mid-day reporter recounts her journey with Eman Ahmed all the way

Room 701 where Eman spent her days during treatment has been locked after her departure PicPradeep DhivarEman Ahmed perhaps the most celebrated patient in the world who just two months back held the title of the worlds heaviest woman left Mumbai yesterday after 82 days in Saifee Hospital It was anyway going to be tough for the hospital staffers to say goodbye to her the fact that they had to in such a hurried and abrupt manner made it worse for themAlso read Worlds heaviest person Eman Ahmad Abdulati is coming to Mumbai for emergency operationNot a single eye was dry in room 701 as her nurses and caretakers hugged her one last time And honestly it wasnt easy for me either saying goodbye Yes I know I am just a messenger whose job is to report facts As taught in journalism colleges a reporter should never develop any attachment with her stories But in this case I am making an exception because it wasnt just a oneday story for me Since December 7 when midday broke the news that Eman would come here for treatment it gained the attention of the international media And thus began my rollercoaster rideAlso read Worlds heaviest persons Mumbai visit for surgery in doubtCalling Cairo for ShaimaaWhen newspapers across the world were following the story I was hunting down Shaimaa for an interview I couldnt find her on any social media platform and Dr Muffazal Lakdawala Emans treating doctor wasnt ready to share her contact details either due to doctorpatient confidentialityAlso read Mumbai are you ready for a world record All hurdles cleared Eman is hereSo I started getting in touch with all my contacts and finally a wellknown bariatric surgeon in Gujarat helped me out with the number of a surgeon in Cairo And then from one source to another I kept calling up several surgeons in EgyptAlso read Salman Khan will fulfill the wish of worlds heaviest woman EmanProof of that is the Rs 4000 phone bill I paid that month courtesy the numerous ISD calls The language barrier was the most challenging aspect as most people in Egypt I got in touch with only spoke Arabic At times I would be on my computer furiously typing my questions on Google Translate and then asking them out loud into the phone in my Bengali accent making my colleagues laugh their hearts out In the end it all paid off as finally after a few days I got mail mdash an email with Shaimaas number in it sent by one of the several reporters I had contacted And that was my day to shout my heart outAlso read Mumbai doctors enter record books Eman gets one step closer to dancing with Hrithik28 hours and standingOn December 13 I spoke to Shaimaa The next day midday published the interview her first in India Never did I think that the story would become so big and become such an important part of my careerAlso read Eman Ahmeds story comes undone Sister levels shocking allegations against Mumbai surgeonGradually Shaimaa started trusting me and I continued with my Arabic translations which I would send her to make it easier for her to understand me In the meantime it came out that Saifee Hospital at a cost of R2 crore had constructed a special OT for Eman without taking permission from the BMC We ran the story and the hospital had to pull it down after the BMC sent them a noticeAlso read Interview Dr Muffazal Lakdawala opens up about Eman Ahmeds surgery her familys allegationsBut even though Emans special room was no longer standing like crores of Mumbaikars and Indians I too was waiting for her to arrive And she did on February 11 That day along with several other reporters I ran behind her truck for a glimpse And that was also the day when I set a record of my own mdash working nonstop for almost 28 hours with no sleep I still remember Dr Lakdawala looking at me and addressing me in front of all other mediapersons saying Rupsa take a break and sleepAlso read Mumbai We did not want her to go this way say Eman Ahmeds nurses at Saifee HospitalBreaking news on flightOn March 9 I had an early morning flight home to Kolkata but just a few minutes past midnight I got to know that Eman had undergone her first bariatric surgery I had to file the story for the evening edition before boarding my flight at 630 am There I was typing away on my phone begging the airhostess to just give me a few minutes as she impatiently huffed and puffed around not to mention the dirty looks fellow passengers kept throwing at me It was a miracle I wasnt deplanedThe fact that my parents whenever they call first ask me about Eman and then how I am doing is testament to how obsessively I have stalked her and everything and everyone related to herOf jokes music and celebrationsWe broke several stories on Eman which were picked up by media outlets across the country Our senior photographer Pradeep Dhivar also managed to get the first exclusive photograph of Eman in her special room at Saifee Hospital It earned him a flying kiss from none other than Eman herselfLike crores of people across the world we reporters who had been covering the story prayed for her health We laughed with her whenever she felt strong enough to crack jokes celebrated when she jigged to Arabic music on her bed and punched the air in triumph when she lost those hundreds of kilosSo invested in this woman and her story we were it therefore saddened us when things turned ugly after Shaimaa made allegations against Saifee Hospital and decided to take Eman to Burjeel Hospital in Abu Dhabi for further treatmentI am not a medical specialist so I wont comment on the controversy The fact remains that shes gone but not without leaving us with tons of memories and her smiling face Heres wishing you the best Eman Do visit us again after you recover fully We will be waiting for you