‘We were going to speak on Christmas… now I’m left with regret’: childhood friend grieves Hyderabad student who died in U.S. fire
The death of 24-year-old Sahaja Reddy Udumala in a house fire in Albany, New York, left a trail of shock, disbelief and memories for her friends and family thousands of miles away in Hyderabad, who knew her as a bright, friendly girl from Ramanthapur.
The young graduate student in Cyber Security, who moved to the United States a little over a year ago, succumbed to serious burn injuries following the fire on December 4.
For Elizabeth, Sahaja’s childhood friend who knew her more than 15 years ago, long before her dreams took her to the other side of the world, it carries a layer of bitter, excruciating regret. The two had reconnected just two weeks ago, when Sahaja sent him an unexpected Instagram request, years after being separated due to a misunderstanding.
“I accepted immediately,” he says. “I even asked my brother if I should text him. I decided to text him on Christmas; that day has always been special to us and it was the perfect time to start over. I dreamed about him sending me his new number… I imagined how we would finally talk and share life updates,” she pauses, fighting back tears. “Now that I think about it… I should have texted him. This regret is killing me.”
Miss Elizabeth, who grew up with Sahaja in the vicinity of Ramanthapur, says sleep has been eluding her ever since the news broke. The duo studied at St Joseph’s School in Habsiguda.
“I’ve known her since Grade 4; she was in Grade 2 then. She was my sister. Even though she was younger than me, we were always together; we sang at school prayers, we danced at Christmas shows, we taught kids in Sunday school, we played after school… We were inseparable. Every corner of this place holds a memory,” he said, his voice trembling.
Their friendship was brought together by small rituals: sharing lunches at their favorite corner, spending Saturdays in church classes, practicing music and choreography for the big Christmas celebrations at St Joseph’s School in King Koti. “We practiced for hours, forgetting everything because we wanted our performance to be perfect. These memories are very fresh in my mind,” he said.
A small misunderstanding gradually created distance, but the love never truly separated. About two years later, they saw each other again at the school’s food festival. “He hugged me so tight… tears flowed from his eyes,” Miss Elizabeth recalls. “But after that we lost contact once again.”
Life went on. Sahaja’s family moved to Jeedimetla. He then went to Albany to pursue his master’s degree. According to his professional profile, he joined Saayam, a non-profit organization, as a volunteer cybersecurity analyst just six months ago in July 2025.
When Miss Elizabeth saw the news of the fire, she instinctively put her phone aside. “I didn’t want to see anything. I just felt numb,” she says. “I wish we had at least one photo from when we were kids… we didn’t have phones back then. It’s so painful to see his burnt body now, after all these good memories.”
As Sahaja’s family prepares for the journey home, Elizabeth is still trying to understand the loss of the friend who once hugged her in Sunday school classes. “If I had video called him once, I would have at least seen his face before,” she whispers.
A fundraiser was started by Sahaja’s cousin Rathna Gopu to help cover funeral and memorial expenses, repatriation arrangements, family support and expenses arising from the tragic accident. Ms. Gopu said almost 90% of Sahaja’s body was burnt.
“He put up a tremendous fight, fighting with all the strength he had. Despite all medical efforts, his condition continued to deteriorate and he eventually suffered complete organ failure, which led to his death this morning,” Ms Gopu said.
More than $109,000 of the $120,000 total has been raised through donations so far.
Officers and firefighters responded to the fire on the morning of Dec. 4, the Albany Police Department said in a statement. When they arrived the house was already fully engulfed in flames and many people were still trapped inside.
Emergency crews were able to find and get the four adults out. Emergency medical attention was given at the scene before they were taken to hospital with serious injuries, and two of them were later transported to a specialized burn center for further treatment.
It was published – 07 December 2025 11:47 IST
