Slain GSM student remembered by friends, professors

When India native Kanagala Seshadri Rao was accepted to the School of Management, he had never been to America before. He called Lokesh Amarnath Ravindranathan, a master’s candidate at the School of Engineering, to pick him up at the airport.

Rao, Ravindranathan said, was “immediately excited” by the new country – in particular, its food.

“He was amazed at the variety,” he said. “[That first day,] we probably went to Kelly’s on Harvard Avenue” – a roast beef sandwich chain – “just to taste real American food.”

Rao, he said, loved it.

Last Thursday – just months later – Rao was shot to death a few blocks away on a street in Allston. “Sesh,” as friends knew him, was 24.

Rao was endlessly curious about other people and the world around him – though he was slightly shy, he “truly cared about what he was doing and what other people were doing,” said Ravindranathan, who went to school with Rao in India before becoming his classmate again at Boston University.

Both in India and America, Rao was known as a genuinely nice person, one who cared deeply about his schoolwork, one who was always willing to lend a hand.

“We are truly and deeply saddened by Seshadri Rao’s tragic death,” President Robert Brown said in a statement to The Daily Free Press. “We extend our sincere condolences to Sesh’s parents, brother, relatives and friends, as well as his classmates and other members of the university community who are grieving.”

The university, Brown said, is working closely with the Boston Police Department to investigate and resolve the case.

SMG Dean Kenneth Freeman, who spoke to a class of Rao’s a few weeks ago, described him as a student “of the highest integrity.” What he will remember most, he said, is Rao’s spirit in the classroom.

“I remember Sesh very well because he was very inquisitive,” Freeman said. “He had great questions, and he was very engaged in the dialogue.”

Rao came to SMG after several years of working in India. A gifted student and skilled with computers, Rao was pursuing a master’s degree in mathematical finance.

“He was an amiable person who got along with everybody in the school,” said Marcel Rindisbacher, assistant professor of finance at SMG. “He was a highly achieving student with a clear plan about his future in the financial industry. When he asked me to be his reference for a summer internship just a couple of weeks ago, I did not hesitate a second.”

Rindisbacher helped to coach Rao and a team of other international students as they competed at an international trading competition in Toronto last February. He remembers Rao as a “highly motivated, professional and kind student.”

To Ravindranathan, it’s Rao’s kindness that stands out.

“He always thought that graduate school was a place where the point was not only to learn his subject matter,” Ravindranathan said. “He also wanted to learn about everyone’s ethnicities and cultures.”

Rao lived with Ravindranathan for a month before settling on an apartment in Allston. He was one of the first people police called when they found Rao’s body – Ravindranathan was still listed as his emergency contact.

Now, everyone who knew Rao is in a state of shock – especially his family back in India, Ravindranathan said.

“We have no idea why this happened,” he said.

While no details have been released, Freman said SMG began the early stages of planning a memorial ceremony.

“First and foremost, we want to meet any wishes that his family might have,” he said.

Police have not announced any suspects or motives in the killing, which happened shortly before 2:45 a.m. last Thursday at 139 Allston St.

Anyone with tips can call Boston Police at (617) 343-4470 or leave anonymous information at 1-800-494-TIPS. Tipsters can also send anonymous information by texting the word “TIP” to CRIME (27463).