Secret Daughter by Shilpi Somaya Gowda

"On the eve of the monsoons, in a remote Indian village, Kavita gives birth to a baby girl. But in a culture that favors sons, the only way for Kavita to save her newborn daughter's life is to give her away. It is a decision that will haunt her and her husband for the rest of their lives, even after the arrival of their cherished son.

Halfway around the globe, Somer, an American doctor, decides to adopt a child after making the wrenching discovery that she will never have one of her own. When she and her husband, Krishnan, see a photo of the baby with the gold-flecked eyes from a Mumbai orphanage, they are overwhelmed with emotion. Somer knows life will change with the adoption but is convinced that the love they already feel will overcome all obstacles.

Interweaving the stories of Kavita, Somer, and the child that binds both of their destinies, Secret Daughter poignantly explores the emotional terrain of motherhood, loss, identity, and love, as witnessed through the lives of two families-one Indian, one American-and the child that indelibly connects them."

 Secret Daughter is a beautifully written story that will captivate your heart. Centered around themes of adoption, family and finding one's true self, the story follows the life of a girl named Asha from her birth in a small village in India, through her adoption and growth into young adulthood.


Asha is the second-born daughter of a poor Indian woman named Kavita, who lives in a remote village. Kavita lost her first-born child, a daughter, immediately after birth to infanticide at the hands of her husband:

“Kavita spent the next two days curled up on the woven straw mat on the floor of the hut. She did not dare ask what had happened to her baby. Whether she was drowned, suffocated, or simply left to starve, Kavita hoped only that death came quickly, mercifully. In the end, her tiny body would have been buried, her spirit not even granted the release of cremation. Like so many baby girls, her first-born would be returned to the earth long before her time.”

In a culture that cherishes sons and considers daughters too great an expense for a poor family, Kavita's husband sees no alternative but to murder their infant daughter.  They can only afford one child, and the child must be male. The treatment Kavita suffers for giving birth to a female child, even from family members, is unspeakably heart-wrenching.


When Kavita becomes pregnant again, she wishes desperately for a son. Unwilling to lose another child, Kavita secretly gives birth, in case it is another girl. When she does give birth to another little girl, Kavita conceals the birth from her husband and makes the decision on her own that - this baby will live. She bravely makes the long journey with her sister to Mumbai, where her daughter is placed in an orphanage. She names her baby girl Usha.


Somer, an American doctor, and her husband, Krishnan, are unable to have children of their own. Krishnan, also called Kris, suggests adopting an infant from his home country of India. Everything about India makes Somer uncomfortable, but the one-year-old baby with the gold-flecked eyes captures their heart and they bring her home, calling her Asha.


The story follows the families through the next 20 years of their lives. Kavita giving birth to the cherished son; the family moving to the city slums and working hard to provide the boy an education. Sacrifice doesn't always work out in the end. Meanwhile, not a day passes that Kavita doesn't think of, or long for, her lost daughters.


Back in America, privileged Asha questions her mother and father about her "real" family, longing for some connection to her Indian heritage.  When she earns a journalism scholarship,  Asha decides to go to India, where she falls into the embrace of her father's family. Her family is wealthy, yet Asha learns about the two very different sides to India, as do the readers. Extreme wealth or abject poverty, there seems to be no middle ground in India. 


The interviews Asha does with the people living in the slums is eye-opening and at times difficult to comprehend how people can live this way. In a society where some people are untouchable, there is very little room for self-improvement. Education is valued, yet poor children are not given the opportunity to attend school; they are too busy working, begging, and taking care of their siblings or family members.


The story is filled with heart-break, joy and that wonderful thing called family. Asha's journey is one of self-discovery, of finding her place within the world, and within her own family.


Aili