Samrin and Sanooja were high school classmates. Both born in 1990, they grew up together in Kalpitiya in Sri Lanka.
When they turned 20, Sanooja was studying to be a schoolteacher, while Samrin left town for work. Samrin returned home in 2017 and they got married, her in a white headscarf and indigo-sleeved dress, him in a matching indigo suit. Their son Haashim was born a year later.
Samrin was a difficult person to fall in love with because he was so ambitious, says Sanooja over a video call from her home. But part of loving him, she explains, meant supporting him even in his hardest decisions. One of these decisions was to take a plane to Moscow, then to travel to Europe and send money home. “He went to keep us happy, to make us good.”
Their last day together is a precious memory. In their last photos together, Haashim sits laughing on Samrin’s lap. That night, Samrin squeezed his son and wept. The next day he put on a pair of blue Converse All-Stars, packed a black backpack, and set out. It was 26 June 2022. He was 32 years old.
