'Lively, Sensitive': Tributes Pour In as 22-Yr-Old Journo Dies Fighting Dengue

Saradha U, a Chennai-based reporter with The News Minute, passed away on Sunday, 8 January.

Saradha U, a 22-year-old Chennai-based reporter with The News Minute, passed away on Sunday, 8 January, after being hospitalised with dengue and typhoid.

A part of the organisation’s Flix & Features team, Saradha joined the organisation in 2021 and would write on cinema, critiquing it from the lens of gender and mental health, among many others. 

'Lively, Compassionate Person'

A trained singer, an aspiring comedian, Saradha was a “lively, compassionate person, full of ideas, and always ready to help teammates,” The News Minute wrote.

Dhanya Rajendran, Editor-in-Chief of the news organisation described the young journalist as "a lovely and calm person, a vibrant writer, soft spoken, and someone with a great sense of humour."

My colleague @saradha_u is no more. A lovely and calm person, a vibrant writer, soft spoken, and someone with a great sense of humour. This was a pic of herself that Saradha really liked. She was just 22. I will miss her, we will all miss her. pic.twitter.com/xMEcakG7yy

— Dhanya Rajendran (@dhanyarajendran) January 8, 2023

Her colleagues described her as a journalist with a "rare sensitivity," a mind beyond her years, and joyful young woman.

Saradha graduated in Journalism from Madras Christian College, and completed her schooling from Kendriya Vidyalaya.