Pryia was born in Nepal, and abandoned by her parents to die without a name or identity. She was taken to an orphanage where she was given the name “Priya Balika”, which means “Beloved Orphan.” 

When Pryia was 2 years old, she was adopted by a single mother in the U.S. Her family wasn’t religious, but still tried to be “moral” growing up. In high school, Pryia was invited to a church camp where she gave her life to Christ. She began searching online for a Bible app, and found YouVersion. As her newfound faith started to grow, she went through all the available Plans that Through The Word offered on YouVersion. She was drawn to the Plans because they really helped her unpack and understand Scripture. 

Pryia shared that growing up, she always focused on the fact that the meaning of her Nepalese name had “Orphan” tied to it, and focused on that as her identity. Because of reading God’s Word and experiencing His love, she realized that God wanted her to focus on the name “Beloved.”