Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: For a few hours, there were no lectures, no notes and no ringing phones — only the cool touch of green betel leaves and the quiet mastery of hands that remembered.As Laxmikant Bahegavhankar lifted a glossy betel leaf at Swatantryaveer Savarkar College in Beed, the seminar hall fell silent. Fold, tuck, pin — within seconds, the flat leaf bloomed into a delicate Vida, carrying the fragrance of cardamom, cloves and katha.Students and staffers also tried their hand at the craft, making genuine attempts to learn the traditional art of preparing different varieties of betel leaf Vida.“Betel leaf is not just a leaf, it is medicine when prepared the right way,” Bahegavhankar said, opening the session with the Ayurvedic wisdom behind the tradition.The workshop, organised on Saturday amid the ongoing festival season, aimed to teach participants 10 types of traditional edible Vida offered to gods and goddesses.One by one, Bahegavhankar demonstrated each variety — the simple Sadha Vida for beginners, the layered Khan Vida, the generous Adhik Vida, the neatly rolled Valkati Vida, the sacred Narayan Vida, the slender Patti Vida, the festive Govind Vida, the compact Pudi Vida, and the showstopper Kulup or Purse Vida, which opens like a tiny green gift.“Betel leaf plays a role in improving digestion among a range of other benefits to the human body. In old days, households, elders would offer a well-made Vida after meals not as a habit, but as a healing touch,” said Bahegavhankar, who is the college’s vice-principal.By the end of the workshop, the tables were covered with fragrant, green creations.“More than a skill session, it had become a bridge — connecting Ayurveda with everyday life, devotion with health, and a younger generation with a heritage that was slowly slipping away,” college principal Suhas Morale said.