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In this edition of As We Leave, Hardik Jindal, a Y22 student in the Department of Electrical Engineering, shares a look back at his four years at IITK. He reflects on a bumpy ride, from hiding in his room after a cycle crash as a fresher, to finding his people, leading the Programming Club. It’s a story about making mistakes, surviving the EE grind, and discovering how a stressful campus somehow became the perfect home.
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.
I still remember sitting in E607 in Hall 13, reading my first AWL from a random senior and wondering what life would look like after four years. Would I write one too? What would it feel like? Today, I sit here a month away from starting my new job. Four years done and dusted. It feels strange how those years have already turned into a fuzzy memory, and how suddenly you find yourself standing on the edge of adulthood.
Logging in
My parents always wanted me to join IIT Delhi, since it was closer to home. But I changed the ordering myself and put IITK EE above it, because I wanted to be independent and make my own decisions without the fear of being watched. I wanted to make mistakes and learn from them, because that is what college is for, right? You do things the right way or the wrong way, and you learn from both. Gladly, this turned out to be one of the most important decisions of my life.
I do not even remember saying goodbye to my parents when they dropped me off and helped me settle in. How could I? I was too busy staring at the wide open space around me, finally free after two years of being cooped up in a single room with just books and a laptop screen for company, thanks to COVID. But every action has its consequences. Just five days after arriving on campus, I was down with dengue. My parents took me back home, and I spent two weeks recovering. I pushed myself hard to get better fast, wanting nothing more than to return to campus. This time, I made sure to say a proper goodbye before leaving.
When I got back, I found that people had already formed friend groups and were roaming around campus, pulling nightouts and having a great time. For the first time, I felt genuinely left out, like I had missed something I could not get back. But my wingies came through. They felt like family, and before long I was having a lot of fun in the wing.
Then came 30th December.
As the campus was gearing up for New Year celebrations, my wingies and I were cycling around campus. I do not know what got into me, but I attempted a wheelie and fell badly. I was covered in blood and was rushed to the HC, then sent to Regency, where I had stitches done and a plastic surgery on my nose. For the next month, I had a big bandage right across my face. I somewhat felt like a power ranger without the full costume.
That was the hardest time I faced at IITK. I lost all my self-confidence. People stared wherever I went. I could feel it every time I walked into the mess. The mess workers asked me the same question every single day: “Bhaiya ye kaise ho gaya?” It became exhausting and frustrating. I could not participate in wing activities. I started to feel like IITK was not meant for me. I watched my friends laugh and hang out together while I hid in my room. When the whole campus was at the events ground for New Year, I was crying alone in mine. It felt like rock bottom. On top of everything, I was mocked for spending more time at the HC than on campus, and my first semester grades were not great either.
Covering up
But bad things do come to an end. I started the second semester with a pledge that I would not visit the HC again. I started making friends, going out with them, and exploring places outside campus. Due to the packed semester schedule, Takneek, Galaxy, and Inferno all happened around the same time. I wanted to participate in Takneek, but I had no clear idea of what direction to take, other than knowing computers would be part of it. Because of hall requirements, I was pushed into dramatics, which turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Dramatics gave me a massive confidence boost. I had no idea I was this good at acting, speaking, and expressing emotions. I was given lead roles in the nukkad nattak. We won gold that year and continued the hall 2 legacy (atleast that is what was told to us), and it felt like a real achievement.
Still, I felt that dramatics required a level of time and commitment I was not ready to give. I wanted to focus on academics, because everyone kept telling me that CPI matters. Personally, I believed otherwise. I felt that real skill and talent were what would take me where I wanted to go. And today I can quote several examples to confirm this statement. Then came the secy nominations for the MnC council. The dramatics coordies were clearly surprised when I did not fill the form. They called me to their room, and I have rarely been more nervous. They told me directly to fill the form and join the club, not even asking what I wanted. One of them had a knife in his hand. But I was so determined to join SnT instead, that I calmly declined and somehow managed to leave. I still instinctively turn the other way if I spot any of them on campus. I think this was a life changing decision for me, and I do not know what my life would have been today otherwise.
SnT recruitments came next, and I knew I had to get serious. I wanted to get into ERA or Aerial Robotics, having heard from seniors that these two teams were doing great work with strong support. Unfortunately, I did not even get interview calls from either of them. Heartbreaking. Humanoid was my last option, and I was able to convert it and join the team. The work was not exactly what I had imagined, but I made some genuinely great friends and memories there.
Then came the club nominations. I was set on getting into Pclub. I had my eyes on it even before stepping onto campus. When the tasks were released, I locked myself in RM for two days. Nobody saw me. I was purely focused on getting through as many tasks as possible to improve my chances. I later found out I had done the most tasks of any candidate. But knowing how competitive it was, I also did tasks for EClub and Robotics Club as a backup. I even did ICG tasks for someone else, but that is a story for those who know. Surprisingly, I got interview calls from everywhere. Pclub was my last interview. From the very start, I was bombarded with questions and grilled on my tasks. They systematically picked apart everything I had done and made me feel like none of it was worth anything. I answered what I could, but I ended the interview convinced that Pclub would remain just a dream.
Then one sunny morning, I received a mail directly from Pclub saying I had been selected as a secy. That was one of my happiest days after everything I had been through. I jumped with joy and showed the mail to my wingies and seudo wingies from D6 and E5. But the happier thing was that all of my friends got into clubs which they always wanted to, be it eclub, robotics, FAC etc. Things were finally starting to go right. Academically, though, I still had not improved much, and I knew I needed to.
This was the time I started falling in love with IITK. I fell in love with the liveliness of Hall 13, playing COD every night no matter what, random discussion on mess tables, requesting for an extra gulab jamun in mess, the fact that it took me 20 minutes to reach canteen only because I always found someone in the way to stop and chat, the unplanned water fights, the fests, the party culture, cutting down power supply of entire blocks (something I continued till 4th year), wing fight with D6 and E5, shouting slogans at other blocks, going to library only to sit near the fountain and eat samosa and all the drama of life, academics and responsibilities it brought along. I slowly started to understand why my parents always said that these 4 years will be the best of my life!
Finding my people
With that goal in mind, I moved into my second year and shifted to Hall 2. The living conditions changed completely. I now shared a room with two people instead of one. I started getting along really well with Nandini, who later became a constant partner through every challenge, moment of laughter, and low point. Core EE courses kicked in, and I quickly realized I disliked my branch. I mean what is the point of these courses if I cannot even fix a broken bulb. I got busier with Pclub and Humanoid responsibilities, and then came Inter IIT, which became one of the best experiences of my time at IITK.
Almost every night started going towards Inter IIT preparation. I would head straight to DJAC after dinner to work on the problem statement. A lot of people warned me that Inter IIT would ruin my academics and that managing both was impossible. I took that as motivation. Opportunities like this do not come around often. Inter IIT made me realize just how much free time I had in a day and how well I could manage everything with proper planning. It also showed me that we were capable of building something from scratch in just a few days when we worked with full focus and determination. After the endsems, the hours ramped up and we were working from morning till late at night. We went to IIT Madras, where the infrastructure left me genuinely amazed. We came fourth by just one point, which stung, but the experience made it all worth it.
I decided things needed to improve the next year and started thinking seriously about taking on a bigger role in the council. That was when I thought about applying for the coordinator position, something I could barely have imagined being within reach. I started working seriously on my coordie application the following semester, talking to seniors to understand how things actually worked inside the club and the council. It was also the first time I clearly saw how politics operates on campus, how much these elections are influenced and shaped from the inside. I could see hints of it within our club too, as prospective coordies were already talking amongst themselves and aligning. I worked hard on my coordie PPT, and finally the day of the interview arrived. It was the most intense interview of my life. I was debated and questioned for around eight hours straight, not even allowed to sit. Watching how seriously my seniors took Pclub made me more committed than ever. When I found out I had become a Pclub coordie, I could not quite believe it. Since day one on campus, I had seen that position as something almost celebrity-like. Leading one of the most well-known and important clubs felt surreal. To this day, I believe it was one of the best calls I ever made. Pclub gave me so much: connections, senior access, and industry recognition. Multiple opportunities and internships that came my way were connected to Pclub in some way. It helped me find people who genuinely shared my enthusiasm for tech. It also introduces me to arguably the most exceptional juniors in the campus which made the entire experience truly meaningful and worthwhile. It became a family rather than a responsibility and I naturally started caring about the club.
The great humbling
Then came the summer break, which I had been dreading. The reason was simple: intern prep. In my opinion, the whole thing had been overhyped to an absurd degree. I stayed back on campus for prep, as seniors suggested the environment helped. KD Labs became my home. I would leave my laptop, charger, and everything else there and only go back to my hall to sleep and eat. Pclub room was the occasional exception. My constant companion through this stretch was again Nandini. We made plans together and stuck to them. It is a difficult period, and having a solid support system is what keeps you from burning out. It is also a time when friendships are seriously tested, as people form OA groups and every alliance starts to matter.
I prepared all the topics thoroughly, but I learned quickly that luck is a real factor in this process. I was fortunate enough to get a good number of shortlists on Day 1, but not lucky enough to convert any of them. By the end of Week 1, I had secured an internship with Oracle. I was happy, not because of what I had secured specifically, but because the period was over and I could finally move on.
Fifth semester was, by a wide margin, the most hectic of all. It was packed with core EE courses that I had no interest in, weekly quizzes in two or three of them, club duties, and eventually Inter IIT duties on top of everything. It was probably the semester in which I worked the hardest for the least return. I went to Mumbai for the Inter IIT Tech Meet, and on the way back, we planned a trip to Goa. That trip was exactly what I needed. I recovered well and headed into the next semester with a lighter mind.
Sixth semester was a lot of fun. The academic load was light enough that I could pick courses I actually enjoyed. Even-sem also meant campus politics season. I was pressured quite a bit to run for the SNT GenSec position but eventually decided against it. We put together a great team for the SNT council, and I was happy with how it turned out. After that, I was simply counting down the days to Bangalore for my internship.
This was also a time when I believe I started maturing and looking at things from a different perspective. What is life? What is my goal here? Why are Y21s leaving? What does being the senior most batch mean? Single room in 4th year, who will I talk to before sleeping now? Staying alone in bangalore for my internship, is the job worth it? I was a little scared for the changes which were going to come, but they excited me to an extent. Change is a part of life and the best thing you can do is to accept it with open arms.
Sine wave
Bangalore turned out to be one of the best stretches of my life. I found a great friend group and we spent a lot of time together exploring the city. The weather is genuinely lovely, and the city has a lot to offer. The intern work was mostly comfortable, and I came back expecting a return offer while also planning to apply for a master’s program. Life had other plans.
No return offer came, due to headcount constraints. All the future plans I had built in my head collapsed at once. I had to start over and rethink everything. The situation in the US for foreign students was also not great at the time. After a lot of conversations about whether to focus on placements or solely on master’s applications, I decided to put the master’s plan on hold for at least a year and focus on placements instead. One mistake I made during this period was taking far too long to make that call. I lived in uncertainty for weeks, and there were nights when I cried alone in my room wondering what had gone wrong and why my future felt so up in the air.
But this period changed me. I came out of it more mature, and my entire outlook on setbacks shifted. I was also fortunate to get a room in Btop, which quickly became more than just accommodation. This was literally the best thing that happened to me in college. I met some of the best people on campus and felt close to them almost immediately. My best days at IITK were in Btop. It felt like a long lost connection. We played Among Us every night, the parties were genuinely memorable, and everyone felt included. Shoutout to all of them for running around with my resumes and supporting me through placement season.
Placements went well. I got a great job on Day 1 itself, and spent the remaining days trying to support my friends as much as I could. The whole crazy year ended perfectly with a trip to Vietnam with my closest people. Never did i expected my new year to be such a blast and so great that I will not even remember things from that night and only have photos of that day!
The one that hurts
Nobody warns you adequately about the last semester.
You start seeing everything as if you are looking at it for the last time. The campus suddenly seems more beautiful than it ever did. The same paths you have walked a thousand times start looking like they belong in a photograph. Every single day, you silently wish for one more semester. Hall 1 gets louder at night and quieter in the mornings.
Life became what it exactly should be. Everyone sorted around me, always ready for fun. Parties every weekend. Bula sessions without ever looking at time. Sleep wherever you feel sleepy. No restrictions, no boundations. FIFA became a part of daily routine. I think I was very fortunate to be surrounded by such great friends. I still think the best branch in IITK is EE. Not because of the courses, but because of the unity this branch has. My best people are from my branch. We have endured the same pain and suffering, making these bonds stronger than ever. I still think this is the most saap-less branch in IITK.
After midsems, it hits with a specific kind of weight: sixty days. That is all. After that, everything changes. Responsibilities, deadlines, pressure. No more freedom, no late nights, no missing classes, no bulla sessions, no poking your friends at random, no Mama Mio walks.
I was not ready for any of it. People dig out their dusty formal coats and start roaming campus clicking photos, dancing at random spots, hugging people they have not spoken to in a year. The end is visible and nobody knows quite how to face it. Then the farewells started. Batti farewell has been one of the best days of my life. After delivering a rockstar performance on stage (god knows which form of dance we did), we had an unbelievable party off stage. Pclub farewell was a very emotional moment for me, the efforts made by juniors to make you feel special shows it is all worth it in the end. I still thank them for organising such a great event. Leaving campus was the hardest moment of my life. This was also a time when there were a lot of pool parties and I really do not have any words to describe them. I left a piece of my heart at IITK. The B302 version of me will never come back, but he created memories worth carrying for a lifetime.
Logging off
In the end, enjoy your time at IITK for everything it is worth while it lasts. Create memories you will want to return to. Do crazy things, make a lot of friends, go out and see what the world has to offer, so you can appreciate what you have right here.
Success at IITK is not a single variable. For some it is CPI. For some it is the POR. For some it is the job, the startup, the research paper, the friendships, or simply surviving with their curiosity intact. You will hear a hundred versions of what it should look like. You will have to write your own.
Go all in on what feels right to you. Make the mistakes. Change the ordering. Attempt the wheelie (maybe just skip the wheelie actually). The campus will catch you more often than it drops you, and even when it drops you, you will find that landing teaches you something. Everything that happens, happens for a reason.
IITK is not just a place. It is a pressure cooker that somehow also manages to be a home. And like all good homes, you only understand how much it meant after you have left it.
This was my journey. Go write a wonderful one of your own.
Written by: Hardik Jindal
Edited by: Harika , Shruti Sahu
