“Strolling down the street with a noticeable baby bump, I became the subject of everyone’s gaze. They were astonished: an elderly woman with a growing belly. Daljinder Kaur was filled with happiness when she finally became pregnant in her 70s.

Their stares were painful, but nothing could dampen the joy I felt at the prospect of pregnancy.

And, at the age of 72, I had waited long enough. Daljinder Kaur and her husband, Mohinder Singh Gill, seen here in the 1970s, were eager to start a family, but she suffered three miscarriages. Credit: Cover Asia Press Following our marriage, I experienced three miscarriages and was completely devastated.

Neighbors mocked us because we couldn’t conceive, and even our own relatives suggested that I was ‘cursed’ and that my husband should marry again.

Fortunately, he was understanding and supportive, affirming his love for me regardless. When Daljinder learned about IVF in 2012, she and Mohinder knew they had to give it a try.

But the absence of motherhood left me with a profound sense of loneliness.

Watching the children of friends grow up into adults tore me apart inside.

Some days, I managed to cope, but on others, the pain was so overwhelming that I couldn’t even leave the house.

Despite my feelings, Mohinder and I made the decision to stop trying for a baby. The doctor was uncertain, and Daljinder faced judgment from friends and relatives, but her desire to be a mother overcame all obstacles. Credit: Cover Asia Press Three miscarriages were heartbreaking enough.

India, particularly in the 1970s and 1980s, lacked resources or guidance, and I resigned myself to the belief that I would never become a mother.

Then, one day in 2012, I saw a commercial on TV for the National Fertility & Test Tube Baby Centre in Haryana, northern India – a facility that performed IVF.

I had never heard of IVF before, but I eagerly informed Mohinder that we had to give it a try, and he agreed. The couple spent all their savings on IVF treatment, costing £2,000 per cycle.

The doctor I consulted was hesitant due to my age and warned me that pregnancy would endanger my life, but I pleaded with him.

After conducting tests, he reluctantly agreed when the results came back positive.

However, I had no viable eggs, so we opted for donor eggs and sperm.

At just over £2,000 per IVF cycle, it was not cheap. Despite her age, the pregnancy progressed smoothly, and Arman Singh was born via planned Caesarean section on April 19, weighing 4lb 4oz.

Mohinder is a farmer who owns land, so we are financially secure, but the treatment depleted all our savings.

The first two attempts, in 2013 and 2014, were unsuccessful.

Then, in July 2015, twenty years after menopause, the doctor informed me that I was pregnant.

Mohinder and I cried tears of joy.”