Former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Rishi Sunak seemed enthralled while listening to his wife Akshata and mother-in-law Sudha Murthy interacting in a session at the Jaipur Literature Festival (JLF) here on Saturday.
The session titled “My mother, Myself” was based on a humane topic — the peculiarity of the mother-daughter relation”. The 40-minute session turned out to be an occasion for reliving the sweet memories of Akshata’s childhood and adolescence.
The duo described the mother-daughter bond as extremely special and one of the most peculiar human relationships. This is true for every mother and daughter. Mothers love their daughters the most, while men (fathers) tend to show more love for their sons, Sudha said.
Akshata said, “Forty minutes are just not enough for this topic as I can, and rather, want to interact with my mother for hours. This tendency certainly exists in all mothers and daughters, as they share a deep emotional bond.
Akshata said that her mother did not allow her to organise a party for friends on her birthday. Instead, she would donate things or money to any charity of her choice.
“However, I used to give you samosas and Frooty (to celebrate),” Sudha quipped, interrupting her daughter.
Akshata nodded happily, saying this was the beginning of inculcating the values of social responsibility and benevolence.
Sudha said, “Both Akshata and I took a break from our professional or outdoor routines to provide parental care to our children. Every mother should be aware that her children need her the most during childhood and early adolescence.”
While talking about her writings, Sudha made special mention of her two books — Mahasweta and “3000 Stitches” — and said that in Mahasweta, the last chapter is about the marriage of a girl suffering from leucoderma.
“In fact, a boy inspired by her book decided to marry the girl with leucoderma,” Sudha said, adding that while inviting her to attend the marriage, the couple said, “Without your presence, our marriage would be incomplete.”
Mr Narayan Murthy was also present at the session.