Part 7/9:
A Life Withdrawn from Society
Grigori Perelman’s disdain for public life led him to make choices that distanced him from the mathematical community. He turned down lucrative offers for prestigious academic positions and returned to a modest living in Russia, working at the Steklov Institute until 2005, when he chose to resign.
In his time away from the spotlight, Grisha withdrew from society, living a reclusive life with his mother. News of his life post-mathematics remains sparse, aside from anecdotal evidence of his activities—such as a photograph of him foraging for mushrooms that circulated on the internet. The $1 million prize money that he refused was instead used by the Clay Institute to fund a teaching position intended for promising mathematicians.