Hi everyone 
My name is Kumari Vrishti, a 3rd-year Computer Science student from India. I am interested in contributing to Django for GSoC 2026.
I have experience in Python and web development, and I’ve recently started exploring Django’s codebase and contribution workflow. I have also submitted a documentation PR to understand the process better.
I’m particularly interested in working on improving the developer experience in Django templates, specifically around handling missing variables.
From my understanding, currently missing variables in templates are silently rendered as empty strings, which can make debugging difficult during development. I would like to explore adding a mechanism to explicitly control or enforce handling of missing variables.
Before moving forward with a detailed proposal, I wanted to ask:
- Is this area currently open for contributions?
- Are there any specific design constraints or prior discussions I should review?
I would really appreciate any guidance or feedback from the community.
Thank you!
Kumari Vrishti