Hyderabad girl Aishwarya killed in Texas mall shooting

Hyderabad: A Telangana-origin techie, Thatikonda Aishwarya, 27, daughter of Ranga Reddy district and sessions judge T. Narsi Reddy, was among the eight people killed when a gunman opened fire on Sunday in the crowded Allen Premium Outlets mall in Texas, United States. The family was getting ready for her birthday on May 18.

Aishwarya's relatives in Texas informed her family in Hyderabad that she had completed her shopping and headed out of the mall with a carry bag when the carnage began. Aishwarya was the first person to get shot, followed by her friend. At least nine people were killed in the shooting.

Aishwarya's friend was admitted to an emergency medical care for treatment.

Aishwarya's family members said she had spoken to her mother Aruna just hours before she was shot, and told her that she was buying a birthday gift for a friend.
After completing civil engineering from MVSR Engineering College in Nadergul, Aishwarya had earned a master's degree in construction management from Eastern Michigan University. She was working as a project manager with Perfect General Contractors LLC at Frisco, Texas.

Aishwarya's relatives told Deccan Chronicle that she was close to her mother and spoke to her every day. Her mother later saw the news of the shooting on television and tried to call Aishwarya, but there was no response. The relatives said the mobile phone went off afterwards.

Worried family members contacted her friends and relatives to find out if Aishwarya was safe, but could not get any information till Sunday midnight.
Nandyala Ram Reddy, one of her relatives from Suryapet, who is also Narsi Reddy's brother-in-law, said that her friends began searching for her immediately after the incident, but the local police did not reveal anything to them because none of them were an emergency point of contact for Aishwarya.

College faculty recollects memories with Aishwarya

Teachers at the MVSR Engineering College remembered their former student Thatikonda Aishwarya, victim of a shooting in Texas, as someone who was active not only in academics but also in extracurricular activities. “She was very active in studies and also in technical aspects related to the course,” recollected R. Prashanth Kumar, associate professor, civil engineering department at the college.

The college is planning to hold a condolence meet for Aishwarya.

She kept in touch with her teachers after she graduated, and was just a message or call away when they wanted something for the juniors or some information related to her batchmates.

The last time they met Aishwarya was at her elder brother Srikanth’s wedding in April 2022. Srikanth also studied in the same college and most of the faculty members knew both siblings and their parents.

S.V.S. Murthy, vice-principal, said since both the siblings were his students, their father Narsi Reddy used to interact with him regularly. “ Even during Srikanth’s wedding, she and her father spent quite a good amount of time with us,” he recollected.