My Obituary

For a college project, I was expected to write my own obituary. So here's what I wrote.

Social Activist and Krishna’s Devotee Expires

By Baani Sachdev

We were very dear friends when we were young. In the wake of her death, I am writing a small dedication to her and her life.

Varsha Bhambhani, 89 silently passed away on the night of July 29 2077. She died in the serene foothills of Himalayas where she went to live after having outnumbered her days in the city of Mumbai, Maharashtra. Sources say that a landslide in the nearby Himalyan Hill caused her death. She was caught under rubble for two days. Rescue teams came soon after.

She was born on July 28 1989 to the late Harsha and Ashok Bhambani. The younger of the two siblings renounced all worldly pleasures and ties to be a sanyasin to Lord Krishna. She considered herself to be like Meera. At more than one occasion, her friends and family saw her with the traditional sindoor on her forehead.

After her graduation from Mumbai University, Varsha decided to give up all her worldly ties. It was on her 21st birthday that she realized her calling was Lord Krishna. She knew she had to discover the true meaning of the “selfish and meaningless life that we all lived”. She was engaged to her childhood love Kevin D’souza. Kevin seemed shocked at the decision Varsha had taken. And even though he loved her dearly, he couldn’t leave the comforts of his fancy home to find the meaning of life with her.

Her parents and her family were with her through it all. They understood her need for spirituality and spiritual guidance. In fact, it was her father who had introduced her to the concept of God. Ashok Bhambani himself had a guru who he followed and prayed to God every day. He was a content man. And it was the man that her father was, that inspired her to fulfill her need to have a life above worldly pleasures.

Varsha was very fond of children but having none troubled her a lot. She took up many child-related causes and intended to work towards them tirelessly. She also worked for women’s upliftment and liberalization of women in her days. Children used to call her ‘Amma’ out of love and “nothing satisfied her more than being the mother of so many children”.

Her siblings missed her very much. They always felt her absence in her family. It was Varsha who encouraged the family to be together. Her family included her uncle, aunt their two children – Rashmi and Pratik who she considered as her sister and brother and her sister – Seema. Pratik was just a small child of 12 when Varsha left to find herself. He missed her greatly and more so when he was stuck with his chemistry and physics problems. “Even though she was my sister, she took me as her own child. Varsha was always at my beck and call during my exams. When I needed a person to confide in, I would go to Varsha,” Pratik said his eyes welling up.

It was Pratik who inherited the little money Varsha has arranged for her funeral. Varsha had spoken often about how the traditional Indian funeral service disturbed her. Therefore, in her memory Pratik has organized a funeral service where all the invitees will speak of something funny that they encountered with Varsha and remember her with a few laughs. The funeral service will be held at 2:00 August 30, 2077 on the terrace of the last home she stayed in – Queen’s View, Juhu.