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In this 68th edition of As We Leave 2026, Aasmee Shende, a Y22 graduating from the department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering, takes us through a college life full of unexpected plot twists, unforgettable friendships, and memories that were anything but ordinary. Blending humor with heartfelt reflections, she celebrates the people who became her constants through every high and low, reminding us that sometimes the best stories are the ones we never planned to write.
Disclaimer:- The views presented below are the author’s own and are not in any manner representative of the views of Vox Populi as a body or IIT Kanpur in general. This is an informal account of the author’s experiences at IIT-K.
My first goal was to become an SG (i didn’t), and second was to write an AWL, so here we are.
I dont know if i’ll be able to complete this, one day i feel like im going to pull this off as a beautifully stitched together piece and one day my motivation to write this awl has dropped off, but i somehow need this out of my system.
It’s a day before the deadline while i sit down to write this or i should say compile these four years of a rollercoaster of a journey full of plot twists, breakdowns, fallouts, overthinking, and what not, (i reallyyyy need this out of my system)
If someone would pinch me hard that day, I would still not believe that I got into IITK, or even an IIT for that matter, I was so convinced that I would never get into one. For half of my years here, I strongly believed that I did not belong, and I kept telling myself not to get attached to this place, but problem being, as someone who over analyzes and feels everything at a hundred percent, now pair that with the fact that my best core memories happened right here, it was surely a losing battle from the start.
(Disclaimer – Expect a lot of Khushi in here. She was my only constant for four years, and I thank my lucky stars for her.)
And lots of love to Chethana for keeping her patience with me <3
This campus has offered so much, a true buffet of experiences and i wanted to leave nothing on the table. The first night was strange, a mix of overwhelming panic and curiosity. Then I was blessed with a gem of a roommate, Khushi. She made sure that i atleast had one cold coffee with her everyday (yes for four years straight), I was grateful enough to have a friend group to explore with, have meals with, to sing with, to join a club with, and take mattresses to the terrace to sleep with. There were so many things happening at the same time all while getting to know each other better, I sometimes felt like i got meet a new bunch of people everyday. I spent my days cheerfully disconnected from any real academic responsibility and the result was quite bad so the next few sems looked like Karan Johar trying to make a patriotic movie – desperate effort but average result.
Then came the first plot twist – First year friendships (My only closure was knowing that i had good intentions)
The second plot twist – Winters here, i hated them.
Second year was when i actually got to know BSBE people, and somehow the whole department felt so uncomplicated, I never really had to explicitly put effort, it just happened naturally and Group – 5 (lab grp) became my ranting space, you wanna know the cutest part? Everyone used to religiously listen, Plus i loved how we got completed with 3 hr labs in 30 mins.
Then there’s him, Shah Divit Ritesh, bro’s a gossip aunty, ask him anything and he’ll drop the freshest tea in seconds. But the cutest part? he brings me homemade thepla. I’m out here getting tea and thepla from him (get the pun?) No but im really grateful for him, he was always there to listen and guide.
This period also came with major fallouts that I had no idea how to deal with. Whenever there was an overflow of emotions and I had nowhere to dump it, I would cycle through the campus with Pritam (obviously) blasting in my earphones, heading straight to my spot, my place – the lights (TA building terrace, left corner), that place really means a lot to me.
On days when i couldn’t visit this terrace i had ELS with me, i met the kindest people there, and on some days to balance this, i had Antaragni 🙂
Third plot twist – I got pink crocs, and there were 6 people 24/7 in my face telling me how much they hate them.
Third year, I studied religiously, and It genuinely felt like the second half as if a change was needed as if i had to call out hypocrites, be rude to anyone who deserved it, i knew i couldn’t suffer like i did before, i knew this place and its people, how some of them would just get away being absolute bitches, i knew i had to stop taking their crap. So as a first step, i dyed my hair purple, got inked and was held responsible for two major group meets (like the ones which happen after a fight). Remember when I said I overanalyze? Yea, it means I notice a lot like a lottt. It usually led to me ghosting people for a tiny period of time until I processed it and forgave them in my head. I know there’s zero communication on my part, but I also believe no one is actually that dumb. The takeaway being, there will always be people who’ll play dumb to escape accountability but its not worth wasting your energy over teaching people morals. While I had this thing going on inside my head, Khushi was always there guessing what might be the case this time.
After surviving all this it was finally time for our first trip together,but ovaryacting peacefully going on a trip? No shot, there was an agnipariksha waiting for us.
This trip is one of my core memories, next time i’ll make sure Aadya sleeps early.
The second half of third year was me questioning what i wanted to do with my life, and what role to focus on, wondering if i should actually sit down and map it out, so i became a part of IISM. Absolute chaos but i’ve learnt so much, the best team i could ever ask for <3
The biggest plot twist of this entire semester was crossing paths with my ultimate fav person, no one even comes close. It took us less than a month to realize we share the same two brain cells. Besides helping me check off every single cafe in kanpur, he’s the one who never doubted me once and stood by me when no one did.
What i gatekeep most about him is the sense of comfort he brings, how he genuinely listens before reacting, how he never really hated my pink crocs.
Enter fourth year, Now this is when i again interacted with most of the campus after first year and purposely gave up on my academic responsibility (was on the verge of getting dropped from a course three days before endsems).
I wholeheartedly thank Gaurav and Khushi for stepping up with so much help and support during the placement madness.
Also, no matter what please go have that goa trip.
I honestly dont think i would have been able to complete this degree without bsbe people, it was our farewell when it really did hit, i low-key didnt have enough grasp on them yet my shittiest day felt a little lighter after exiting mfcem.
Ovaryacting was going strong,we took an oath to make every second count and had a complete checklist of tasks to be completed before leaving, we started with playing a sport, played for solid 3 days, did a balcony revamp, made khushi visit suraj, went on incredible amount of dates and much more.
I Literally said yes to everything, which resulted in five trips in one semester – including Bhilwara (Thanks to Arya). Also, would highly recommend not having an impulsive haircut, i regret, you’re gonna be a part of at least 230104 pictures.
Ovaryacting is my solid ground, pure variety of finely chosen characters who will have the most serious conversation on the dumbest possible topic be it oranges, gandhi’s hair or criminal case (love you edha). Our wing was unaware of the word “silence” in this sem, khushi kept screaming every 3-4 hours, savi and shreya fought like cats (quite literally) plus arya and kanika had immense love for their music taste and wanted the world to hear it. And Truth be told its scary to not have them next door, as scary as the day i left that campus, as scary as leaving the last making sure i could see everyone off.
Last plot twist? i knew i got attached, to this place and MY people, i know for a fact that i am never leaving them, because they didn’t leave me. i knew even if i fucked up real bad, i can run back to them and they won’t stop loving me, and who am i without the people who love me?
(Major shoutout to H4 canteen, its cold coffee and Sidewalk)
Here’s what you and i should learn from all the people i love –
1. Khushi – start crying and screaming if you’re losing an argument / proving your point
2. Gaurav – become friends with every cafe’s staff to receive free stuff
3. Edha – be as jugaadu as possible
4. Aadya – proudly brag about your 5/10 sketching skills
5. Arya – if a task is getting peacefully done, go fuck it up
6. Divit – do garba wherever possible
7. Ananya – be glued to your phone during the juiciest topics only to ask ‘Wait, What happened?’ the moment it ends
8. Savi – touch everyone’s faces so that they get acne and you remain beautiful
9. Shreya – make crazy connections
Lots of love,
A <3
Written by: Aasmee Shende
Edited by: Chethana Kotla, Shriya Suravarapu
