WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — At an intimate vigil Wednesday at Purdue University, students heard from the people who knew and loved Varun Chheda most.
Varun's close friends remembered him as an inspiration, someone who was always lifting up others around him.
“He taught me the importance of genuine gratitude, as well as the importance of bettering myself for those around me,” said Ben Carpenter, Varun's longtime friend.
Carpenter paid tribute to the 20-year-old data science major, calling him “the smartest person” he ever knew, someone who used his intelligence for good. He said that kind of kindness carried over into their time running cross country together.
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“It was Varun who kept us accountable and motivated us to run the extra mile,” Carpenter said.
But it was Varun's dad, standing with his arm around his wife, who talked about the son who had become his friend.
“I really enjoyed being his dad very much,” Dr. Manish Chheda said, choking back tears.
Manish said his son was humble, never cared much about material things and liked to keep it simple.
“He would be chastising us today if he knew we were doing this for him,” Manish said.
Manish talked about how his son loved gaming, something police said he was doing when he was killed in his dorm room last week.
“He had just texted his mom an hour before and told her goodnight and told her he loved her,” said Manish, telling those gathered that it’s still hard for him to accept what happened to his son.
“Something like this shouldn’t happen to a student in a college dorm room on a school night, just sitting at their desk,” Manish said.
Calling Varun the family’s “star that burned brightly,” Manish said his passing came “for no sensible reason whatsoever.”
“Varun, I wish with all my heart I could have helped you more. I would gladly change places with you because you never deserved this,” his father said.
Varun would have turned 21 next month. His family plans to spread his ashes on the occasion. Manish says he plans to have a drink in honor of his son.
Varun's roommate is set to be charged in the murder.
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