
Deepa in her acceptance speech encouraged woman to celebrate life and believe in themselves. She said: "Winning this award is so pleasurable because 17 and half years ago when I got paralysis below the chest with a daughter who already had a head injury and her left upper body was paralysed. I was travelling with her for treatment and that time my husband was at Kargil war. This was the time when I was diagnosed with tumour and doctors predicted I will never walk again.