CHANDIGARH: There can be few people who have braved the kind of tragedy Karambir Singh Kang has. In the recent Mumbai attacks, the Taj general manager went on to help others out of certain death even as his wife and children couldn't come away alive from their suite in the hotel. Here in his farmhouse at Kandala, Mohali, with the ashes of his wife and two children, Kang, still traumatized and looking frail, spoke to TOI on Wednesday and said, between sobs, where he got the strength to do what he did. It was, he said, his mother's words of courage that prodded him to fight back after watching his world blow into smithereens in front of his eyes. "I got a call from Karambir and his voice was shaking,'' his mother Kanwaljeet Kaur said, tears rolling down."He told me that terrorists have entered the hotel and his family is stuck on the 6th floor and that he can't save them. I just said, ���You are a brave boy, go save the others���.''

The equally brave mother, who doted on her grandchildren, added, "Our family is in great shock and there are no words that can express the pain we are going through. The incident has broken us and we just need blessings. We just want everyone to pray for our family. Nobody should ever face the phase we are going through.''

A grieving Kang said it will take a "long, long time'' for the bereaved family to come to terms with the personal tragedy. "I am here with the family, my mother and father, to overcome this grief,'' he said, his voice choking.

Crying at the very mention of his wife and children, Kang said he will muster the courage to go back to Mumbai and his job with the help of those around him now. "Their memory will remain with me all my life. But after what happened, I want some peace of mind,'' he said.

Asked what now, he simply replied, "Blaming someone won't help make up for the irreparable loss that the family has suffered. Much has already been said and written about terrorism and the (Mumbai) incident and now all that we want is everybody's support and prayers.''