‘Happy birthday, papa’: Virat Kohli’s daughter to wish him from India

Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma with their daughter Vamika. Virat Kohli turned 34 on November 5, 2022. (Image: Instagram/AnushkaSharma, file)

Vamika won’t get to sing ‘happy birthday to you’ to her papa in person today. Yes, it is Virat Kohli’s birthday but he is in Australia playing cricket far, far away from his only child. Viratians everywhere will cut a cake and feed a tiny slice to his image on the TV – and looks like his daughter may have to do the same this year!

Also read: One day Vamika will understand why I was screaming wildly: Anushka Sharma after Virat Kohli's feat

Vamika, a name which contains the initials of both her parents, Virat and actor Anushka Sharma, is presumably just learning to talk. If Virat was a professor or a doctor – anything but this cricket icon of India – he could have been with his daughter on his birthday like any other ordinary dad.

In this day and age dads are no longer the stereotypical absent parent. Especially if you are Vamika and have not one but two famous parents. And while the world watches her father do his thing on the field and appear in selfies with fans, little Vamika will have to be content with the fact that he will return to her as soon as he can. And even if it will be a belated wish when he returns, it will still be a special wish because the one-year-old will say it to his face.

Not that we know much about the tot. Vamika’s parents have been very protective of her from Day 1 around photographers, requesting them to spare her from their flash and click. Her privacy has been top priority for Virat, especially in the wake of that one photo that went viral, taken when both he and Anushka were unaware of any photographers around. It was during the third ODI against South Africa that the former Indian captain requested that his daughter be left alone by the paparazzi.

The recent pandemic, which had locked us up with our loved ones for months on end, did bring everyone closer to their kith and kin. Parents who had been suffering from the guilt of leaving their kids behind when they went to office now got used to prolonged proximity with kids courtesy work from home. This did habituate us to birthdays, anniversaries and all special occasions being spent at home with families, so that to be apart on super special occasions will feel strange. Vamika, who must have gotten used to seeing Virat around most of the time, may wonder why he is playing peekaboo on his birthday of all days.

Meanwhile, Virat, called GOAT, was wished a day earlier by Pakistani cricketer Shahnawaz Dahani. Turning 34 in a foreign country per se is considered an exotic event, and Virat will surely celebrate with candles on cakes and gifts galore. He will Facetime his family and be wished by all his loved ones, including one celebrity toddler. Between dads and daughters, though, this is okay – blood is thicker than birthdays after all.