Instead, he asked another question.
"What if they say no?"
Akshatha smiled.
"Then I'll improve."
"And I'll try again."
"If they reject me because I'm not ready..."
"I'll become ready."
"But I don't want to spend years wondering what would've happened if I had never tried."
Those words stayed with him.
He looked at his daughter with quiet admiration.
This wasn't arrogance.
She wasn't saying she deserved acceptance.
She was saying she wanted the opportunity to earn it.
Finally, Nagaraju spoke.
"Do you know what it means?"
She nodded.
"Leaving home for assignments."
"Constant travel."
"Competition."
"Rejection."
"Long working hours."
"No guarantees."
"I know."
"And you're prepared?"
"I am."
He smiled.
"You've answered every question before I even asked it."
She grinned.
"I know you too well, Appa."
He laughed.
"I suppose you do."
The room fell silent again.
Nagaraju thought for a long moment.
His first instinct as a father was to keep her close.
New York felt unimaginably far away.
A different country.
A different culture.
An industry he barely understood.
But another thought slowly replaced that instinct.
Only minutes earlier, he had told her to choose her own path.
If he truly believed those words...
This was the moment to prove it.
He walked back to the sofa and sat down.
"All right."
Akshatha looked at him expectantly.
"We'll find out exactly what's required."
"No rushing."
"No assumptions."
"We'll prepare properly."