There’s nothing that Arun Kumar Tiwari loved as much as the mountains. Having successfully summited Kilimanjaro, Denali and Kanchenjunga over the last two-odd decades, the 53-year-old Hyderabad-based techie recently took on his most difficult challenge, and one that defeated him once before – the Mighty Everest.
It is only fitting — and almost poetic — that after his death on the Everest, he should be left where he loved most: in the lap of the Himalayas. “He loved his job as an IT professional but loved the mountains more. He also undertook climbs in Argentina and Russia,” said his brother-in-law, Sudhir Upadhyaya. “After a failed attempt last year, he became even more determined to summit Everest. It’s where he loved to be, and it’s where we’re leaving him.”
Tiwari and his 47-year-old fellow mountaineer Sandeep Are died of health complications while descending Everest on the same day. According to the expedition organisers, when Tiwari summited the peak on May 21, he had already been weak, and his health took a dramatic turn near the Hillary Step — a vertical rock face at 8,790 metres just below the summit, also known as the death zone.
A senior director at an IT firm in , Tiwari began climbing in his 30s. Upadhyaya describes him as a jovial man, very committed to his family and job.
For his wife and two daughters, the decision was a difficult one. “One reason for the decision is that he loved the Himalayas — the abode of Lord Shiva, the Devabhoomi and Vaikhuntdham. He is with Lord Shiva now — he is one with the mountain,” said Upadhyaya.
But there’s another compelling reason: the state in which the body would be if it is brought down. According to sources, bringing the body back is a long process that could take as many as 15 days.
“Because of the snow, a team will have to hack and cut into the ice to recover his body. As the body would have become stiff at minus 63 degrees, it would have shattered, and there would be broken bones. Once the body is found, it would be tied to a sledge and dragged down from camp 4 to camp 1. We do not want him to undergo that kind of disrespect,” Upadhyaya said.
The family conveyed their decision to Bharath Thammineni, co-founder of Hyderabad-based Boots and Crampons, which organised the Everest expedition Tiwari undertook.
“His family informed us on that day (May 21) itself. They cited his love for the mountains and his beliefs regarding the Himalayas,” Bharath said.
In 2025, Tiwari had to abandon his summit after he fell sick while climbing at 7,200 metres. This time, he insisted on finishing the climb although his Sherpa guides told him to return to camp when he began to feel ill.
A fellow climber, Sandeep Are, also died on Everest. Originally from Andhra Pradesh but settled in , Are had also summitted Everest but, like Tiwari, developed health complications on the descent. He died near camp 2.
