How many people would have tried to reason with the choices of the daring IITB trekker who disappeared in October this year? In the past one week, several news reports have surfaced regarding B. Srinivas Chandrasekhar’s macho manifestos and escapade. Different parties like Srinivas’s family, friends, the investigating police officers and the villagers at the trek site have all revealed different (and maybe contradictory) facts about the day Srinivas went missing. Soon after the unidentified dead body was found, readers were quick to judge the victim’s fault at being a lone traveller. However, very few parties tried to figure the reason behind the victim’s daring venture. While the DNA and post mortem reports are awaited, PaGaLGuY tried to draw a picture of Srinivas as a person before the occurrence of this incident. 

Srinivas’s friends draw a very motivating picture of his life and ideas. In conversation with some of his close friends, we discovered that he was a man less fond of material pleasures. Most of his discussions with his friends at IITB, which are very few, were about spirituality, sciences and the world. “We used to have deep tea time conversations about our research projects and about philosophy,” said his neighbour at IITB. 

A couple of days back, there was news about the police suspecting a murder conspiracy in the case. The underlying notion behind that suspicion was the difficulty of the trek that made the possibility of a solo excursion bleak. However, when we explained this motive to his friends, they were quick to respond, “Srinivas could do it.” The friends were confident about Srinivas’s capabilities as a trekker. Having successfully completed over 30 treks, he was a professional of sorts who would ideally conduct thorough research about the terrain before embarking on a trek. Some speculators also opined that he must have slipped on his way to the top or the bottom of the hill. However, according to one of his friends who was in contact with him during the trek, Srinivas had successfully reached the top of Dhak Bahiri, and had taken night refuge in the Bhairav Temple atop the hill.

According to his friends, Srinivas had a reason for embarking solo on such treks. It was not because of ungratified passions or the search for adventure, instead the solo trip was to attain solace with oneself. Just like in the Bollywood movie Queen where the protagonist ventures out on a self discovery trip, Srinivas had a similar ideology. What happened with him during the trek is an unfortunate incident (provided DNA reports prove the unidentified body was Srinivas’s). Reader’s judgements cannot overwhelm the tragedy or loss, but this incident will definitely discourage adventurers from trekking alone. 

One of Srinivas’s close friends broke into tears while describing the guy. “For a man with so much intelligence and so little wordy pretensions, this fate was not justified,” said a friend of Srinivas. As for a murder conspiracy, his friends couldn’t believe that anyone would have such a gruesome tiff with him. Among all those who knew Srinivas, most of them looked at him as a man of substance and intelligence. What added sparks to people’s judgements, was that a similar incident had happened in the past, wherein he went on a solo trek without informing anyone, and returned 5 days later, only to find his friends weary of his well-being. Although it is surprising how a single past incident can be attributed to a person’s character. Almost every person spoken to inside IITB, used this past incident to define Srinivas’s behaviour, even those who had no idea about his disappearance until they received an official email from the Director of IITB. 

In a couple of days, the DNA reports will confirm the identity of the dead body and sway the case into a prominent direction. However, Srinivas’s friends are still trying to overcome the trauma of his possible death, while images of the dead body are circulating through whatsapp. Seeing the friends in such grief tells you much about the life of the still missing B Srinivas Chandrasekhar.