India
oi-Madhuri Adnal
For 78-year-old Shivcharan Ram Ratan Gupta, life revolved around one dream that is giving his three daughters the education and opportunities he never had. He worked hard, raised them with care and proudly watched them build their own lives. But when he took his last breath, none of them could be there to say goodbye.
Instead, they watched their father’s final journey on a video call from Nepal, Uttar Pradesh and Mumbai.
Shivcharan Ram Ratan Gupta, 78, died at an old-age home in Sonipat, with his daughters attending his funeral virtually from Nepal, Uttar Pradesh, and Mumbai as staff and locals performed the final rites.
Gupta, a former textile trader from Mumbai, had spent the last 18 months at an old-age home run by the Samaj Kalyan Shiksha Samiti in West Ram Nagar, Sonipat. He had moved there with his wife, Meena, but after she passed away, he continued to live there alone.
He died at around 3.30 am on Tuesday after battling a prolonged illness.
As soon as he passed away, the old-age home informed his daughters and asked if they could come for the funeral. According to the management, all three said they were unable to travel.
With no family member by his side, the staff of the old-age home and local residents stepped forward. They arranged everything, carried out the funeral rituals and performed Gupta’s last rites. Throughout the cremation, his daughters remained connected through a video call, watching their father’s final farewell from hundreds of kilometres away.
Old-age home administrator Anand Kumar said Gupta never stopped talking about his daughters. He often shared stories about them and looked forward to speaking with them on the phone. As his health declined, those conversations became fewer.
“We told them nearly 20 days ago that his health was getting worse. Even then, they couldn’t come,” Kumar said.
After Gupta’s death, the old-age home once again asked the daughters if they wanted to travel to Sonipat and even offered to help make arrangements. However, they reportedly said personal commitments prevented them from coming and requested to attend the funeral virtually instead.
बेटे ही नहीं… बेटी भी कमी नियाँ होती हैं 🖐
खबर पढ़कर माथा सटक जाएगा आपका…
मुंबई में बड़े कपड़ा व्यापारी रहे शिवचरण रामरत्न गुप्ता (74) की हरियाणा के सोनीपत स्थित एक वृद्धाश्रम में मौत हो गई…
वे पिछले तीन साल से आश्रम में रह रहे थे, दो साल पहले उनकी पत्नी का भी इसी… pic.twitter.com/feWwqaiOfV— Deepak Sharma (@SonOfBharat7) August 5, 2026
The eldest daughter, Anita, who works as a teacher in Nepal, transferred Rs 5,100 online and requested the management to ensure her father received a respectful farewell. After the cremation, the sisters also asked for videos of the ceremony.
People who knew Gupta say he always spoke proudly of his daughters. He never considered the absence of a son a disappointment. Instead, he made it his life’s mission to educate all three daughters and help them become independent. His hard work paid off, with two of them eventually becoming teachers.
Today, Anita lives in Nepal, Nisha is settled in Azamgarh in Uttar Pradesh, and the youngest, Priya, lives in Mumbai. All three are married and have families of their own.
The family initially asked the old-age home to preserve Gupta’s ashes. Later, they informed the management that they would not be able to visit and requested that the ashes be immersed in the Ganga on their behalf.
Even after his death, Gupta continued to give. Following his family’s wishes, doctors donated his eyes, giving two people the precious gift of sight.
In the end, the people who cared for Gupta in his final days stood beside him one last time. While his daughters watched quietly through a mobile phone screen from far away, caregivers and local residents carried him on his final journey and made sure he did not leave this world alone.
