It was the 29th of March, 2025. Shiva, a curious and adventurous 19-year-old college student, found himself wandering the quiet halls of the Chennai Museum. His friends were busy preparing for exams, but Shiva, always drawn to history and culture, decided to take a break and immerse himself in the museum exhibits. As he roamed through the ancient relics, he absentmindedly stepped into a restricted section marked with a ‘No Entry’ sign. Before he could turn back, a strange humming sound filled the air, and the room was illuminated by an unnatural glow.

To his astonishment, a door—one that wasn’t supposed to be there—appeared before him. It was old, metallic, and seemed to radiate an eerie aura. Driven by an overwhelming curiosity, Shiva stepped forward and opened the door. A blinding flash engulfed him, and a rush of air whirled around him. When the light subsided, he found himself standing in the middle of a bustling street—yet something was amiss. Everything around him looked like it belonged to the past.

Shiva looked up at a signboard and felt his heart skip a beat. It read: “Chennai, April 13, 2000.” He had accidentally entered a time portal, a time machine that had transported him 24 years into the past.

Shiva was completely disoriented. The streets of Chennai looked nothing like what he knew. Instead of modern-day vehicles, there were old Ambassador cars, cycles, and auto-rickshaws. The air was filled with the sounds of Tamil film songs playing on cassette radios, the aroma of traditional street food, and people clad in simpler, modest clothing. Towering malls and LED billboards were nowhere to be seen—just a city brimming with an old-world charm.

Realizing his present-day money was worthless, Shiva felt lost. He wandered for hours, taking in the sights and sounds of a world that no longer existed in his time. Eventually, as the evening approached, he grew anxious. Would he be stuck in this era forever? Frantically, he searched for the mysterious door that had brought him here. After hours of desperation, he finally found it—hidden in a secluded alley near the museum. With a deep breath, he stepped through, and in an instant, he was back in 2025. To his shock, barely a few minutes had passed in the present.

But Shiva couldn’t forget what he had witnessed. He had stumbled upon something extraordinary—a gateway to the past. He couldn’t just let it go. His curiosity transformed into obsession. He had to explore further.

Determined to uncover more secrets, Shiva devised a bold plan. The museum closed at 8 PM, and security was minimal. That night, using the cover of darkness, he sneaked back into the restricted room. There, amidst dusty old relics, sat the time machine—an artifact from an unknown past. With his face hidden under a scarf, he carefully took the device and tucked it into his backpack. No alarms sounded. No one stopped him. Within moments, he had stolen a piece of time itself.

Back in his room, he locked the device away, knowing he had just acquired something that could alter his life forever.

Over the next few weeks, Shiva made countless trips to the past, exploring Chennai as it was in the early 2000s. But he soon realized a strange limitation—the time machine only allowed him to travel backward, never forward. And every second spent in the past meant time moved forward in the present.

To survive in the year 2000, Shiva needed money. After much thought, he devised a plan. He visited an old bank that still existed in 2025 and exchanged his modern currency for old notes and coins. Now armed with money that belonged to the past, he began purchasing things that fascinated him.

• One of his first purchases was a plate of pani puri. In 2025, it cost ₹30 for 8 pieces, but in 2000, he could buy 20 pieces for just ₹5. He marveled at the affordability of everything.

• He watched iconic films on their release days, experiencing the magic of theaters without online bookings or advertisements.

• Shiva bought magazines, cassettes, and rare collectibles, which he later brought back to the present and sold to collectors at a high price.

• He bought traditional outfits, experiencing the simplicity of past fashion.

Shiva felt like a king in the past, where a mere ₹500 could last for weeks. But his time in the past wasn’t just about nostalgia—it was about survival and discovery.

One evening, at a cinema screening ‘Alaipayuthey,’ he met Janaki, a kind and cheerful young woman who offered to buy his ticket when she noticed his hesitation at the counter. That small act of kindness forged a connection between them. Over time, their bond deepened. They roamed Chennai’s streets, watched movies, visited bookstores, and shared endless conversations about life and dreams.

Shiva found solace in Janaki’s presence. She became his anchor in a world that didn’t belong to him. But deep down, he knew the truth—she was from the past, and he was from the future.

As Shiva’s present life became more demanding, he visited the past less frequently. His exams, family struggles, and financial burdens pulled him away. Janaki sensed the distance growing between them.

Then came the day when she asked him to meet her at the library. But Shiva, torn between his present and past, didn’t show up. When he finally returned, he found a letter tucked inside one of Janaki’s favorite books:

“Shiva, I love you. But you disappeared when I needed you the most. If you never truly loved me, why did you make me believe otherwise?”

Shiva’s heart shattered. Janaki had taken her own life, believing she had been abandoned.

Desperate to undo his mistake, Shiva returned to the museum, determined to stop himself from ever meeting Janaki. He traveled back to that fateful day in 2025, when he had first entered the restricted section. This time, he stopped himself from opening the mysterious door. As he did, his past self hesitated—and walked away.

Time rewrote itself.

When he woke up, he was back in the museum, surrounded by concerned visitors. They told him he had fainted. His memories of Janaki were intact, but she no longer existed in his timeline. He had saved her by erasing himself from her life.