No material gift can ever be compared to the one advocate Samit Kumar Dutta gifted to his father, late Arun Kumar Dutta. Not only is it filled with filial love but also with emotion.
Samit immortalized his father in the form of a model made of silicone, which he said would always make him feel the presence of his departed father and be inspired by.
Samit rewinds to 2012, when he was 34 and met with a life-threatening bike accident.
He not only suffered serious injuries but also became temporarily blind. By a quirk of fate, he also suffered a cerebral attack.
After a month, when Samit returned home from the nursing home, his father’s and his struggle to return to normality started.
Doctors had declared that Samit would get back his eyesight slowly but he will remain in a vegetative state for the rest of his life.
But father Arun Dutta had other ideas. He wanted his son to defy his medical state and get back on his feet.
After years of struggle filled with pain, Samit, constantly pushed by hsi father, is now able to walk with crutches and resume his life and career.
But, last year, Samit suffered another blow when his father suddenly fell into a coma. For a son who drew constant inspiration and strength from his father, it was a numbing experience.
Arun was goaded by his son to come out of it. But Arun passed away after a few days of struggle in July last year.
Samit is ever grateful to his civil engineer father for his transformation. Out of reverence, Samit decided to get a silicone life-like statue of his father be made, which will not only make him feel his father’s presence but will keep inspiring him. Samit also found around 84 diaries written by his father after the latter’s demise.
Unveiling his statue and publishing his father’s writings in a form of a book on Saturday, Samit said: “My spine and hip were all affected in the accident. But my father taught me to overcome pain. He gave me the strength to take up cases outside the state and travel. I cannot sit on a wheelchair as my legs do not bend much. I need three seats in an aircraft to lie down and travel. But my father’s strength keeps me move on with life. What I’m today is because of him.”