Name changed for confidentiality.
On 29 August 2026, after five long years away from home, Mani, aged around 50, finally returned to her family in the tribal hamlets around the Borra Caves, in the Anantagiri hill ranges of Alluri Sitarama Raju district, Andhra Pradesh.
Accompanied by the Chittadhama team, the journey home was a long one. A four-hour bus ride took them from Visakhapatnam to Anantagiri, nearly 90 kilometres away. From there, an autorickshaw carried them another four or five kilometres into the remote tribal hamlets scattered around the Borra Caves.
Mani was welcomed home by her husband, son, daughter, son-in-law and scores of relatives, all overwhelmed with happiness and excitement to see her again. After five years of uncertainty, worry and heartbreak, she was finally standing before them. There were smiles, tears, embraces and an overwhelming sense of joy. A family that had once feared they would never see her again was given the precious gift of her return.
She had left home five years earlier. During those years, her family had searched for her far and wide, even travelling nearly 100 kilometres to the Odisha border in their efforts to find her. Eventually, having found no trace of her, they had given up hope and believed that she was dead.
And then, against all their expectations, she came home. The happiness was shared not only by her family but by the entire village, and the family and villagers expressed their heartfelt gratitude to the Chittadhama team. Before leaving, the team took time to speak with the family about mental illness, explaining the importance of regular medication, follow-up care and continued support.
For Mani and her family, this was more than a journey home — it was a long-awaited reunion and the beginning of a new chapter. For everyone who witnessed her homecoming, it was a powerful reminder that sometimes, even after hope seems lost, a family can find its way back to one another.