"My journey took me from the blue hills of Assam to the remote, tribal pocket of Kotra in Udaipur, Rajasthan. One night, I was invited to a deeply sacred local ritual called Bawsi. Under the night sky, the community gathered to worship their nature god, Mata Ji, calling upon their ancestral spirits to bring blessings for a prosperous year ahead. The ceremony concluded with a traditional sacrifice, followed by a massive village feast of dal, baati, and churma served as holy prashad. Eating alongside them, I realised this ritual was the very glue keeping the community whole and deeply connected to their past.
My time in Kotra pushed me far out of my comfort zone, but it filled me with profound lessons."
- Barkha Bora, SBI (State Bank of India) YFI (Youth for India) Fellow (2026)
"It was my first time living away from home, my first experience in the development sector, and my first opportunity to understand communication beyond content. One of my favourite memories will always be teaching dance to young girls in Khojawara. I loved how my dormitory became a doorway to friendships, networking and countless memories."
- Simran Joshi (to the extreme left in the picture)
"A good internship looks like Kojawara. It looks like Kotra. It looks like trust, extended and honoured. None of it was possible alone. What began as fieldwork became a photobook, a small attempt to honour the trust so many extended to us."
- Jaypal Kalra (third from last on the right)
"Part of me is still there, in the Aravallis, trying to keep pace with Hiralal ji, our Community Resource Person. He introduced us to families and ensured that our understanding of their lives went beyond surface-level observations."
- Anika Sharma (second from last on the right)
Barkha is on a year-long fellowship, while Anika, Jaypal and Simran, students of Masters in Development Communication at Jamia Milia Islamia University, Delhi, interned for the month of June 2026.