It is not often that a ‘chaiwala’ gets a state funeral or a tweet from the Prime Minister of India on his death. But then D Prakash Rao (63) was no ordinary chaiwala. Recipient of the Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award of the country, in 2019, the man who never lost the smile on his face while he lived, brought smiles to the lips of countless underprivileged children by providing them free education – and a malai-topped glass of milk – for nearly two decades. No wonder the children were among the most disconsolate as news of his death due to a brain stroke spread in the Millennium City of Cuttack on Wednesday.