Among the most vivid memories of Rishikesh Kumar that his closest friends at IIT-Delhi carry is that of him reciting shayari. He would do this in small groups, as well as at large events on campus.“Hamne kaafi duniya dekhi hai,” he would sometimes tell his juniors in the smaller gatherings.Rishikesh, who allegedly died by suicide on campus at IIT-Delhi on Saturday, was a compelling Hindi speaker, his friends said.Also Read | Anger over IIT Delhi suicide grows, FIR filed, probe panel re-formedEven ordinary conversations with him could become so animated and absorbing that strangers would find themselves stopping to listen, they said.In a statement, IIT-Delhi said Rishikesh had been struggling with his mental health for some time, and had received treatment in hospital. He had also withdrawn from two semesters.Rishikesh wrote, signed and dated his poems in Hindi. At his last public poetry recital at Rachnashala Studio in Faridabad, the 31-year-old MSc physics student spoke of restrictions and freedoms, and how the message of freedom was inherent in the limits of restrictions.“Paabandiyan kehti hain ki azaad ho jao, agar tum pe paabandiyan laadi jaayein to… Tod daalo ye deewarein, ye pahre, ye hukoomat ki zanjeerein… Paabandiyon ka paigaam hai ki azaad ho jao,” he recited. (“Restrictions give the call for freedom; break down walls, the chains of authority.”)Story continues below this adAlso Read | IIT Delhi student’s death: Police register FIR after campus protestsRishikesh, whose family moved to Patna from Begusarai in Bihar, identified strongly with his cultural, social, and linguistic background. At IIT-D, a friend said, he often spoke about the discrimination, backwardness and other difficulties faced by students from the region. “Kuchh na kuchh toh karna hai (something has to be done),” he would often say. “Uske jo vichaar the, woh hamesha samaj ke prati the,” a friend recalled.Rishikesh followed an unconventional path to IIT. He enrolled for a BTech at NIT Rourkela, but dropped it in 2019 due to personal circumstances. He later completed a BSc from Patliputra University and secured an All India Rank of 40 in the IIT JAM examination.Also Read | ‘8 deaths’: Rare protest at IIT Delhi after student’s suicide sparks angerHe enrolled in the MSc Physics program at IIT-D in 2025. Alongside his studies, he spent years teaching science and mathematics, first as a freelance educator and later at a coaching institute in Patna, while also teaching online.Five days before his death, he had received an offer for a permanent faculty position at Unacademy in Jodhpur, according to his brother Abhishek Kumar and mother Asha Poddar.Story continues below this adA dozen of Rishikesh’s close batchmates met his mother on Sunday, the day after his death. They were silent at first, but then the tears came in a flood, they said.How could someone who was always there for others have found himself in need of help, and received so little of it? This is a question his close friends continue to be haunted by. “Bhai was very talented. No one can believe he’s gone. He was my pillar of support,” Rishikesh’s elder brother, Abhishek Kumar (34), said. “I used to always swell with pride saying ‘Chhota bhai is in IIT-D.’ It was his dream. Woh IIT ka hi deewana tha,” Abhishek said.Following medical advice that Rishikesh remain under parental supervision, the brothers’ mother, Asha Poddar, had been living with him in Katwaria Sarai in South Delhi for more than a month. On Friday night, Asha recalled, Rishikesh had held his head in both hands and cried. “Maa, mere kaaran tumko torture jhelna pad raha hai. Mujhe aur nahi jeena hai,” he told her. (“You are having to suffer because of me. I do not want to live any longer.”) She had consoled him and told him they would go to hospital and continue his treatment.