Features

Call of the Mountain

by: BTM - Tue, 05 Aug 2025

Preetha Deepak, who conquered the Everest Base Camp at age 39, recently returned to Bahrain after emerging victorious from her newest conquest: Africa’s highest peak, Mount Kilimanjaro.

Kilimanjaro, though lower in height than Everest, poses its own set of challenges. Characterised by a terrain of steep ascents, alpine deserts and moorlands, the skill set required is markedly unique.

That’s why, it was only after a gruelling eight-month training course that Ms. Deepak was ready for the expedition in Tanzania. She braved through unforgiving cold, sleep deprivation, injured knees and the immense physical taxation that comes with relentless climbing in nine-and-a-half hour stints to reach the Uhuru Peak summit at 5895m.

She describes the climb as challenging and profoundly transformative. “It grounds you in reality,” she admits, “struggling so much makes you realise the value of the small things in life.”

Balancing training with being a mother to two children sounds taxing enough. Bearing the weight of the cultural narratives often tacked on to that role seems nothing short of exhausting.

“As an Indian woman, you are mostly just expected to work, serve the family and take care of the household,” she explains.

“So when you climb one of the highest seven summits of the world, thes moment hits differently. Nobody can take the exhilaration of that accomplishment away from you.”

Preetha Deepak Indian woman climber Bahrain
Ms. Deepak looks back on this experience with well-deserved pride and marks it as one of the most profound achievements of her life so far. “Not everybody can accomplish such an arduous feat,” she states. “So actually climbing Kilimanjaro has completely redefined me as a woman.”