Keshav Desiraju (1955-2021) former Union Health Secretary, who passed away on September 5, 2021, was an uncommon bureaucrat and extraordinary human being. Many obituaries and eulogies have been written about his contribution to public health in India and his personal qualities in helping those in need. Here I will focus specifically on his contribution to the mental health sector in India, to which he contributed significantly in his last few years as a health bureaucrat, and even after his retirement.