 A short synopsis, including a character and a conflict study of "Vanaja", was Domalpalli's project submission in his first semester at the Columbia University in fall of 2001.The story was inspired by a child's scream upon being separated from her mother in "Sophie's Choice".Over the next three semesters, however, the story veered from its original focus of mother-child separation to what Domalpalli later described as a study of "elements of class distinction and conflict that continue to infuse our society and culture even today."