“I was 20 days old when Papa told Maa, ‘Either choose her or this house.’ He didn’t want to raise another daughter. So that day, with no option left, Maa walked out of the house with my sister & me, leaving Papa, his house, & Kolkata forever. No one told me about it until I was much older. So while growing up, Didi would keep telling me, ‘Ache se padhai karo.’ Finances were tight; Maa would work double shifts & Didi would wake up at 4 AM to sell newspapers. But Didi never let me stop dreaming —