THE MYSTERY OF THE PURPLE SAREE..

The collage project was in full swing. A group of five volunteers—Pavni, Saurabh, Mayur, Akinchan, and I—had created a separate WhatsApp group to manage the task. I was responsible for collecting photos from ten students. It was a challenge, especially since I had never met these people in person and only had their numbers.

“Hey everyone,” I typed into the group chat, “I’m collecting photos for the collage. Could you please send yours by today?”

Most people responded quickly. Messages flew back and forth, and the collage started to take shape. But as the hours ticked by, I noticed that photos from one student were still missing.

Determined to track this person down, I sent a message to the number: “Hi! Can you please share your photo for the collage? Thanks!”

The reply came almost instantly: “Hey Dev, give me a minute. I’m sending it to you now.”

A few moments later, a photo popped up on my screen. I stared at it, captivated. The girl in the picture was wearing a breathtaking purple saree. It was clear this was a special occasion—probably a farewell from her class 12th. Her curly hair framed her face beautifully, and her eyes were deep and mesmerizing. The saree added a touch of traditional grace, and her whole demeanor spoke of elegance and poise.

I was about to type a thank-you when I noticed a new message: “Hi, I’m Avantika. Sorry for the delay. How’s the collage coming up?”

“Hi Avantika! The collage is coming together well. Thank you so much for sending your photo. It’s beautiful!” I replied, feeling a strange but comforting connection through the screen.

As I looked at her photo again, I felt a strange, unplaceable emotion. The grace and warmth she exuded seemed almost unreal. Her image added a touch of real charm to my otherwise dull online world. Even through the screen, she made the collage project feel more meaningful and gave me a glimpse into the diverse experiences each student brought to Christ University.

“Are you excited for college to start?” I asked, trying to bridge the gap between our digital interaction and the real world we were both missing.

“Definitely! It’s strange starting this way, but I’m looking forward to meeting everyone in person someday,” Avantika responded.

Her words echoed my own feelings. Even though we hadn’t met face-to-face, her photo and our brief conversation made the experience feel a bit more personal and real.

Sitting in the balcony on that rainy day in Goa, I smiled as I thought about how each photo and each conversation was a step toward building something meaningful. I felt a bittersweet longing for the moments I was missing and the connections I was just beginning to understand. It reminded me that while technology had brought us closer in some ways, it had also kept us apart. The journey was unusual, but it was full of unexpected beauty and connection.

As the writer Anaïs Nin once said, “We do not see things as they are, we see them as we are.”

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