Ludhiana: A newlywed bride dreaming of a new life in Australia and a teenage drummer celebrating his examination results are now among the victims of a boat’s capsizing in the Yamuna river near Vrindavan, as their bodies were recovered three days after the tragedy away from home.The discovery of 26-year-old Monika Chaudhary and 20-year-old Yuvraj Bhalla has devastated two Ludhiana families, ending a desperate 72-hour search following the accident in Uttar Pradesh. The victims were found miles apart. Authorities recovered Monika’s body at Bangali Ghat in Mathura, about 38 km downstream from the site of the capsize. Bhalla, known to friends as Yash, was located at Devraha Baba Ghat.The tragedy occurred during a pilgrimage that the Jagraon-based Banke Bihari Club had organised. While Monika had joined her mother-in-law for the trip, Bhalla was travelling as a musician for the group.A Dream Cut ShortFor Monika Chaudhary, the pilgrimage was meant to be a final spiritual journey before relocating to Australia. She married Rajit Chaudhary on Oct 23, 2025, and was in the middle of the visa application process to join him abroad. “We are unable to process this loss,” said her brother-in-law, Sankalp Chaudhary. “My brother is returning to India now. We have taken Monika’s body to our ancestral village in Haryana’s Ambala district for the funeral.” Monika’s mother-in-law, Savita, survived the accident.The Final PerformanceYuvraj Bhalla, a local student who had passed his Class-XI examinations just three days prior to the trip, was a passionate dholak player, who had joined the devotional club a year ago to perform at ‘kirtans’ (devotional music sessions). His mother, Sunita Devi, recalled their final conversation on the night of April 9, as the group’s bus departed for Vrindavan.Sunita said: “At around 10pm, I called him, but they were performing on the bus. He asked me not to disturb him because he was playing the dholak. That was the last time I heard his voice. My son died doing what he loved most. He was so passionate… he died while performing in the boat.” In a video recorded just minutes before the accident on Friday, Bhalla can be seen playing a ‘dhol’ alongside devotees who were singing hymns. Bhalla is survived by his parents and an older brother, Rajat. His father, Rakesh Kumar, a local garment trader, had dropped his son at the bus station for what was the teenager’s first trip to the holy city of Vrindavan. A funeral for Bhalla is scheduled for Tuesday.
