Remembering Vinod Stokes
—– Forwarded Message —–
From: Ram Mohan
To: IITK65-70
Sent: Thursday, August 4, 2022 at 11:02:50 PM PDT
Subject: Sad news regarding our dear friend
Dear friends
Enclosed note from Harsh Manglik regarding Vinod Stokes…
Dear Friends,
It is with deep sadness that we inform you that our friend Vinod Stokes has passed away. Based on communication from his family a few hours ago, Vinod breathed his last in the San Francisco Bay Area on August 4, 2022, sometime in the evening.
Some may be aware that for the last three years, Vinod had been engaged in an amazing and valiant battle with cancer. How Vinod fought that battle is in itself an amazing story – with many lessons to be learned – as from the rest of his story.
With this, a chapter of our collective shared experience and journey has also come to an end, for a friend who was as caring, kind and affectionate as he was brilliant.
Harsh
—
Ram Mohan
From: ranjit shahani
This is indeed sad news – we were in touch a few months ago on email and he seemed to be in good spirits and quite up and about.
Vinod now has crossed the Rainbow to a better pain-free world. Our prayers are with him and the family. God Bless Om Shanti.
Ranjit
Bijendra Nath Jain
Extremely saddened to hear that Vinod Stokes is no more. Had spent a couple of hours together at lunch in Delhi sometime in 2019. He seemed all bright and cheerful as ever, then. Did not think he would leave us so soon.
May his soul rest in peace.
BN
Gk Agarwal
Thu, Aug 4 at 11:28 PM
Deeply saddened to know about Vinod Stokes.
May God bless his noble soul eternal peace.
Om Shanti 🕉
GK Agarwal
Ref: Sad news regarding our dear friend
vijay mehra
Thu, Aug 4 at 11:39 PM
Dear colleagues
Very sorry to know about passing away of Vinod Stokes. A great guy. May his Soul rest in Eternal Peace. Om Shanti
Vkmehra
‘Pradeep Kumar’ via IITK65-70
Deeply saddened to get this terrible news about Vinod.It’s really a very big loss for our ‘ 65 batch. Each one of us will sorely miss Vinod.
May his soul Rest In Peace.
Pradeep Kumar
Vimal Powertec
Thu, Aug 4 at 11:50 PM
My heartfelt condolences to the bereaved Stokes family . A close friend when we were associated in 1965 and adjascent to me often. In hall3 .
I am extremely sorry in his demise
Vimal Khanna
Surojit Sen
Cc:IITK65-70
Fri, Aug 5 at 12:07 AM
Dear All
Extremely sad to hear of the departure of our dear friend.. Although one knew of his fight, one never saw the imminent time frame . Any contact mail of Dr Vijay Stokes?
The family is iconic at Himachal, and if I’m not mistaken his aunt Mrs Vidya Stokes is still around!!
Deepest condolences for an unique person who kept us regaled with his discussions from 1965!!
Om Shanti
Surojit
Vrajesh Lal
Very sad to learn about Vinod’s passing . We had talked to with him a couple of months back and he was his combative self though feeling weak. He was close to us, was friends with my dad and my kids. We have very many wonderful memories with him . A personal loss for us.
Our prayers are with him and his family. Om .
Bina and Vrajesh
Karan Walia
Fri, Aug 5 at 12:30 AM
Extremely sad to hear about Vinod’s demise.
Not many of us knew about his valiant fight against cancer !
My heart felt condolences to the family.
Rest in peace my friend !
Karan
From: Ajit Dongre
Sent: Friday, August 5, 2022 at 12:35:07 AM PDT
Subject: Re: Sad news regarding our dear friend
This message is my way of processing Vinod’s passing away.
We last saw him on March 5. It doesn’t seem that long ago, but from my telephone logs it must’ve been.
“We” is me, Donna, the Nigams, and Sheila Mohan. As we had done before, we took lunch for him and us to his downtown San Jose place.
I had been taking him for his chemo treatments once every two weeks for a few months before that, but hadn’t done so for at least a month because he had decided Uber was safe enough, Covid-wise. Sheila had scolded Vinay Khanna and me for driving Vinod in Covid-challenged times. Vinay had taken the cue but I had stuck to my guns and used to drive Vinod in his Tesla to San Fran or Mountain View alternately — for chemo and to get the intravenous nutrition refilled.
This last time he didn’t eat with us; solid food didn’t suit him anymore because of the effects of the chemo and the intravenous feeding was able to keep his weight constant though he had lost about15-20 pounds from his ideal weight.
As Harsh has mentioned, he had been putting up a heroic fight. I’ve done chemo for cancer in my time and the 4 or 5 treatments by themselves were harrowing enough. Vinod had got probably 25? 50? And was continuing to duke it out with the dreaded foe. The cancer wasn’t metastasizing (except in the March 5 discussion I vaguely remember hearing about some (new) lesions on the liver) but even after SO MANY treatments, IT HADN’T RECEDED. Now that our guy is no more, I can be frank and say the handwriting did seem to be on the wall. The body has got to deteriorate from the ravages of dose after dose after dose of poison which zaps the cancer cells but also inexorably weaken all the others.
Reshma and I used to compare notes about our conversation with Vinod before we met up to see him. It was always about his pugnacious arguments — arguments in which we HAD to let him have his way. He knew it all — economics (in which he had a PhD), of course, but also all closely related subjects — by that I mean physics, astronomy, stock markets, psychology, and everything under the sun!
He liked his Tesla and had an abiding respect for its creator, Elon Musk. As I chaperoned him in his Tesla, that is what we sometimes talked about. And all those other subjects, too. And when I say “we talked” I really mean he talked and I listened. I’m smart that way and know how to keep my sanity.
Donna has been on my case for the past month or so about contacting Vinod since we hadn’t been in touch since March. Since it is usually Vinod who called me to set up the schedule for a trip to the chemo session, I dragged my feet until this week. When I called earlier this week, there was no response as sometimes in the past there has not been.
But now I know from Ram’s forward of Harsh’s message that the fool has gone and died on us. Typical rude, uncaring Stokes behavior.
It’s late tonight. Tomorrow I’ll be calling Arun (his cousin up north), Ram, Harsh, et al., to get more details.
Until then, abide.
Ajit’
‘Ajay Jain’ via IITK65-70
Om Shanti!
Ajay
‘Prem Kapoor’ via IITK65-70
It finally happened, Vinod left to be with his creator. Sad news indeed even though many of us who knew about his illness, were hopeful that he would fight and overcome it. He certainly was a fighter and an eternal optimist. We will all miss him and his eccentricities. He was a warm and gentle soul. Our Bay Area friends helped all they could, and that is all the consolation they are left with. On Shanti .
Prem Kapoor
‘Sudhir Mittal’ via IITK65-70
Sad
क्षीण, क्षुद्र, क्षणभंगुर, दुर्बल मानव मिटटी का प्याला,
भरी हुई है जिसके अंदर कटु-मधु जीवन की हाला,
मृत्यु बनी है निर्दय साकी अपने शत-शत कर फैला,
काल प्रबल है पीनेवाला, संसृति है यह मधुशाला।।७३।
Deepak Raj
Fri, Aug 5 at 3:29 AM
Very sad to hear the news of Vinod’s passing. We have so many wonderful memories and will miss him dearly. A big loss for all of us, his IIT family.
Regards,
Deepak
‘anoop mathur’ via IITK65-70
Fri, Aug 5 at 3:34 AM
Deeply saddened by the news of Vinod’s passing. Though I didn’t meet him in my various trips to the Bay Area at the get togethers organized by Atam, Vinod and his family were always in conversation. He had this charisma that right from the IIT days he stood out in a group and had a “presence”. An affable, helpful person, he had an air of maturity even back in mid sixties when most in the batch were greenhorns. I guess he inherited his noble persona from his illustrious family. It is indeed sad that his valiant fight ultimately ended and he has moved on. We will miss him.
RIP Vinod
Anoop
Robin Sen
Another wicket has fallen. Very sad indeed that Vinod Stokes is no more. As Anoop mentioned, he had a “presence” and stood out amongst our batchmates. He will be sorely missed by all of us. May his soul rest in peace. Om Shanti.
Robin
‘Upendra rohatgi’ via IITK65-70
It is another sad news. He was one of kind. He was brilliant, knowledgeable and unafraid to present his views.
He had few discussions with my wife whose family owned apple orchard in Himachal Pradesh.
I always remember his lecture about expectations from our children. He said that in every generation, people’s intelligence followed a Gaussian curve and fortunately, we were on one edge of that curve. Our children will also fall on this curve. Most will be average and some below average and few will be on higher end. His very wise advice for us was to temper our expectations. Sane advice.
Sitting on other coast and hearing from our class mates, I can say that he valiantly fought with cancer. At the end mother nature won as She always does.
May God give peace to his soul.
Charu and Upendra
sheo khetan
Very sorry to hear this sad news of Vinod’s passing away.
I had last him in California for the IITK reunion at Palm springs in 2018. I had stopped at a car charging station (in Akhilesh’s TESLA). I was lost for a while and he was there for his car being charged. It was so nice to see him there. We spent time talking and he stayed with us until Akhilesh and Vineeta finished their shopping. There he was looking fresh.
Later on we learnt of his Cancer, with which he struggled.
May God give him solace and his family the strength to bear this loss.
Sheo
Uday Mahagaokar
Fri, Aug 5 at 5:41 AM
Vinod is no more – so devastating and sad.
I had the fortune of spending a few days with Vinod on several occasions in recent North America reunions and a CA wedding. He was always the same. Would not stop talking and he would talk on various subjects from ‘Pahadi’ culture in Himachal to Eigen Values and Shrodinger’s Wave Equation even while we were in Cancun. His talkative voice is still ringing in my ears.
Incredible guy from an amazing family that deserves credit for Apples in India, Freedom Struggle with jail time in British Jails, and even a precursor to the Elevator / Lift.
Tearfully,
Uday
Satish Bhalerao
Fri, Aug 5 at 6:00 AM
Indeed sad
Akhilesh Maewal
Fri, Aug 5 at 6:21 AM
Extremely sad to hear about Vinod’s passing. Words are always insufficient to respond to such events.
Akhilesh
Mahesh Anand
Fri, Aug 5 at 7:42 AM
Sorry to hear about Vinod.
He certainly was a unique individual full of life, willing to fight for his point of view at any time and fought cancer in the same manner. 3 years of it – many mere mortals would have given up a long time ago.
Saw him a couple of times at the hospital and at his home while he was going through some 40 plus radiation treatments and he told us about his family and the extended orchard family in India. Adarsh had spoken to him in early July as Adarsh was planning to visit with him. Vinod was in his fighting spirit and encouraged Adarsh to stop by any time.
He will be missed. May his soul achieve salvation.
Mahesh & Bindu
Vipin Kumar
Sad indeed.
I crossed paths with Vinod in 2014, when I was visiting IIT Gandhinagar and he was teaching an introductory economics course there.
May his soul rest in Peace.
Vipin Kumar
Professor
Department of Mechanical Engineering
University of Washington
Seattle, WA 98195
VINAY MEHTA
Sad to know about Vinod’s passing away. I always considered him as my Guru. Whenever I went to him for help on any problem, he would patiently explain starting with the First Principles, help me derive the equation and make it very easy to understand.
It took him one sitting of half an hour to clear my fundas about Computer Programming and ignited the spark which resulted in my choosing Software engineering as a career instead ofAeronautics. Will certainly miss him. The last email I received from him was in Sept 2021 but I had no clue that he was battling Cancer. He had promised that he would write about his experiences and the Stokes family of Himachal Pradesh but alas time ran out.
About a Year ago Ranjit had posted an article on Vinod’s Grandfather Mr Samuel Evan Stokes. For those who may have missed out on the mails I am attaching a compilation as a tribute to him
May God give peace to his noble soul.
OM Shanti
Vinay
Arun Aneja
Fri, Aug 5 at 9:04 AM
I am truly saddened to hear about the passing away of a friend Vinod Stokes. He was a brilliant individual. As a first year student, one evening I saw him running up and down the steps of Hall 3 from the ground floor to the top floor. I was reluctant to disturb him but curiosity got the better of me and inquired what he was trying to achieve. He explained he was trying to calculate various parameters of his health – energy expended, work done etc. We had just finished the topic in Physics 101 under Dr. Parasnis. I had barely read the text (Halliday & Resnick) and here was Vinod trying to understand the topic at a conceptual level. I would hear about him from his brother Vijay who was then at the GE Research Center. He regaled us with stories about behind the obvious at IITK.
I pray for peace for Vinod.
Om Shanti.
Arun Aneja
Forsaigals
Fri, Aug 5 at 9:17 AM
WARRIOR is the one word that comes to mind which describes our friend Vinod.
His life truly exemplifies what we all wish to be.
My salute to the dear departed.
RIP.
Adarsh and Suman Saigal
Sent from my iPhone
Adarsh Saigal
Realty Pro 100
DRE 00779905
From: Ajit Dongre
Sent: Friday, August 5, 2022 at 09:26:46 AM PDT
Subject: Re: Sad news regarding our dear friend
And another from the internet which claims this is indeed Vinod from Himachal Pradesh of “apples” fame. Could well be, though it is a bit too GENTLEmanly to be Vinod:
Vipin Kumar
To:Ajit Dongre
Sun, Aug 7 at 5:17 PM\
This picture looks like Vijay Stokes, our Professor.
Vipin
Seattle, WA 98195
Peter Menezes
Fri, Aug 5 at 10:38 AM
Very sorry to learn of Vinod’s unfortunate passing!
All his suffering is now at an end and he is in a better place!
May his Soul rest in peace!
Peter
From: Ajit Dongre
Sent: Friday, August 5, 2022 at 10:44:28 AM PDT
Subject: More on Vinod
… after my conversation with Harsh:
He had left a couple of messages on Vinod’s phone which his brother, Deepak, must’ve eventually seen. Deepak or perhaps his cousin, Arun, called Harsh last night and gave him the news that Vinod had just passed away — apparently somewhere around 5 p.m. Pacific Time. His neighbor, who had in recent months taken over the driver duty from Vinay and me to take him for his chemo, had taken him to the Sutter hospital in San Fran a couple of days ago. The cancer had begun to metastasize in earnest lately and someone had concluded chemo wasn’t worth it anymore.
Harsh (who is in India) agreed with me 100% that it was rather rude of Vinod to march off without the curtesy of telling us.
Given the heart-felt encomiums and remembrances we’ve seen today in this group, it is easy to recognize how well we admired and respected him. Regardless of what his family does for themselves in private, Harsh and I thought we should hold an IIT in-memoriam gathering. Perhaps here in the Bay Area, with far away people joining in with Zoom?
Ajit
Hari Lamba
Fri, Aug 5 at 10:52 AM
Very sad to hear about his passing away. I always appreciated his intelligence and his wit! Best regards to his extended family!
Harinder (Hari) Lamba
Prabhu Goel
Fri, Aug 5 at 10:58 AM
So sad to hear about Vinod passing away. He was quite a talented and smart individual as well as very special in his own way.
Prabhu Goel
Mahendra Agrawal
Fri, Aug 5 at 11:22 AM
So sad to hear about Vinod.
I had a fun time talking to him during the Palm Springs reunion. He will come over and sit with us at the breakfast table and we will talk about various topics.
I had a chance to see him once again as he was undergoing chemo at San Francisco.
Will miss him.
Om Shanti!
MP
‘Upendra Rohatgi’ via IITK65-70
Fri, Aug 5 at 11:58 AM
It is another sad news. Vinod was one of kind. He was brilliant, knowledgeable and unafraid to present his views.
He had few discussions with my wife whose family owned apple orchard in Himachal Pradesh.
I always remember his lecture about expectations from our children. He said that in every generation, people’s intelligence followed a Gaussian curve and fortunately, we were on one edge of that curve. Our children will also fall on this curve. Most will be average and some below average and few will be on higher end. His very wise advice for us was to temper our expectations. Sane advice.
Sitting on other coast and hearing from our class mates, I can say that he valiantly fought with cancer. At the end mother nature won as She always does.
May God give peace to his soul.
Charu and Upendra
‘Bharat Rawal’ via IITK65-70
Fri, Aug 5 at 11:59 AM
Hello Friends,
Very sorry to hear about the passing away of Vinod Stokes. May God give his family strength to go through this difficut time.
Our condolences to the family.
Bharat and Reeta
Ashok Saxena
Fri, Aug 5 at 12:44 PM
Dear all,
I agree that a memorial gathering of our batch celebrating Vinod’s life as we knew him, is a great idea! I think it should primarily be a zoom meeting to allow most people to participate. Mixing in-person and zoom events is challenging unless someone puts considerable thought in orchestrating it . We don’t have to do this a hurry; perhaps taking three to six months to plan it well with a small group taking the lead, will make the event special. I have read all the tributes from our batchmates, and I am struck by Vinod’s warmth towards everyone while being uncompromising with is own strong opinions on a lot of controversial topics! Only, a very well-meaning and a widely respected person can pull that off! He deserves a fitting good-bye from those who were his friends over 57 years!
Ashok Saxena
Vipin Kumar
To:Ajit Dongre
Fri, Aug 5 at 1:07 PM
Ajit,
thanks for the message with many details. I was not aware of his fight with cancer.
I was tickled by ” And when I say “we talked” I really mean he talked and I listened.” This seems to be a family trait.In 2018 I ran into Prof. Stokes at a wedding in Atlanta. We were in the same hotel for two days and had many one-on-one and small group conversations. Prof. Stokes was the only one who talked!
An in-memorial gathering sounds good.
Vipin
‘Shyam Khorana’ via IITK65-70
Very sad news indeed. I last met him several years back in downtown San Jose for lunch. He showed me his Condo and the swimming pool where he swam twice a day, for an hour each time. I was very impressed. He was perfectly healthy at that time. Lost touch with him after that and was unaware of his illness. Yes, he certainly was a great guy, like all have said. Let us take comfort in his memories that many have shared, and to quote from the Gita:
“As the soul experiences in this body infancy, youth, and old age, so finally it passes into another. The wise have no delusion about this”.
“For death is as sure for that which is born, as birth is for that which is dead”
My condolences to his family and all of us – especially those that took care of him during his illness. May his Soul be in peace.
Om Shanti
Shyam
Surendra Singh
Fri, Aug 5 at 3:54 PM
Very sad news indeed. May his soul Rest In Peace.
Sent from my iPhone
‘Ashi Malik’ via IITK65-70
Fri, Aug 5 at 5:14 PM
I share the sentiments of all our batch mates. I admired Vinod’s tenacity to fight this miserable decease as long as he did and my condolences to Vijay and all Stokes extended family across the globe.
Ashi and Jean
Pankaj Bhargava
Fri, Aug 5 at 6:28 PM
Sorry to hear about Vinod. May his soul RIP.
Pankaj
From: Raj Khanna
Sent: Friday, August 5, 2022 at 06:46:29 PM PDT
Subject: Re: Sad news regarding our dear friend
Vinod lived a few rooms away from mine in Hall 3 and of course his presence was “felt” on the floor and in mess. He was very different from his elder brother Dr. Stokes (who was my student guide). I had no contact with him until our reunion in 2018 in Palm Springs. There, I was late in booking my room and could get reservation for first two days only. After arriving there with my wife, we found out that there is no possibility of getting any room in the same hotel for last two days of our reunion. Vinod happened to overhear that I have to book a room in a nearby hotel and move, he offered his own room. We thankfully accepted it and asked that he shares a room with one of other batchmates who are staying alone in a room. Unfortunately, that did not work out, so he decided to stay in the closet of “Adda room” for last two nights. We felt guilty and asked him to continue in his room but no amount of persuasion on our part could change his mind. He kept his stuff in the closet and slept on the floor in “Adda room” with the pillows and sheets that we were able to get from house keeping for him. Prabha and I will never forget this caring, kind and affectionate act rest of our lives.
He will be very much missed in future reunions. May his soul rest in peace. Om Shanti !
Prabha & Raj
From: Surojit Sen
To: Raj Khanna
Subject: Re: Sad news regarding our dear friend
Hi Raj, this is so typical of Vinod. Totally ” Bindaas”, no care for formalities, loving and caring.
About a decade ago at a mini IITK reunion at IITD Vinod came for an impromtu evening at our house very close to IITD.
He had lots to impart and as usual major arguments ensued. He forgot to eat his dinner!!
Wife Amita had to remind him a few times before he gulped his food and ran!!
May he rest at a better place, and regale all with his theories.
Best
Surojit
Navin Sharma
Fri, Aug 5 at 6:54 PM
Sad to hear of his passing.
Memories flood in:
-Summer Internship at the ACC plant his dad managed..
-Competitive streak in the Bahamas, around the pool, when he challenged everyone to do one handed push ups with him…
And today, as we went to this beautiful fruit farm for dinner..
We walked among newly planted apple varietals and saw:
The Stokes Red !!
the legend has returned to America, and lives on !!
RIP, Vinod.
Navin
From: Ajit Dongre
Sent: Friday, August 5, 2022 at 07:22:59 PM PDT
Subject: Re: Sad news regarding our dear friend
Oh wow! What an amazing coincidence — the timing!
One presumes it is THAT Stokes. How can it not be, right? But what is the narrative behind it — Was the grandfather from the area of the farm? When did he plant THESE apples? How did they acquire the Stokes name? Etc.
‘bhagwati prasad’ via IITK65-70
Fri, Aug 5 at 7:38 PM
Extremely sorry.
May God grant peace to him, and the courage to his family and friends to bear with this extremely unfortunate tragedy.
Om shanti om.
Ashok Kumar
Fri, Aug 5 at 10:20 PM
Like many of “lucky” you, I did not have any contact with Vinod since I left iitk. However, his face and just a couple of small things that reflected his iconoclastic ways are still vivid in my memory. One thing I recall is that he used to sleep totally naked and with door unlocked. So, once someone went to see him he was aghast to see Vinod in his natural dress. I may be wrong but this sticks in my memory. In any case, I am very saddened to see him depart after a valiant fight with cancer. Wish him eternal peace and the bereaved surviving family divine strength.
Braj Agarwal
Sat, Aug 6 at 4:51 AM
Sad to hear about Vinod passing away
Our condolences
May his soul rest in peace
Braj and pushpa
On Sat, Aug 6, 2022 at 12:15 AM Uday Mahagaokar wrote
Here’s a photograph posted by Ajit 2 years ago. Vinod was probably arguing with someone when we quickly pulled him into the picture frame. The event was hosted by Mahesh.
Uday
VINAY MEHTA
Sat, Aug 6 at 5:02 AM
Wow. Vinod is looking great. Everyone seems to be in Good Spirits. Lovely Photograph. What memories! Reminds me of Roquebrune.
Regards,
Vinay
Rajiv Sahay
Sat, Aug 6 at 6:52 AM
Vinod was a wonderful person. We shared many interesting experiences at IITK. Harsh and I ordering apples from his family orchard on his behalf , was unique . He did not mind his leg being pulled, and was always in good humour.
He often contacted me when he visited India.
My last meeting with him was in the Bay Area, when he picked us up from our relatives ‘ and drove my wife and me to Anil’s home for dinner. I remember GPS was not accurate in the last mile, and while he went around in circles, he never, for a moment, lost his cool. Kept laughing it off, and kept us in good humour.
Had emailed him a few months ago enquiring after his health. He did not reply, possibly too far gone with the cancer he was battling.
The suggestion of a Zoom meeting is excellent. Please choose a time and date that’s not unkind for us in India
Rajiv
Ish Sud
Sat, Aug 6 at 8:25 AM
Very sorry to hear that Vinod passed away. He was truly a wonderful and unique person. His life story was also very unique. He had a very sharp intellect and a very friendly, easy going personality. He also had his unique eccentric ways (e.g. sleeping in the buff). He left a very favorable impression on everyone who met him.
Peace for his soul and well wishes for the family.
Ish
From: Uday Mahagaokar
Subject: RE: FW: Once upon a wedding. Nice photo of Vinod Stokes
Hi Vinay:
So now we have two photographs. This one from the modern era with folks looking healthy and happy. The other one that you posted recently from our IITK teenage years (Roman era) when we typically had a serious scholarly look. There must be other good ones in peoples’ archives.
Uday
From: ‘Anoop Swarup’ via IITK65-70
Sent: Saturday, August 6, 2022 at 09:21:15 AM PDT
Subject: Re: Sad news regarding our dear friend
So sorry to hear about passing away of Vinod!
I met him occasionally in Bay area – quite a while ago in annual meets, at Vinay Khanna’s place, etc., and more recently in Palm Springs reunion, and at Akhilesh’s house in San Diego. I also visited him in his condo in San Jose. One of the most lively persons to talk to, always in good spirits; and as Ajit mentioned, often monopolising the conversation, however, I don’t think anyone minded. In him we have lost a gem of a person.
A photo of him can be seen at the iitk65 website.
From: Ajit Dongre
To: VINAY MEHTA, Uday Mahagaokar
Sent: Saturday, August 6, 2022 at 09:58:49 AM PDT
Subject: Re: FW: Once upon a wedding. Nice photo of Vinod Stokes
Doesn’t take much to find an arguing picture of our intrepid warrior. Here’s one from the Palm Springs shindig:
It could’ve been about Eigen values. Or about orangutan orgasms. Or about the best time to prune apples. Whatever it was, it was the final, definitive statement. Note the look of concession (or is it resignation?!) in the faces of ALL the others!
Rajani Bhushan Agnihotri
To: IITK65-70
Sat, Aug 6 at 1:00 PM
May his soul rest in peace! Vinod was a dear friend and we had a close relationship over the last decade. He was brilliant – we worked together on some business related items and he was reliable and provided deep insight after teaching himself. He was very caring and would insist on cooking his favorite dishes whenever we visited him. We would have our debates (rather arguments) just as he had with others, but we would always reconcile and move to the next topic. I visited him 2-3 years ago in the hospital on the day he was first admitted. He had checked himself in for gastro related issues and it would take a while before he was diagnosed with cancer. We had last visited him last year and he was cheerful and full of spirit. My family and I will miss him dearly. My deep condolences to his extended family.
RB Agnihotri
Ramesh Rastogi
Cc: IITK65-70
Sun, Aug 7 at 1:36 PM
Dear friends,
It’s very saddening to learn of Vinod’s passing away.
A very brilliant chapter is closed for ever.
My condolences to his family.
Om Shanti.
Ramesh Rastogi
Dhawal Moghe
Sun, Aug 7 at 4:18 PM
I am extremely sad to hear the passing away of Vinod Stokes. I fondly remember the countless arguements we had in Hall 3 over lunch and dinner. May his soul rest in peace.
Ramesh Chawla
Sun, Aug 7 at 5:08 PM
Very sad news about Vinod’s passing. May his soul Rest In Peace.
Om Shanti!
Ramesh Chawla – Sent from my iPhone
From: Ajit Dongre
To: IITK65-70
Sent: Sunday, August 7, 2022 at 08:11:35 PM PDT
Subject: Vinod
A couple more remembrances — these from the 2018 Palm Springs reunion. When the dreaded foe hadn’t made its presence known and the last time we all saw Stokes together.
‘Anoop Swarup’ via IITK65-70
To:IITK65-70, Ajit Dongre
Sun, Aug 7 at 9:17 PM
ज़िन्दगी के आख़िरी मुक़ाम पर आकर,
इंसान खुद कहाँ गया पता नहीं |
साथ बिताये अच्छे-बुरे क्षण याद दिला कर
यादें भी धीरे धीरे मंदी पड़ जाती हैं |
– अनूप स्वरुप
‘Shyam Khorana’ via IITK65-70
To:iitk65-70
Sun, Aug 7 at 10:25 PM
Anoop,
Very poignant poetry. So true to life. Thanks for sharing
Shyam
Raj Khanna
To: iitk65-70
Cc:
Mon, Aug 8 at 4:07 AM
Reminds me of this song by Lata and Sonu Nigam (may need copy and paste to play) from Veer Zara
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPsxxBhv9kc
-Raj
Harmeet Singh
Cc: IITK65-70
Wed, Aug 10 at 8:49 AM
This is Harbakhsheesh Singh. Sad to know demise of Vinod Stokes. Few times Vinod visited my house at kanpur city during IIT days. I have lost a personal friend.
Since long, I was not in his touch. Number of times, I read about story as how his family started apple orchards in Himanchal near Shimla in newspaper and magazines . The Apple plantation in Himanchal was a revolution. This changed life of many farmers and traders.
His elder brother Vijay Stokes is / was friend of my jija ji ( no more).
I pray that God to give peace to the departed soul and also give strength to family members to bear irreparable loss.
His charming nature and his habit of arguments shall be remembered by all IIT batchmates . I still remember his theory of continuity of social function as well as it’s derivatives.
On Fri, 12 Aug, 2022, 10:11 am Vikas Agnihotri wrote:
Remembering Vinod
I had a unique bond with Vinod as our fathers were also batch mates in BHU. I found in Vinod a very humble person , coming from a family of who is who he was very down to earth person. He was extremely sharp and very caring. I also found in him a very fun loving person who took life as it unfolded. He was also very straight forward person I recall one incident I think we were in third year . I went to his room for a chit chat. While talking I took his comb and started combing my hair. He practically jumped and told me point blank that he considered this act highly unhygienic and as far he is concerned this is equivalent to using his tooth brush, Very politely but firmly he requested me to not to repeat that again. To make things lighter immediately after that he cracked a joke to lighten the mood and we had a hearty laugh together. That to me was Vinod a mixture of warmth and fire. Interaction with a smile, courtsey without Guile. There are many more such memories. He will remain in my memory till I am alive. May his soul rest in Peace.
With kind regards
V K Agnihotri
Surojit Sen
To: Vikas Agnihotri
Thu, Aug 11 at 9:45 PM
Lovely anecdote Vikas. That was Stokes!!
