It was midnight and the South Indian town was all asleep except for the girls hostel which was full of anticipation, as it was the first week of a new academic year. It was the night where the freshmen girls were to undergo the annual ritual of what's called 'The Hostel Nude Night'.
The seniors gathered that evening and prepared the hostel's common room where Candles were lit and fragrances were sprayed. Radha was one of the wardens in her mid thirties who was about to head the proceedings. She wore a satin peach nightgown with lace trimmings that fell just above her knees. Her matching set of ivory-colored bra and panties peeked slightly through the thin material as her wavy black hair fell loose over her shoulders.
The freshmen girls came in one by one, nervously to the common room one by one, clutching their nightclothes. There were around twenty of them as the room filled in and around a dozen seniors.
Among them was Nandhini, a shy eighteen-year-old, who wore a pastel pink cotton nightshirt that extended to mid-thigh, paired with white shorts underneath. Priya was her roommate, who wore a blue tank top with pajama pants.
Then there was Meera who wore a long lavender kurti-style nightdress that fell up to her ankles while Ananya, one of the youngest in the group, wore a loose T-shirt and soft cotton shorts.
As the girls gathered in the candlelit room, as Radha spoke.
"Tonight, we celebrate self-acceptance and it's a tradition of not just the body but who we are as women." She continued.
"It is not about shame, but about letting go of the barriers. Tonight, you see that we are the same, vulnerable and beautiful."
