BENGALURU, INDIA — What began as a day of celebration in India’s tech capital ended in heartbreak. A young software engineer, Devi, who worked for a prominent IT company in Bengaluru, tragically lost her life during a chaotic crowd surge at the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) victory parade, held to celebrate the cricket team's recent title win.

Devi, originally from Tamil Nadu and a passionate fan of RCB, had taken special permission from her manager at 2:30 PM to leave early and join the victory rally. Even without a ticket, her excitement could not be dimmed—her final message to a friend simply read:
“I’m taking the metro!”
It would be the last anyone would hear from her.

As tens of thousands of fans poured into the stadium area, the parade quickly turned into a dangerous situation. Overwhelmed by the size and force of the crowd, many people were caught in a stampede-like crush, with little control from event organizers or local authorities.

Devi was among those caught in the chaos. She was declared dead shortly after. Also among the deceased were a teenage girl and another student, highlighting the tragic human cost of poor crowd management at public events.

Back at her workplace, her laptop and bag still sit on her office desk, a chilling reminder of a bright future cut short. Colleagues remember her as an ambitious and joyful spirit, whose love for technology was rivaled only by her devotion to her favorite cricket team.

The incident has sparked widespread outrage in India over lack of safety measures, poor emergency response, and the growing risks of large unregulated public gatherings.