“Plinnggg…” a loud clang woke me from my dream one morning. Just a moment back, I
was swimming deep in the ocean, gliding alongside a magnificent shark. In between my
realities, I could almost feel the warmth of the sun on my face. As light filtered through
the blue water, it scattered into a thousand shimmering colors. Tiny, radiant fish moved
around me like living jewels, painting the ocean with their hues.
But then, the clang from my kitchen broke the spell, and I found myself back in my
room, still caught between two worlds. The sun was still real, filtering and shimmering
through the curtain. It was a beautiful morning!

My journey into the mangroves

My love for nature has always been the current guiding my life. That passion led me to
pursue my master’s in Environmental Science, and soon after, I joined the Wildlife Trust
of India as an intern. My fieldwork took me to the mangroves, the emerald guardians of
the coast, where land and sea meet and whispered secrets to each other.

Student-led mangrove restoration at Thrikaripur. | 
Photograph by team WTI.

Each day among the mangroves felt like entering a sacred realm. During low tide, the
water would slowly retreat towards the ocean, revealing the hidden life along the banks.
Tiny red crabs with glossy black shells and little white dots would scuttle out of their
burrows, raising their claws as if waving at me. I used to smile, imagining they were
greeting their human visitor, dancing with joy in their miniature world.
When the tide returned, the water embraced the roots of the mangrove trees once
more. The plants and the sea seemed to share stories in soft murmurs, and sometimes,
even the sun would hide behind clouds just to listen. Puffer fish darted between the
roots – their scales catching beams of light, turning them into shimmering rainbows. I
would stand there, mesmerized, watching their hidden colours come alive, and I would
think about my dream about the shark gliding beside me in the deep.

Mangrove restoration site | Photograph by Jayesh Padichal

A call back to the wild

At the end of my internship, I returned home, spending quiet days on my dissertation.
The hum of the city felt dull compared to the song of the tides that I remember vividly. I
was missing my ocean.
As I sat surrounded by papers and memories in one of these afternoons, my phone
rang. The caller ID flashed WTI Mangrove Project Office. My heart skipped a beat. A
warm voice on the other end enquired, “Sharanya, we were looking for an intern for our
Whale Shark Conservation Project in Kerala. Would you like to join?”
For a moment, I couldn’t speak. The dream that began in my sleep was now calling me
in waking life. It felt as if the ocean itself had reached out, whispering, and calling me
back to the wild.

That day, I realized something beautiful — sometimes, even dreams can be real.

Story by Sharanya K , Intern, Whale Shark Conservation – Kerala & Lakshadweep, Wildlife Trust of India