Marvelous Marichi
Whether he’s leading one of Exeter’s a capella groups or freestyling in front of strangers, senior Marichi Gupta is regarded by many as one of the kindest, funniest and most determined students you can find on campus.
Gupta was finally admitted as a new senior for the 2015-2016 school year, after applying to Exeter for four consecutive years. However, ten days into his senior fall, Gupta suffered a brain hemorrhage. “The bleed happened at Choate during a cross country meet. After finishing the race, I noticed that my right leg was numb, and I felt kind of stoned. Things began to appear high-contrast and I felt delirious,” Gupta explained.“[The doctors] took me away in an ambulance. They saw a massive brain hemorrhage in the CT scan and had me airlifted and put into surgery.”
Senior Zoe Marshall vividly remembers her response to hearing the news of Gupta’s stroke. She tried to inject some levity in the situation because it was the only way she could help her friend. “They weren’t sure if he would make it. My friend, Cady Crowley, and I walked to Walgreens because we couldn’t think of anything else to do and brought him a ‘We Love You, Grandma!’ card, in the hopes it would make him laugh,” she said.
When Gupta woke up, he was paralyzed on the right side of his body. Of course, he had to deal with the long-term repercussions of his condition. “I immediately went on medical leave because it was obvious I wasn’t going to come back—at least not that term. I actually thought I was going to be fully recovered by winter term, but it turned out to be a little more serious than I thought,” he said. Fortunately, Gupta suffered no cognitive damage, for which he is grateful. “My bleed was about two centimeters away from the frontal lobe of the brain. Had it shifted a little bit forward, I would have seen cognitive damage. In that way, I was pretty lucky,” he said.
“Writing for me was a lot of self-exploration—essentially spending time with yourself—which is something I’ve always valued. I just think writing is a good tool for living.”
Still, Gupta did feel some resentment and sadness at his condition.“The biggest challenge was probably accepting what had happened to me,” Gupta admitted. With admirable optimism and resilience, though, Gupta was able to overcome his negative emotions, and recognize how he has grown since his hemorrhage. He elaborated, “It took me some time to get over the brain hemorrhage. But so far, I think I’ve done better this year than I would’ve done last year as a student—having another year to develop helped.”
Gupta’s advisor, Alex Myers, praised Gupta’s determination in the face of adversity. Myers described Gupta’s outstanding contributions to their advisory group: “He’s the oldest student in my advisory and he has been a great leader [and] mentor to the other students. His recovery from his stroke is a testament to his strength of character.”
Lower Miles Mikofsky, who is also one of Myers’s advisees, first met Gupta last year as a prep, when he and Gupta lived across the hall from one another in Webster Hall. Living so close to Gupta has given Mikofsky rare insight into the other side of Gupta’s personality. “Though I think most people on campus could nebulously identify Marichi with singing, leadership, his stroke and phenomenal facial hair, I know him as even-keeled and contemplative, and one of the very few people I can be completely honest with,” Mikofsky said. Gupta’s thoughtfulness has served him well this year at Exeter.
When Gupta returned to campus for the 2016-2017 school year, he had little trouble acclimating himself to the rigor of academics, especially in his English classes. Gupta credits Exeter with igniting his passion for writing, which he views as a kind of self-care. “I think being at Exeter has really helped bring out the writer in me. It was much more geared to the personal narrative, and, when I had my stroke, I guess there was something I could write about,” Gupta explained. “Writing for me was a lot of self-exploration—essentially spending time with yourself—which is something I’ve always valued. I just think writing is a good tool for living.”
Outside of class, Gupta quickly found a home in Exeter’s musical clubs. Music instructor Kristofer Johnson praised Gupta’s dedication and innovation. “Marichi has a great work ethic and quickly moved into a significant place of leadership in both the Concert Choir and Gli Scalatori. This is really remarkable for a one year student. He thinks carefully and creatively about chora and vocal music, and has done wonderful work as one of the co-heads of Exeteras,” Johnson said.
Gupta is well-known for his musical prowess. He started singing at the age of ten and never stopped. His past experience in singing inspired him to center his attention on a cappella groups when he came to campus, where he knew that he would be able to further develop his talents. Gupta detailed his goals for the a capella groups, which he came up with at the start of the year: “A cappella was one of the biggest things I wanted to focus on because I knew that the level of musicianship at Exeter was high. I had mapped out a few things I wanted to focus on with my involvement in a cappella groups at Exeter: developing musicianship, getting a sense of balance and blending within each section, and getting the group to be invested in the music and give it some drive. One of the requirements for a good performance is that the singer must enjoy what they’re doing; that was one thing I wanted to accomplish.”
Gupta has certainly been successful in this endeavor. Senior RC McShane, a former member of the Exeteras, described Gupta’s talent as a singer, beatboxer and leader. McShane said, “Marichi brings all of the vocal talent necessary for the Exeteras. Add onto that his exceptional leadership and happy demeanor, and you are confronted with one of the best co-heads the Exeteras have ever had.”
Gupta is also extremely personable and friendly. During a choral trip to Coachella Valley earlier this year, Gupta acquainted himself with lower Dylan Yin. Gupta, Yin and a few other students joined a few other students to play a game of pick-up soccer.Yin relayed the memorable events that occurred next: “During one of the breaks, Marichi, a couple other students, and I ran into a group of kids, and spontaneously started a rap battle. I was providing the baseline and someone else provided the beat, and Marichi just started rapping out of nowhere, freestyling. All the kids were super impressed and started yelling and screaming his name. By the end of the night, he was a legend,” Yin said.
Marshall perfectly summed up the legacy that Gupta will leave behind, despite his short time at Exeter: “He is a dedicated student and a thoughtful Exonian. He treats every experience as a learning experience, and there’s no opportunity that he doesn’t take. He has been close to death, and perhaps that makes him more attentive to life than most of us.”