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In the 17th edition of As We Leave 2026, Anvay Joshi, a Y22 student in the department of Electrical Engineering, looks back at his four years at IITK. He shares his journey from navigating the trials of campus life, from the legendary hunt for clean toilets and enduring the extra-course struggles of his peers, to unforgettable adventures across Meghalaya and South Goa. Ultimately, he shares how the real prize of campus life isn’t just the stage presence or the milestones, but the horcrux-like friends who stood by him through it all and hold the craziest pieces of his journey as he prepares to join them next.
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 dear readers, going by the title of this article, I will be taking you through a collection of moments and experiences that “we” lived rather than my own story. I am all about the team, you see. I will save my story for next year as I am not leaving the campus yet T_T (or maybe I am in some ways).
I will start by paying homage to Lord Voldemort. I find his idea of splitting his soul into Horcruxes extremely inspiring. Agreed, I can never match bro’s nose or hairstyle (maybe Babla (Kanishk) can), but that doesn’t stop me from trying to be like him. And so that’s precisely what I did in my college life. I created x number of friends who are like horcruxes to me. If you manage to figure out their identities by the time you finish reading, then congratulations! You have just figured out how to kill me! To my haters, you’ve got to read my story now.
Scene 1
Do you know the one thing that we boys would absolutely kill to get in our halls? If you are thinking about good food, then you are on the right track. It’s your go-to place when you’ve had lots of good food (even more so when you’ve had bad food). It’s the one thing we secretly yearn for. If you still don’t get it, then bhai tum me koi dikkat hai. Clean toilets, that’s the answer.
Once, we were heading back to Dmid after lunch. Modi and I were slightly ahead of the pack. Our stomachs churned, we exchanged glances, and in that moment, we both knew what we were after. But there can only be one winner. Then began the race of our lives (unfortunately, back then we were not Strava-paglus; else we would have definitely turned it on). We ran as fast as we could, only to find that our reward had already been spoiled by someone else. Disappointed, we both climbed down the stairs. I asked, “Tu kaha jara hai?”, “Mai outreach, tu?”, “Mai VH,” and we parted ways.
Scene 2
To get a feel for this incident, I must tell you one thing about me and my bois. We are only partly satisfied when all of us get the good stuff. It’s only when one of us misses out, and we get the chance to make that guy regret all his life decisions, that we truly feel satisfied.
On Thursdays, by God’s grace, Yadav and I didn’t have a lab in the afternoon. However, Modi didn’t have that luxury since he was doing an extra course. At 12:25 pm, Yadav and I would leave all our work and sprint all the way to our mess to devour fries and biryani. 95% satisfied, we would head back to Yadav and Modi’s room. At 1 pm, Modi would arrive from his SEE class and ask, “Bhai khane chalre ho?” to which we would reply, “Aaj pata hai na konsa din hai? … Aur lo DSA 4th sem me, aur karo extra courses.” Then Modi would storm out of the room. Satisfied to the fullest, we’d then fall into slumber.
Scene 3 - Bhai System
On the Meghalaya trip, we came to the conclusion that the life jacket was the greatest invention of mankind, for it enabled us to have the most unforgettable adventures at Krem Chympe and Wari Chora. Personally though, I think Harshit’s “Bhai system” deserves a strong mention. This system has expanded so much in the last couple of years that somebody really needs to make a repository for it.
Jaise Chhichhore me sirf Anni ki bani, vaise hamare group me bhi sirf thode he log fortunate the. The rest of us didn’t know why our game was so weak. Love-guru Harshit knew, but he chose to share it with us in the middle of the final semester. However, we would still get x on some y occasionally. I leave it to the reader to solve this system of equations. Now, to avoid mentioning x in public, Harshit came up with this brilliant idea of assigning a codeword for each x.
Parallelly, in that semester, during verbal fights between Prem and Modi, Modi would resort to an angry “Theek hai Bhai” as a response to Prem’s arguments. So, while all of us got codewords like “Parshuram bhai” and “Ashish bhai,” Modi ended up getting “Theek hai bhai.”
Scene 4 - Jaiswal's room
Every now and then, Jaiswal would send a message in our group, “Bhai please utha dena subeh, bhale he paani daalna pade.” So, in the morning, the six of us would wake up and head to Jaiswal’s room. Do you know what’s the difference between Jaiswal and Yadav? If you bang on Yadav’s door and say “bhai breakfast ke liye chal,” you will get an instant “aaya.” If you do the same with Jaiswal, initially, you get no response. Even after kicking the door multiple times, you will only hear some undecipherable seal-type voices from inside. Left without any option, we would enter his room…
Guys, welcome to peak Bihar. The room looks as if it has been struck by a hurricane, with hardly any room to stand. As you enter the room, you start seeing familiar things like shampoo, a bucket, toothpaste, odomos, and pens that were once in your room but are now lying on Jaiswal’s table.
After getting accustomed to the smell (is this really how success smells?), we would look at Jaiswal and wonder which god or goddess has punished him to sleep in such a contorted manner. After a couple of quick pics, we would shake him vigorously and shout at him to wake up. But all we could ever extract from him were a few more words in his seal-language. At the end of the day, Trump sent missiles, Mamata Didi lost Bengal, but Jaiswal still kept sleeping.
Scene 5 - South Goa Day 1
The ANYA gang, comprising myself (A), Sharma (N), Bihany (Y), and Meena (A), was on a roll. The gang was a perfect mix of 2 kids, who’d get excited by double-decker buses and 2 adults, with 3 fully functional legs between them. Babla, the leader of the anti-ANYA gang, was worried about the growing bonding within the ANYA gang and expressed his concerns to his party members. “How dare they enjoy more than us and ruin our trip at the same time?”
The 2 cohorts were now headed to the Airbnb in South Goa. I, being one of the more mature guys in the group, tried talking to the opposition, but they wouldn’t listen to the sober.
As we went inside the Airbnb, the FA9LA tune of Dhurandhar was being played on the TV. The house looked quite luxurious. Maybe this would lift everyone’s mood, I thought. Then I saw him. Nah this is AI. Wait, is he moving? How? AI is getting too real these days. I couldn’t believe my eyes. It was PREM REHMAN MUNDHRA entering the drawing room in classic Dhurandhar style. Bro had pulled off the biggest stunt of his life. We all screamed at the top of our lungs, absolutely overjoyed. This is what we needed: a distraction. While I saw him as someone who would reduce the burden of my iPhone, Babla saw him as a supporter of his “virtuous goals.”
Driving scooty to reach Netravali falls was eqully fun. I’m sure Prem will agree
Scene 6 : Nongjrong, Meghalaya
It was night, and we had just finished dinner with the homestay lady. We chit-chatted with her, told her our stories, she told us about the culture in Meghalaya. There was a hint of bonding taking place. We ensured that we put on a good impression (so that we have something left to destroy at night). Do you know the legend of the man turning into a werewolf upon seeing the full moon? That night, Babla’s moon was shining bright.
And so Babla turned into Babla-saurous.
While we were trying to poke his dcbm-like-tummy on the bed, bro started moving his limbs like a gorilla until his foot struck my nose. My vision blurred, my eyes became watery, my mind was racing with thoughts like “Isne mujhe granted liya kaise?” I was enraged. To be honest, I had always wanted to beat the shit out of Babla. As they say, greater the mass, greater the force of destruction. So, I started hitting him with a chappal. Meanwhile, Harshit’s Spidey sense of something-good-is-about-to-happen kicked in and he started recording.
Just then, Modi got a call from his mother. Babla, in an attempt to reach for the phone to pick up the call, swung his hand wildly towards Modi’s face. Within a second, Modi was on top of Babla, and the fight unfolded. The whole village was up. The homestay lady was banging on the door. Manish thought the trip was over. I was fist-pumping over Babla’s defeat, and Harshit didn’t stop what he was doing. That night, we taught Babla how to say sorry.
Next day, after almost ripping each other apart the last night
I now speak directly to my horcruxes. Guys, you have given me a space where I can speak whatever I want and behave like a child. The experiences I’ve lived with you have shaped me and helped me build a coat of personality that I’ll always wear around. You guys are unknowingly taking away the “crazy” patch of my coat, the part that only comes to life when you are around. But nevertheless, keep it safe, as I’m gonna need it when I join you guys in Bangalore next year.
Now that we are nearing the end, I guess I should at least try writing a conventional “As we leave”. Firstly, to the Mclub, which is an integral part of my college life. This club has been there with me right from the first year and, without a doubt, will continue to be a part of my journey even in the fifth. It has given me countless opportunities to grow as a musician and, more importantly, helped me forge some great bonds with my fellow secys, my seniors and (especially) my juniors, who have been kind enough to not give me a “worst senior” (yet).
There are so many other memories that I could mention here; with my wingies, and my batti friends. But to avoid making a mixed chowmein of my “As we leave,” I have not poured them here. That concoction deserves a separate story. But do know that I’ll always remember you and will be sure to barge into you when I see you next.
This college life has humbled me. It has made me realize how privileged I am. I have a healthy body with an extremely supportive environment around me, created by my mother, father, and brother. They truly understand what I am going through and, whenever needed, have helped me directly or indirectly to make well-informed decisions throughout my college life. Take this away, and I would not have achieved half of what I was able to. So, I won’t go on about the obstacles I faced, as I always had help available. Credit really goes to those who survived their college life without these built-in features 🙂
Thank you
Written By: Anvay Joshi
Edited By: Tulip Khatri, Anandan Iyer
