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Subrat SaurabhAuthor of Kuch Woh Pal
‘My Dad’s Daughter’ is an emotional journey of a daughter with her father, which, for her, ended at the hospital door. Divya’s father succumbed to COVID in May 2021, and that marked the most catastrophic experience for her as she helplessly witnessed her father going through an unimaginable ordeal and passing away without his family around him. Unable to handle the sudden demise of her dad in the most unprecedented circumstances witnessed by this generation, Divya struggled to find any closures. Even with all the means, she could not provide a befitting farewell to her Dad. For a long time, her heart carried the burden of death only to realise later that our relationship with our parents is not confined to the mortal world. The bond is so deep that a parent finds channels to communicate with their child through different mediums. What changed for Divya in the few months since her father’s passing away that made her believe in this idea? How did Divya find closure?
As Divya opens up about her most well-guarded emotional moments and confessions in this book, the story unfolds to reveal how loss of a loved one and the ensuing pain tests and changes a person. This story is as personal in nature as it is universal in its themes of love, loss and pain. To read ‘My Dad’s Daughter’ is to embark on a journey across a sea of emotions as gentle as a calming breeze and as turbulent as a sea storm and find closure at the end of it.
Divya Gupta Kotawala
Born and brought up in Delhi, Divya Gupta Kotawala, wears several hats — a wife, a mother to a 14-year-old girl Manya, co-owner of a Delhi-based jewellery brand (House of Kotawala) along with her husband Manish and a loyal friend to a bunch of quadragenarians, whom she has known for nearly four decades! However, the role that she has cherished the most in her life is that of the daughter of her father, Shri Suresh Gupta. Divya lost her father to COVID in 2021.
Divya completed her schooling from Modern School, Barakhamba Road,, Later, she joined the prestigious St. Stephen’s College, Delhi University, where she did her honours in History. Thereafter, in pursuit of her passion for designing and creativity, Divya joined the National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) for a course in fashion designing. Post that she tried a few freelance projects and partnered in a kids-oriented development and enhancement project Yellow Bumble with a friend. Eventually, she joined her husband , a 6th generation jeweller in a 300-year-old family business and that is what she is presently doing.
For Divya, life has been all about simplicity, creativity and maintaining a healthy balance between her personal, professional and social life. When not struggling between these, she loves to devote her time to social welfare work and also has a strong spiritual side. She enjoys chanting and is an ardent follower of Guruji.
A once happy and fun person, Divya fell into a deep ditch of mourning and grief after losing her beloved dad. She feels that she has finally found her true calling and purpose through this book that made her revisit her oldest passion for writing and communicating her feelings and emotions through words to not only to her hero in heaven but also with the world.
