sometimes took chapter tests without first revising the chapter. He used the results to identify which topics needed more thorough review.
• He estimated that revision and test analysis made little difference to his JEE Main score but may have improved his Advanced score by roughly 30–40 marks. This was his personal estimate, not a general guarantee.
• He recommended revisiting coaching modules multiple times. He said he had generally repeated chapters’ material two or three times rather than trying to absorb too many resources at once.

Choosing Chapters and Managing Limited Time

• Covering the full syllabus is preferable, but if time is limited, prioritize important material.
• Don’t choose chapters solely because they have high weightage—especially if they are difficult and your fundamentals are weak. Start with accessible, high-value chapters, such as Modern Physics, before attempting demanding topics without the necessary foundation.
• For students who are behind, Kabeer and the interviewer emphasized building at least a basic level across a broad range of chapters. This helps prevent losing straightforward marks because a question comes from an untouched topic.
• Avoid trying to finish an entire chapter in one day and relying on that single burst of study. Spreading topics across chapters may support longer-term retention better than cramming one chapter at a time.

Online Versus Offline Coaching

• Kabeer preferred offline coaching because regular interaction with teachers helped his motivation and understanding.
• He acknowledged that online learning can work, particularly when a student is disciplined or cannot afford offline coaching. In that case, students may need to put more effort into independent practice and revision.
• The discussion suggested spending less time passively watching online lectures if they are not enough to clarify concepts, and more time studying notes, working through modules, and practicing questions.
• The interviewer and Kabeer both stressed that the mode of learning matters, but so does the effort a student puts in.

Study Materials and One-Shots

• Kabeer considered class notes, coaching modules, and previous-year questions central resources, and recommended completing module questions repeatedly.
• He viewed Irodov as potentially useful for strengthening fundamentals, but not necessary for every student. Some questions may be beyond the JEE syllabus, and an average student or someone targeting JEE Main might not need it.
• He did not recommend the Black Book for his preparation, describing many of its harder problems as insufficiently relevant to JEE.
• He was skeptical of one-shot videos as a substitute for learning a chapter. They may help someone who already knows the material, but he felt they offer limited benefit for learning it properly for the first time.

Olympiads and Competition

• Kabeer suggested that Olympiad preparation can take time away from JEE preparation and may not be the best choice for someone seeking the best possible JEE rank for their ability.
• He differentiated by subject: he thought mathematics Olympiads could be more relevant, while physics Olympiads might be less so. He also suggested chemistry could have some relevance. The discussion did not establish this as a universal rule.
• He described competition with friends as healthy: he wanted to do better while also wanting his friends to succeed. Seeing peers improve could be motivating, though he also found slow score growth worrying.

Routine, Rest, and Sleep

• During the syllabus period, he attended about five hours of coaching six days a week and estimated doing around four to five hours of self-study on a typical day.
• His described routine included resting, walking, or eating after coaching; studying through the afternoon and early evening; taking time for dinner and sometimes playing; then returning to study around 9 p.m. until the assigned work was complete.
• He said he did not sacrifice sleep and generally slept seven to eight hours. Before JEE Advanced, he recalled sleeping from about 9 p.m. to 6 a.m.
• He emphasized sleep as important for retaining what is learned.

Advice for Students at Different Stages

• For students with more time, he advised keeping up with the teacher’s current chapters rather than postponing work, and revisiting memorization-heavy material periodically.
• For students closer to the exam, he recommended practicing papers and chapter tests, particularly after studying a chapter. Test practice should help students assess both their knowledge and how they handle questions under exam conditions.
• He closed with a straightforward message: work consistently, maintain confidence, and don’t expect an exceptional rank without sustained effort.

Speakers and Sources Featured

• Anuj — Interviewer; introduced himself as a fourth-year IIT Bombay student.
• Kabeer Chhillar — Interviewee; discussed his JEE preparation and advice.

Study resources and organizations mentioned in the discussion: FIITJEE material, Vidya Classes, NCERT, coaching modules and class notes, Irodov, the Black Book, previous-year papers, Marks app, Allen’s app, and PW. These were mentioned in the conversation but were not additional speakers.