![\"Delhi's](\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/thumb\/msid-131433619,imgsize-60514,width-400,height-225,resizemode-72\/parvati-l-her-daughter-neelam-r.jpg\" "\\"Parvati")
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nNEW DELHI: For hundreds of outstation students, Parvati\u2019s mess was a sanctuary. It was where medical and engineering aspirants celebrated birthdays, debated test scores over chai, and were sure to find a comforting meal day or night.\u201cAunty never said no, however late we went to grab a bite,\u201d a student recalled. On Saturday, when the building next door came crashing, the first question many asked was, \u201cAunty kahaan hain?\u201dStudents said the 50-year-old ran outside when cracks appeared in the structure moments before the collapse. But seeing people still eating in the mess, she reportedly rushed back to warn them and help them out.Seconds later, the building came down, trapping her and several others.Most grieving students didn\u2019t even know her name. She was just \u201cmess waali aunty\u201d to all.She always greeted everyone with a smile, served dal, rice, vegetables, salad, paratha and omelette at prices students could afford,\u201d said Mohammad Imam. \u201cSometimes we would come just when she was closing the shop, but she never turned us away. She always came back with parathas.\u201dThe mess itself was a simple, a tin-roofed structure with rows of tables and stools where students sat together in groups at all hours of the day. \u201cFamilies from the neighbourhood too came here regularly just for her tea,\u201d said Deepika, a local.Parvati, originally from Nepal, had been running the mess from the Saket location for one and a half years after shifting from a smaller canteen she had operated nearby for nearly four years. The former car detailing shop was converted into a canteen to be closer to the coaching centres and student hostels.Since then, batch after batch of students would recommend her food and tell others to come too; the change of address didn\u2019t deter her clientele one bit.At the site, Parvathy\u2019s daughter Neelam and son-in-law Aniket, they married barely a month ago and live nearby, waited to talk to rescuers as ambulances arrived and departed. \u201cUntil late at night, I could distinctly hear my mother\u2019s screams,\u201d Neelam told TOI.She scrolled through videos from happier days. One showed staff members celebrating the birthday of a cook at the mess. There was a cake, laughter and crowded tables filled with students.\u201cMost of the students here are preparing for FMG and other medical examinations. Many come from Maharashtra, southern states and other parts of India. They spend the entire day studying, often from 8am till evening,\u201d said Kapil, an MBBS student. \u201cThe rush at the mess would easily reach a hundred students a day. What brought everyone there was that homely feeling. She gave us food that reminded us of home.\u201d<\/div>\n