Fighting a loss, with a smile on lips

KOLKATA: The terrorist left her bereaved but could not break her grit. For the last one year, Neelam Goenka has been fighting the greatest loss a mother can suffer but with a smile on her lips, always.
The epitome of courage and calmness greets us with a smile even as we press the door bell tentatively guilty that we would remind her again of that February evening when she lost her darling "Baby" to the terror attack at the German Bakery in Pune.Neelam's elder daughter Shilpa and two of her friends from Kolkata, Ankik Dhar and his sister Anindyee, were among those who were killed in the blast on the evening of February 13, 2010.
"People call it destiny, but I still see nothing unusual about a 23-year-old planning a get-together at German Bakery," says Neelam, trying to be judicious about Shilpa being at the wrong place at the wrong time'.
Only once in a while do you see the zeal to move on with life disappear and the soft-spoken Neelam looks lost. "On February 11, Shilpa had said, Mummy, I love you. I want to hug you'. Two days later, it was another phone call telling us that we would never hear from her again," reminisces 52-year-old Neelam.
But the composure is quickly back as Neelam asks: "When will terrorism end?"
Shilpa had been pursuing a bright career miles away from home, in the country's commercial capital Mumbai. On that fateful day, she had gone to German Bakery with Anindyee and former schoolmate from Bharatiya Vidya Bhawan, Salt Lake, Ankik to celebrate the latter's recent promotion at J P Morgan.
While Anindyee, a first-year BA (English) student at Pune's Fergusson College, and also a former student of Bharatiya Vidya Bhawan, Salt Lake, was already there, Shilpa, Ankik and common friend P Sinduri set out from Mumbai in the morning of February 13. A cozy get-together at the bakery that's all they had been looking forward to. Unwittingly, they sat at the very table under which the bag containing the explosives was kept. All were killed in the explosion.
Shilpa a former Miss Enthusiast of BIT, Ranchi was popular among friends, says her mother. She loved partying and playing pranks. "She would study all night and tease her friends when they slogged during the day," says Neelam, adding, "She was really bright and it was I who had pushed her to study at BIT, Ranchi. I was thrilled when she bagged a job at Namura in Mumbai. As parents, we wanted the best for her. What has destiny got to do with that?"
A year on, Neelam and her husband, Rajesh, are busy handling the Shilpa Goekna Foundation Trust that is now sponsoring education for seven underprivileged children.
"Losing Shilpa has made us understand the value of life," said Neelam. "She always made us say that she was the most beautiful among our three daughters. I must say she was a beautiful person. We gave away food and clothes to children on her birthday on January 8. Last year, she had thrown a big party at Park Street. She would have been happy with the way her birthday was celebrated this year," said Neelam, the smile never leaving her face.