0:00:02 > 0:00:06This programme contains some strong language.
0:00:06 > 0:00:10Saira Khan, TV presenter and businesswoman,
0:00:10 > 0:00:14is best known for her stint on the first series of The Apprentice.
0:00:16 > 0:00:20But despite their success, Saira and husband Steve Hyde
0:00:20 > 0:00:25have been unable to complete their dream of having two children.
0:00:30 > 0:00:33They went through IVF to have their son Zach...
0:00:35 > 0:00:38..but to find him a sister, they've decided to adopt.
0:00:40 > 0:00:44They will be travelling 5,000 miles to adopt a baby girl
0:00:44 > 0:00:46from an orphanage in Pakistan.
0:00:49 > 0:00:55I know that baby girls are thrown into the skip in Pakistan because they're girls,
0:00:55 > 0:00:59because the women who have them are really poor, they can't look after them.
0:01:05 > 0:01:11For eight months, they opened up their lives to the rigorous adoption process in the UK.
0:01:11 > 0:01:15- We jump in at the deep end and I will be challenging, I'm afraid.- OK.
0:01:15 > 0:01:17They have finally been approved.
0:01:17 > 0:01:20- Yeah, it was unanimous.- Oh!
0:01:22 > 0:01:26But the toughest challenge lies ahead.
0:01:26 > 0:01:31Pakistan is one of the most dangerous countries in the world.
0:01:31 > 0:01:36Saira and Steve have had to make a hard decision.
0:01:36 > 0:01:38Zach is not entering the country.
0:01:40 > 0:01:43Saira will have to travel to Karachi alone.
0:01:43 > 0:01:46I feel like I'm just going out on my own and people are like,
0:01:46 > 0:01:49you know, bring the baby back and you'll be fine.
0:01:49 > 0:01:53- Yeah. I love you, sweetheart. - I love you.
0:01:53 > 0:01:58Saira has no idea when, or even if, she will bring a baby home.
0:02:14 > 0:02:18Karachi is home to 20 million people.
0:02:18 > 0:02:21Pakistan's famous port city,
0:02:21 > 0:02:26it also has a reputation for political violence and widespread poverty.
0:02:30 > 0:02:33Saira has no idea how long she may be here,
0:02:33 > 0:02:36trying to find a baby to adopt.
0:02:39 > 0:02:43It is a bit weird because I'm here on my own, without my family,
0:02:43 > 0:02:47waiting for a child to arrive. It's a bit weird, really.
0:02:47 > 0:02:51And because, you know, I can't just, you can't just go out
0:02:51 > 0:02:54and explore, because it's just not those times at the moment.
0:02:54 > 0:02:56I do think it's, uh...
0:02:59 > 0:03:02I feel like it's a bit volatile out there really, so I'm just,
0:03:02 > 0:03:05you know, just trying to get the job done
0:03:05 > 0:03:07and then, and then see what happens, really.
0:03:07 > 0:03:10I just want to... I just want to get the baby.
0:03:13 > 0:03:17There are so few babies put up for adoption in the UK
0:03:17 > 0:03:24that Steve and Saira hope they will stand a much better chance of getting an infant here in Pakistan.
0:03:31 > 0:03:35Babies are abandoned every week on the streets of Karachi.
0:03:35 > 0:03:41Sometimes, they're left in this cradle which stands just outside the Edhi Orphanage.
0:03:50 > 0:03:54Abandoned newborns, most of them girls,
0:03:54 > 0:03:59are usually found homes locally by Belquis Edhi who runs the orphanage.
0:04:05 > 0:04:11It is Belquis alone who will decide whether or not to give Saira a baby.
0:04:15 > 0:04:18Their first meeting is going to be crucial.
0:04:24 > 0:04:26Let's get you ready, young man.
0:04:26 > 0:04:315,000 miles away in Oxford, Steve is spending all the time he can with Zach.
0:04:31 > 0:04:34- Are we going for a wee before we go to bed?- I want to read a book.
0:04:34 > 0:04:37Oh, we'll have a book, all right, young man.
0:04:37 > 0:04:38Open there.
0:04:38 > 0:04:42After eight intense months of the UK adoption process,
0:04:42 > 0:04:47Steve can now only wait for news from Saira.
0:04:47 > 0:04:51'I feel quite anxious, I feel anxious for Saira,'
0:04:51 > 0:04:55um, and what she's got to face, really.
0:04:57 > 0:05:02But that's the main sort of feeling. It's quite, I feel quite helpless, really, at the moment.
0:05:02 > 0:05:06We don't even know if there's a child in the orphanage, at this point,
0:05:06 > 0:05:10so Saira might be waiting around for a few days, before a child
0:05:10 > 0:05:15is presented or is available.
0:05:15 > 0:05:18So, there's lots to, kind of, take in, really.
0:05:22 > 0:05:24Let's hope it's a good day.
0:05:31 > 0:05:38Getting things done in a city as volatile as Karachi is not going to be easy.
0:05:38 > 0:05:44So Saira's asked an old friend and colleague, Khalid Waseem, to help her find her way around.
0:05:49 > 0:05:53Today, they are going to see a couple Saira knows from Oxford.
0:05:53 > 0:05:57They've already adopted from Edhi and are here visiting family.
0:05:57 > 0:05:59Amjad! How are you?
0:05:59 > 0:06:01Nice to see you.
0:06:01 > 0:06:04- Is this Badhji's house or is this your family home?- It's a family home.
0:06:04 > 0:06:07Oh, it's your family home. I'll have to say hello.
0:06:07 > 0:06:10As-Salamu Alaykum, how are you? Are you all right?
0:06:10 > 0:06:13Look at you here in Pakistan, God, I can't believe I'm seeing...
0:06:13 > 0:06:19Amjad and his wife, Sobia, are staying with his sister Masroor.
0:06:20 > 0:06:25One of their adopted children, Sabreena,
0:06:25 > 0:06:27has the genetic blood disorder, thalassaemia.
0:06:29 > 0:06:33Sobia and Amjad had no idea anything was wrong
0:06:33 > 0:06:36when they picked her up from the Edhi orphanage, as a baby,
0:06:36 > 0:06:40but her illness has had an impact on the whole family.
0:06:41 > 0:06:46Saira doesn't want to risk being given a very sick child
0:06:46 > 0:06:49and the effect that would have on their life back in Oxford.
0:06:51 > 0:06:54Have you chosen a paediatrician? Are you in touch with one?
0:06:54 > 0:06:57No, I'm going to do that today and see who I can talk to.
0:06:57 > 0:07:00If they're happy for you to take someone, I think you should,
0:07:00 > 0:07:03because you can tell a lot from the head circumference.
0:07:03 > 0:07:08As long as somebody says, "I'm a paediatrician, I'm an expert, this baby seems fine."
0:07:08 > 0:07:12I think at least it gives me a bit of hope and then, anything else,
0:07:12 > 0:07:16- I can, you know, I can wait for that. But I feel very scared myself.- No.
0:07:16 > 0:07:20To be able to make a judgement when I'm so emotional, to say,
0:07:20 > 0:07:24- "I don't know what I'm supposed to be looking for."- You wouldn't know.
0:08:09 > 0:08:12- And the head circumference. - Head circumference.
0:08:21 > 0:08:28The family keep close contact with the Edhi Orphanage and Masroor knows Belquis Edhi well.
0:08:28 > 0:08:32- But do all the babies from the other cities get sent there?- Yeah.
0:08:32 > 0:08:34- They get sent there?- Yes.
0:08:34 > 0:08:36- The baby could come from anywhere? - Anywhere.
0:08:56 > 0:09:02- You're all ready there, so you just need to go and express your feelings here in a different way...- Yeah.
0:09:02 > 0:09:06..so she can understand you're desperate to have a baby.
0:09:06 > 0:09:08Yeah, desperate is the word.
0:09:08 > 0:09:14And show maybe, um, which I know you have, is a bit of vulnerability.
0:09:14 > 0:09:16Do you know what I mean?
0:09:20 > 0:09:26Saira wants to do everything possible to be sure the baby she takes from the orphanage is healthy.
0:09:27 > 0:09:33Um, I really would love, um, to speak to you about a contact at the Aga Khan Hospital.
0:09:33 > 0:09:36Yeah, sorry I was just put on hold. I just, um,
0:09:36 > 0:09:42was speaking to somebody and I asked about a paediatrician being available for me to speak to today.
0:09:42 > 0:09:46I might be getting a baby soon, so I just want to make sure that I've had a chat
0:09:46 > 0:09:49with a paediatrician at the Aga Khan Hospital.
0:09:51 > 0:09:55Good morning, can I please speak to Dr Rehan Ali?
0:09:59 > 0:10:01After two o'clock?
0:10:01 > 0:10:07Can I ask you would it be possible to make an appointment to see him today after two o'clock?
0:10:07 > 0:10:10- 'You can come in the waiting.' - I can come in to waiting?- 'Yeah.'
0:10:15 > 0:10:22Saira hopes one of the Aga Khan Hospital paediatricians will come with her if she is offered a baby.
0:10:28 > 0:10:32- Hello.- How are you doing?- Hello, I'm Saira, nice to meet you.
0:10:32 > 0:10:36- I was told you were here. Have a seat.- Thank you very much.
0:10:36 > 0:10:41Hello, Doctor Rehan, I'll be adopting, hopefully, inshallah, God willing, we say everything,
0:10:41 > 0:10:44- a baby girl from the Edhi Foundation. - Right.
0:10:44 > 0:10:48I think my questions at this stage are - number one,
0:10:48 > 0:10:53do paediatricians come to, on request, to the Edhi Foundation?
0:10:53 > 0:10:55Is that service available and would you be able to do it?
0:10:55 > 0:10:59As an employee of the Aga Khan University Hospital we...
0:10:59 > 0:11:04don't have a capacity to go and visit a child in the Edhi Centre.
0:11:04 > 0:11:08You can bring the child over here, I can have a look at the child
0:11:08 > 0:11:13and I can give him a thorough examination and we can go ahead and fulfil your requirements.
0:11:13 > 0:11:17OK, the, the... I understand that I can do that anyway.
0:11:17 > 0:11:19- Right.- My specific request is,
0:11:19 > 0:11:24I do not want to go to the Edhi Foundation when they phone me up to say you have a baby.
0:11:24 > 0:11:27- You were wondering is this the right baby or wrong baby?- I think...
0:11:27 > 0:11:32- That's what your query is right? OK. - I think all I need at that point of this is a baby, do you want it?
0:11:32 > 0:11:37I need an expert to say let me check this baby, let me look at the head circumference,
0:11:37 > 0:11:42if I've got equipment let me do the sight, let me do the hearing as... Let me check the hips.
0:11:42 > 0:11:46I cannot, you know, go outside the jurisdiction of my university
0:11:46 > 0:11:51and looking at a baby in their premises over there. Do you get my point?
0:11:51 > 0:11:56- I have a huge problem with that, because the whole point is... - I completely understand.
0:11:56 > 0:12:00- I just have a huge problem with that. - Yeah, yeah.- That makes me feel really uncomfortable.
0:12:00 > 0:12:04- I'm going to ask you personally, if you clocked off at seven o'clock here.- Yeah, yeah.
0:12:04 > 0:12:06You're now Doctor Rehan outside.
0:12:06 > 0:12:11- Once you are full-time at Aga Khan University that's the part of your contract.- 24 hours?
0:12:11 > 0:12:14- Yes, when you're talking...- So you can't do any private work outside?
0:12:14 > 0:12:18I cannot do any private work outside Aga Khan Hospital.
0:12:18 > 0:12:22- So let's just say I've got the baby, as soon as I get it I'm straight here?- Once the baby is here,
0:12:22 > 0:12:24- I'll take care of you now.- OK.- OK?
0:12:24 > 0:12:28- Thank you very much for your time.- No problem.- Really nice to meet you.
0:12:28 > 0:12:30- Nice to meet you. - Really nice to meet you.
0:12:30 > 0:12:32- Pleasure and have very good luck. - Thanks.
0:12:32 > 0:12:35- Thank you.- No problem, bye-bye.
0:12:35 > 0:12:38Bye-bye, thank you for your time.
0:12:38 > 0:12:43Saira will have to depend on her own judgement if she is offered a child by Bilquis Edhi.
0:12:46 > 0:12:54The Edhi Foundation has given up 30,000 children for adoption since it was started by Abdul Sattar Edhi.
0:12:58 > 0:13:02The charity began in a small room in Karachi and is now
0:13:02 > 0:13:06by far the largest welfare organisation in Pakistan.
0:13:09 > 0:13:13Most of the babies from Edhi are given to families in Pakistan,
0:13:13 > 0:13:16very few are adopted overseas.
0:13:20 > 0:13:25Coming from the UK, unsure of her Urdu and with a non-Muslim husband back home,
0:13:25 > 0:13:31Saira will have to make a good impression on Bilquis to get to the top of the waiting list.
0:13:31 > 0:13:34I'm feeling really nervous, um...
0:13:34 > 0:13:40I'm excited but because I'm going to meet her for the first time but I am really nervous.
0:13:40 > 0:13:44But I want to get it over and done with, really, I just want to go and see her now.
0:13:52 > 0:13:54- So here we are.- Well, you go in first, you go in first.
0:14:23 > 0:14:24What else do we need?
0:14:34 > 0:14:37Everything now rests on this meeting.
0:14:37 > 0:14:43The long adoption process and approval in the UK will mean little to Bilquis.
0:14:45 > 0:14:49Saira can only hope that having Masroor there makes a difference
0:14:49 > 0:14:53and that Bilquis remembers her application.
0:15:06 > 0:15:09Shall we sit down?
0:17:14 > 0:17:19Saira's done all she can to be foremost in Bilquis's mind.
0:17:28 > 0:17:33And only two days later, Khalid receives a phone call from the orphanage.
0:17:35 > 0:17:37- Saira.- Yes?
0:17:37 > 0:17:40- Do you know?- Do I know what?
0:17:40 > 0:17:43- Your doll has arrived. - No, it hasn't!
0:17:43 > 0:17:45Yeah, yes, yes, it has. The doll has arrived.
0:17:45 > 0:17:47- Look at this, who's on there? - Oh, my God!
0:17:47 > 0:17:50Today at 3.21.
0:17:50 > 0:17:52Oh, my God! What do we do then?
0:17:52 > 0:17:56- I haven't even got the bottles ready. - Rush!- I've got nothing ready.
0:17:56 > 0:17:58Rush, rush, I think, I think Bilquis is there as well.
0:17:58 > 0:18:01- I'm not... I'm...I'm just not... Oh, my God!- So do it quickly.
0:18:01 > 0:18:05I've got nothing! No, but I haven't even got a sterilised bottle.
0:18:05 > 0:18:10We'll sterilise it as quickly as possible. I'll use the hotel kitchen to sterilise it.
0:18:11 > 0:18:15- I can't believe this has happened. - Believe it, you are here for this.
0:18:15 > 0:18:18Oh, my God! I cannot believe this is happening.
0:18:22 > 0:18:24- Khalidbi, listen... - You are not getting it all.
0:18:24 > 0:18:26I know, I'm not joking, I just don't know what to do.
0:18:26 > 0:18:30I can't even remember what you're supposed to do with a newborn baby now.
0:18:30 > 0:18:33Um, bottle, bottle, I've got no milk, a bottle.
0:18:33 > 0:18:36- OK...sterilising?- I do want it to be boiled, Khalidbi,
0:18:36 > 0:18:39that will make me feel really better.
0:18:39 > 0:18:43Oh, my God! It's Steven. Quick Khalidbi. Steven?
0:18:43 > 0:18:49- Yeah?- Khalidbi has just come in and apparently there's a baby girl and they want us to come and see her,
0:18:49 > 0:18:54and sort of, oh, well, I guess they'll want us to take her away. I don't know!
0:18:54 > 0:18:56- Oh, my God! - I know! I know, oh, my God!
0:18:56 > 0:19:00I've got nothing, nothing ready and I'm just here with Khalidbi.
0:19:00 > 0:19:04- 'Let me, let me call you back properly, hold on...'- OK, OK.
0:19:04 > 0:19:07Are we wasting time doing this? No, we've got to be calm.
0:19:07 > 0:19:10Yeah, calm and composed.
0:19:10 > 0:19:13- OK, we just need the bottles done. - OK, I'll do it.
0:20:24 > 0:20:25SAIRA BREATHES DEEPLY
0:20:27 > 0:20:29Is your heart still beating?
0:20:29 > 0:20:30Oh, just...
0:20:30 > 0:20:31Oh, my gosh...
0:20:34 > 0:20:38I think I'll have to just take a bit of a... I'll just have to just...
0:20:38 > 0:20:40- Come on.- On no, hold on, I just feel really weird now.
0:20:40 > 0:20:45You've waited for this moment for so long to happen. I can imagine.
0:20:46 > 0:20:51- Oh, God!- Come on, Saira.- I know - I have to hold on for two minutes.
0:20:54 > 0:20:58It was just...not a small decision. You came a long way.
0:20:59 > 0:21:00SHE BREATHES DEEPLY
0:21:07 > 0:21:11- Shall we?- Yeah, come on.- Come on.
0:21:11 > 0:21:13Oh, God...
0:21:20 > 0:21:22Aha...
0:21:24 > 0:21:25Oh...
0:21:28 > 0:21:30Can't.
0:21:39 > 0:21:41Do we sit here?
0:21:51 > 0:21:54Come and sit.
0:21:55 > 0:21:57God...
0:22:18 > 0:22:20SISTER RESPONDS IN NATIVE LANGUAGE
0:22:22 > 0:22:23What did she say?
0:22:23 > 0:22:25They've got guests.
0:22:57 > 0:22:59Oh, my God! Is this the baby?
0:23:01 > 0:23:02- Look at...- Oh...
0:23:05 > 0:23:06(Bless her.)
0:23:06 > 0:23:08- Cute little baby.- She's just...
0:23:08 > 0:23:11And she is just a newborn.
0:23:17 > 0:23:19Is she just... Is it just a newborn?
0:23:19 > 0:23:24It just looks like a newborn - and look at the eyes. Big eyes.
0:23:26 > 0:23:28Bless her.
0:23:32 > 0:23:35- She's tiny, isn't she?- She is, yeah.
0:23:35 > 0:23:38What do you... I, I mean I don't... What...?
0:23:50 > 0:23:52Hello, little sweetheart.
0:23:53 > 0:23:56She's tiny.
0:23:56 > 0:24:00She looks... I mean, she literally looks like she's just a newborn baby.
0:24:00 > 0:24:03Just a newborn baby. Looks like a few hours old only.
0:24:03 > 0:24:05- She does.- Yeah.
0:24:05 > 0:24:06Hello, sweetheart.
0:24:06 > 0:24:10But she's very, very active, look at that.
0:24:10 > 0:24:13Hello, sweetie... Oh, bless you.
0:24:15 > 0:24:18Can you hold her, so I can unwrap her?
0:24:18 > 0:24:20I've never seen such a tiny baby.
0:24:22 > 0:24:25Oh, bless her.
0:24:25 > 0:24:26What's all that on her skin?
0:24:26 > 0:24:28- Yeah...- What's all that?
0:24:28 > 0:24:31I don't... Maybe her skin peeling off.
0:24:32 > 0:24:37- A little bit...- I don't know what it means. She looks very, very small.
0:24:50 > 0:24:52She's got a little... They put ink on her...
0:24:52 > 0:24:55- Vaccination.- OK.
0:24:55 > 0:24:57BABY CRIES Aww...
0:24:57 > 0:24:58There she goes.
0:24:58 > 0:25:01Can you ask her some questions, cos I... I've lost my Urdu now.
0:25:01 > 0:25:04Can you ask her why her skin's like that?
0:25:26 > 0:25:29Her eyes...
0:25:35 > 0:25:36What does that mean?
0:25:36 > 0:25:39A little weak, but she's a full mature baby.
0:25:39 > 0:25:43Yeah, but she's very small, yeah. I expect that...
0:26:10 > 0:26:14- She looks very, very small, but I mean, I expect that.- Yeah.
0:26:31 > 0:26:34She's absolutely tiny.
0:26:34 > 0:26:38- So she was four pounds?- Five pounds. - She's five pounds.
0:26:38 > 0:26:42- Yeah, that's...- Let's go to the ho... - Yeah, shall we go?- Yeah.
0:26:57 > 0:27:02I'd like to put her into some different clothes, if that's all right.
0:27:02 > 0:27:04- If you want, yeah.- I would like to.
0:27:13 > 0:27:18Come on, little sweetie, you've got to take these off, come on. That's it.
0:27:18 > 0:27:22Right...
0:27:22 > 0:27:25These bits are raised, is she all right here?
0:27:25 > 0:27:28- That's on this side only.- But that looks quite high, don't you think?
0:27:28 > 0:27:31- Yeah...- Don't you think?- Yeah.
0:27:31 > 0:27:35See this is what frightens me a little bit, because is that normal, or...?
0:27:46 > 0:27:49Oh, I don't want to bring her back though, if there's anything wrong.
0:27:49 > 0:27:54I've just got to take her straight to the Aga Khan now - I mean, there's not a lot I can do, but...
0:27:54 > 0:27:56BABY CRIES
0:27:56 > 0:27:59OK, little one... OK.
0:27:59 > 0:28:00Just wrap you up...
0:28:19 > 0:28:21OK...
0:28:24 > 0:28:25OK. Come on, then...
0:28:43 > 0:28:45HE INTONES IN NATIVE LANGUAGE
0:29:06 > 0:29:08SHE SPEAKS IN NATIVE LANGUAGE
0:29:09 > 0:29:12Come on, little one...
0:29:24 > 0:29:26SHE SPEAKS IN NATIVE LANGUAGE
0:30:50 > 0:30:51Hello, Steve.
0:30:53 > 0:30:56Yeah, great news. We are moving, things are moving.
0:30:56 > 0:30:58We are going to the hospital with the baby.
0:30:58 > 0:31:02BABY CRIES
0:31:03 > 0:31:05Speak to your... Speak to Steve.
0:31:14 > 0:31:15Can you hear her, Steve?
0:31:15 > 0:31:19'I can hear you absolutely clear, crystal clear.'
0:31:19 > 0:31:20Are you all right?
0:31:20 > 0:31:24'Yeah, I can hear the little baby crying. I can't believe it.'
0:31:24 > 0:31:27Oh, Steven it's unbelie... I still... It is so surreal.
0:31:27 > 0:31:31She's a very, very pretty little girl and, um, I'm just taking her
0:31:31 > 0:31:35to the hospital now. She's about five pounds.
0:31:35 > 0:31:36'Yeah?'
0:31:36 > 0:31:40So you know, um, basically, half the size Zach was,
0:31:40 > 0:31:46um, but she's very pretty, very alert, she's been crying, you know, sort of, using her lungs.
0:31:46 > 0:31:50Hold on... And, um, um, um...
0:31:50 > 0:31:55But she's a very, very sweet little girl.
0:31:55 > 0:32:01She is tiny, she's very, very thin, um, but she's about five pounds.
0:32:01 > 0:32:03- I think, but, um...- OK.
0:32:03 > 0:32:06..but listen, listen, Steven, we've got to think of a name.
0:32:06 > 0:32:09OK, now what, what do you, what, what do you, what's..?
0:32:09 > 0:32:12Well, I tell you, I just took one... I took one look at her
0:32:12 > 0:32:16and I just thought she, she's definitely an Amara.
0:32:20 > 0:32:21Amara?
0:32:21 > 0:32:24Amara. I think we've got a little baby Amara.
0:32:27 > 0:32:29- OK.- OK, darling.
0:32:29 > 0:32:32Well, listen, I love you very much and, uh, tell Zach,
0:32:32 > 0:32:37just gently tell Zach, that he's got a little baby sister called Amara.
0:33:06 > 0:33:08Surname, last.
0:33:08 > 0:33:11Kid's name, Hyde. H-Y-D-E.
0:33:11 > 0:33:12H-Y...
0:33:12 > 0:33:16- D-E.- OK, it's the surname.- Surname.
0:33:16 > 0:33:17- OK, first name, please?- Amara.
0:33:17 > 0:33:18Can you just spell?
0:33:18 > 0:33:23- A-M-A-R-A.- OK.
0:33:25 > 0:33:27Date of birth, please. Date of birth.
0:33:27 > 0:33:297th of March. Yesterday.
0:33:29 > 0:33:307th of March.
0:33:32 > 0:33:35Yeah, that's nice that we know her birthday.
0:33:35 > 0:33:39- Yeah, because she was absolutely sure that it was yesterday.- Yesterday.
0:33:39 > 0:33:41- Gender? Male? Gender?- Um, a female.
0:33:41 > 0:33:43- Female.- OK.
0:33:54 > 0:33:56BABY CRIES
0:34:08 > 0:34:11- Hi, Saira.- Hello, Doctor. - How are you?- As-Salamu Alaykum.
0:34:11 > 0:34:13- I'm fine but I'm a little bit startled.- All right.
0:34:13 > 0:34:17- I forgot what it is like to have a new-born baby.- A little girl, is it?
0:34:17 > 0:34:20- A little girl, yes.- All right. - Her name's Amara.
0:34:20 > 0:34:21Congrats. That's all right.
0:34:21 > 0:34:23Thank you. I'll do it.
0:34:23 > 0:34:25I'll do it, that's all right.
0:34:28 > 0:34:31Can I just try and give her some bottle, Saira, is that OK?
0:34:31 > 0:34:35- Can I just try and give her some bottle?- Yes.
0:34:38 > 0:34:41I think it's the other way around, her teat.
0:34:41 > 0:34:43Oh, I don't know. I have no idea.
0:34:43 > 0:34:45Don't worry about it, I've been doing that.
0:34:45 > 0:34:47Yes.
0:34:49 > 0:34:50OK, let's see.
0:34:54 > 0:34:56- OK, so she is hungry, isn't she? - Mmm-hmm.
0:34:56 > 0:34:58You're doing a lot better than I did.
0:34:58 > 0:35:04You see, I'm using this finger. I'm just trying to press here, you know.
0:35:04 > 0:35:07So they said she's a day old, is she?
0:35:07 > 0:35:10- Yes, that's what they said.- Right. - Do you think that's right?
0:35:10 > 0:35:11We'll have a look at her.
0:35:20 > 0:35:24- OK, she's definitely not a day-old child, OK?- OK.
0:35:24 > 0:35:28- Yeah, cos her umbilical stem is quite dry.- Right.
0:35:28 > 0:35:33- So she should be around, at least, three or four days old.- OK.
0:35:33 > 0:35:35- So, it's quite dry.- OK.
0:35:35 > 0:35:42- You only get a very, um, kind of, fresh umbilical stem in the first 48 hours.- OK.
0:35:42 > 0:35:46This, unlike some, looks, you know, it's quite old, so it's about...
0:35:46 > 0:35:49- OK. Three or four days?- At least. - At least.
0:35:49 > 0:35:54I think, definitely, looking at her skin, the skin is quite dry, as well, can you see that?
0:35:54 > 0:35:57- Yes. - So that again shows that, you know,
0:35:57 > 0:36:00um, that she is a bit older than
0:36:00 > 0:36:02- what they have told you, yeah? - Mmm-hmm.
0:36:02 > 0:36:06BABY CRIES
0:36:11 > 0:36:12OK.
0:36:23 > 0:36:24I know.
0:36:24 > 0:36:26I know, I know.
0:36:33 > 0:36:34(Amazing.)
0:36:34 > 0:36:38- So, that's yours? - And will you... I was a bit concerned that her chest was quite raised.
0:36:38 > 0:36:45- Yeah.- Is that normal? - Well, in, you know, like, here it is normal but I completely agree
0:36:45 > 0:36:47- with you that it looks, uh, slightly raised.- Yes.
0:36:47 > 0:36:50But the heart sounds just fine, ear entry is fine, you know.
0:36:50 > 0:36:52That could be a normal variant, as well.
0:36:52 > 0:36:56- Right.- OK?- OK. - So don't worry about it.- OK. - OK, that's absolutely normal.- OK.
0:36:56 > 0:37:00- I would do some initial blood results on her.- OK.
0:37:00 > 0:37:04I mean, checking her blood count, infection screen and all that.
0:37:04 > 0:37:06- Yeah.- OK?
0:37:06 > 0:37:07And do you want to wrap her up?
0:37:14 > 0:37:17- Staying? - Absolutely. She has to stay.
0:37:17 > 0:37:21The first thing that comes in my mind is why the baby is not feeding, you know?
0:37:21 > 0:37:25So I would think of, you know, is that baby infected or something.
0:37:25 > 0:37:29So, you know, that's why we are taking her to the emergency room.
0:37:30 > 0:37:32OK, so I will tell her. All right?
0:37:35 > 0:37:39Dr Rehan has no idea of Amara's medical history
0:37:39 > 0:37:43or of what happened to her before she was abandoned at Edhi.
0:37:49 > 0:37:51So, what's happened? You have to..?
0:37:57 > 0:38:00Amara's so weak the doctors suspect she may not
0:38:00 > 0:38:04have been fed at all in those missing first few days of her life.
0:38:25 > 0:38:27- It's low.- What does that mean?
0:38:27 > 0:38:31Low means low, it's not even giving the reading in the glucometer.
0:38:31 > 0:38:34- Oh, so her sugar level... - Sugar level is low.
0:38:34 > 0:38:37- Low, so we need to put them up.- Yeah.
0:39:04 > 0:39:07Not knowing what lies ahead for Amara,
0:39:07 > 0:39:09Saira must now face her worst fear.
0:39:13 > 0:39:18- No, there is no way I can give that baby back.- Never?
0:39:18 > 0:39:26No way. How can you give her back? You can never, in a million years.
0:39:30 > 0:39:34If there's something wrong, there's something wrong, I have to deal with it.
0:39:34 > 0:39:37I'd never give her back now.
0:39:41 > 0:39:42That's your decision.
0:39:42 > 0:39:48All right, I've made my decision, I'll just deal with whatever she's got. I'll deal with it.
0:39:56 > 0:39:58Steve, it's me.
0:40:02 > 0:40:06OK, well listen. First of all, I'm really sorry I haven't called you,
0:40:06 > 0:40:10because, I mean, I don't even know what time of night it is,
0:40:10 > 0:40:11it must be about two o'clock.
0:40:11 > 0:40:15Long story short, I've been in the hospital all this time.
0:40:15 > 0:40:21They've taken lots of bloods from her. They're going to now put her into an intensive care unit.
0:40:21 > 0:40:24And so that's... I'm just waiting to admit her.
0:40:24 > 0:40:28When she's admitted, I can't go anywhere near her, basically.
0:40:28 > 0:40:32They've got tubes coming through her nose and she's got a drip on her arm.
0:40:32 > 0:40:35I don't want to send you a picture.
0:40:35 > 0:40:40I've taken pictures, but I don't want to send them to you, Steven, until I know she's healthy and I've got
0:40:40 > 0:40:44a blood count and I can tell you more stuff. But, you know, just pray that she's OK.
0:40:57 > 0:40:59Twelve hours after they left the orphanage
0:40:59 > 0:41:03Amara is admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit,
0:41:03 > 0:41:07where Saira will have to leave her for the night.
0:41:12 > 0:41:14First thing next morning,
0:41:14 > 0:41:19Saira is back at the Aga Khan to see how her daughter is getting on.
0:41:34 > 0:41:37BEEPING
0:41:37 > 0:41:41Hello, I've come to see baby Amara. Thank you.
0:41:54 > 0:41:57I spoke to a doctor and the doctor said
0:41:57 > 0:41:59that she's been doing really well.
0:41:59 > 0:42:02Um, her glucose levels are up now.
0:42:02 > 0:42:08Um, they're going to do a head scan on her
0:42:08 > 0:42:12and they're still waiting for the cultures report, just to make
0:42:12 > 0:42:17sure that she isn't, um, suffering from any kind of, um, infection.
0:42:17 > 0:42:20So they're the two things that I'm waiting for, really.
0:42:20 > 0:42:22They've also done some other blood tests
0:42:22 > 0:42:25and they've come back and she is negative for
0:42:25 > 0:42:30hepatitis B, hepatitis C and HIV, which is amazing.
0:42:30 > 0:42:37The only real concern I've got is the thalassemia count, because they're saying that the process
0:42:37 > 0:42:41that they go through here, it'll be inconclusive, because she's not old enough.
0:42:41 > 0:42:44But I think I've still got to do it, so that I can send the results
0:42:44 > 0:42:47back to the UK and then they can give me a better analysis.
0:42:47 > 0:42:53But I'm just really, really happy that, you know, these major tests have come back and she's negative.
0:42:57 > 0:43:03In Oxford, Saira's mum, Hanifa, is struggling with the enormity of what her daughter's going through.
0:43:39 > 0:43:42DOOR OPENS AND SHUTS
0:43:49 > 0:43:51'The last I heard from her was last night,'
0:43:51 > 0:43:56about four o'clock Karachi time, about 11 o'clock here.
0:43:56 > 0:44:03She, um, she rang through, she's still at the hospital, the baby was in intensive care,
0:44:03 > 0:44:08kind of, as a precaution, I think, at that point, because obviously the baby was quite weak.
0:44:08 > 0:44:09COMPUTER BEEPS
0:44:09 > 0:44:10Oh, she's calling me now.
0:44:14 > 0:44:16Saira, can you see me?
0:44:16 > 0:44:18No, I can't. I can hear you. Oh, I can see you!
0:44:18 > 0:44:22Come on, tell me, tell me everything, quickly.
0:44:22 > 0:44:25Oh, but can I see Zach, Steve, cos I'm really missing him.
0:44:25 > 0:44:30- OK, he's just upstairs, with Bayer, so just let me get him.- All right.
0:44:32 > 0:44:35No, no, no, listen, listen!
0:44:35 > 0:44:36Mummy.
0:44:36 > 0:44:39Yeah, hold on two minutes... Hi, Zach!
0:44:39 > 0:44:42Sit down, sit down.
0:44:42 > 0:44:45Zachy, how are you, my darling?!
0:44:45 > 0:44:47ZACH CHUCKLES
0:44:47 > 0:44:50Hello, Zachy. Zachy, boo-boos.
0:44:50 > 0:44:51Boo-boos.
0:44:51 > 0:44:54I love you, baby.
0:44:54 > 0:44:57Can you show me the hotel?
0:44:59 > 0:45:00No, I can't show you the hotel.
0:45:00 > 0:45:04- Zachy, can I tell you something? Can I tell you a secret?- Yes.
0:45:04 > 0:45:08I found baby Amara yesterday.
0:45:08 > 0:45:16I found baby Amara and she said, "Say hello to Zach and I can't wait to see Zach".
0:45:16 > 0:45:19Who's going to get my Blueberry?
0:45:19 > 0:45:22MUM: He said "my Blueberry"!
0:45:22 > 0:45:26Do you want to see the photograph while Zach comes? Have a look at the photo.
0:45:27 > 0:45:29Oh, there's a picture here.
0:45:29 > 0:45:33Ah, she's sweet, Saira.
0:45:33 > 0:45:39And what a lovely little lip she's got, little... She's gorgeous.
0:45:40 > 0:45:41MUM: Eyes is beautiful.
0:45:41 > 0:45:45- She's absolutely. - Who's this Zachy?- Steven show him.
0:45:45 > 0:45:47He's here.
0:45:49 > 0:45:55- Saira.- I want to hold you.- Ah.
0:45:55 > 0:45:59- He said, "Mum hold me."- No, he said, "I want to hold you."
0:45:59 > 0:46:03- I love you, sweetheart. - Mum, come out of the computer.
0:46:03 > 0:46:09I will come out of the computer, my darling, but I have to stay here for a little bit,
0:46:09 > 0:46:14because, you know, Blueberry, she's not very well, Zachy, she's in the hospital,
0:46:14 > 0:46:18so I'm just here and I'm making her better for when you come and see her.
0:46:18 > 0:46:20- Daddy.- Mm-hm.
0:46:20 > 0:46:22Can I get..? Bye, Mummy.
0:46:24 > 0:46:25Bye, darling, I love you.
0:46:25 > 0:46:27I'm going to get my baby.
0:46:28 > 0:46:30You're going to get..? OK.
0:46:30 > 0:46:33- Listen, Saira, um... - Is he all right, sweetheart?
0:46:33 > 0:46:37Yeah, he's OK, he's obviously confused about things, but he's coping OK, Saira.
0:46:37 > 0:46:39Yeah, I know, but I, honestly, Steven,
0:46:39 > 0:46:46you know, like yesterday for the first time in these last ten or 11 months,
0:46:46 > 0:46:52I thought, "Am I doing the right thing?", for a second, I thought, "Am I doing the right thing?"
0:46:52 > 0:46:54I was hyperventilating,
0:46:54 > 0:46:58- cos I was just thinking, I'm going to take somebody else's baby.- Mmm.
0:46:58 > 0:47:03But let me tell you, as soon as I had her in my arms, Steven,
0:47:03 > 0:47:07as soon as I had her in my arms, I just thought,
0:47:08 > 0:47:10"Listen, love, you are mine."
0:47:10 > 0:47:15And my mum will love her, cos I can see mum being really upset.
0:47:15 > 0:47:21But she's absolutely the most beautiful thing I've ever seen.
0:47:21 > 0:47:26- And then you've got a little baby girl called Amara Hyde, Steven. - I know, I know. It's amazing.
0:47:26 > 0:47:29When you first rang up from there, from the car, and I could hear
0:47:29 > 0:47:36the little baby crying, that was just a really, you know, like, amazing moment. It really just
0:47:36 > 0:47:41all came together then. And I just, I just hope to get out there as quickly as possible now.
0:47:41 > 0:47:45- Ah, mate, - Yeah, well it's brilliant.- I can't - Yeah, well, it's brilliant.
0:47:45 > 0:47:49I miss you lots and I'm going to go and celebrate today.
0:47:49 > 0:47:51OK, have a lassie.
0:47:51 > 0:47:54SAIRA LAUGHS
0:48:03 > 0:48:05Really just incredible to see
0:48:05 > 0:48:10this little baby that's going to be spending the rest of her life
0:48:10 > 0:48:12with us, as a family.
0:48:12 > 0:48:16You know, we're gonna take responsibility for giving her a really good life.
0:48:27 > 0:48:31Bringing Amara home could take up to three months.
0:48:31 > 0:48:37Saira has to deal with a mountain of paperwork, to get their daughter back to England.
0:48:37 > 0:48:41So while Amara's still in intensive care,
0:48:41 > 0:48:45Steve plans a trip to Karachi and she gets the legal process underway.
0:48:50 > 0:48:57As she collects the papers Amara needs for a British Settlement Visa, violence shuts Karachi down.
0:48:57 > 0:49:00..that you asked for. So, this is a copy of my...
0:49:00 > 0:49:03HORN BEEPS
0:49:03 > 0:49:08This is a copy of my identity card, yeah. Let me just go through...
0:49:08 > 0:49:13After shootings in the city, the lawyer's offices are closed suddenly.
0:49:13 > 0:49:17Negotiating the bureaucracy is ever more difficult.
0:49:17 > 0:49:22..then phone you and tell him exactly which document it is, OK? Yeah.
0:49:24 > 0:49:27It could be months before they get the British Visa.
0:49:34 > 0:49:39After six days in intensive care, the doctors are finally happy
0:49:39 > 0:49:42for Saira to take Amara back to the hotel.
0:49:51 > 0:49:54No, you need to do it very gently, because it's very...
0:49:57 > 0:49:59Ooh. Oh, sweetheart.
0:50:30 > 0:50:33Now I've had her now for about two weeks,
0:50:33 > 0:50:35I can't imagine my life without her now.
0:50:37 > 0:50:39I've been able to focus on her,
0:50:39 > 0:50:41because I've had all this time on my own.
0:50:42 > 0:50:49I'm understanding that she gets a bit of wind after she's been bottle fed and the position she likes.
0:50:49 > 0:50:53And she likes to fall asleep on my chest, then I can put her down.
0:50:53 > 0:50:57And she wants to really snuggle upright right underneath my chin.
0:50:57 > 0:51:02She likes to really snuggle in, and gets a comfortable position, then goes to sleep.
0:51:10 > 0:51:16I remember at one point just staring at her and just,
0:51:16 > 0:51:21I just remember just thinking, "How could anybody have let you go?"
0:51:27 > 0:51:34I actually thought about, perhaps, the mum who left her in the cradle, you know, you do think about that,
0:51:34 > 0:51:39but at the same time thinking, "Well I'm really glad that I'm going to look after you."
0:51:40 > 0:51:46Her vulnerability made me feel really...
0:51:46 > 0:51:50Her vulnerability just made me want to look after her.
0:51:50 > 0:51:54I mean, that was the first time I've ever come across,
0:51:54 > 0:52:01you know, physically seeing for myself, and experiencing, somebody abandoning a baby.
0:52:03 > 0:52:07You know, that is... You talk about it, I've been talking about it for the last year.
0:52:07 > 0:52:12I know that I'm going to get a baby that's abandoned, but when you're in that situation, it is...
0:52:13 > 0:52:17It's really...surreal.
0:52:26 > 0:52:33When I went into that orphanage to pick her up, I stopped, I couldn't go in,
0:52:33 > 0:52:38because, at that moment, I thought, "I'm about to take somebody's baby." That was really, really hard.
0:52:38 > 0:52:40I didn't know if I could do it.
0:52:42 > 0:52:45I didn't know if I could take somebody's baby.
0:52:49 > 0:52:53But within a few hours, I just... I knew she was mine.
0:52:56 > 0:53:01Belquis has officially confirmed that Amara was abandoned
0:53:01 > 0:53:04and that she is now Saira's responsibility.
0:53:06 > 0:53:10Belquis gave us the abandonment certificate, um, and a lot
0:53:10 > 0:53:15of the form is about father's details, mother's details - all that kind of thing.
0:53:15 > 0:53:18It's all "unknown", "unknown", "unknown", "unknown",
0:53:18 > 0:53:23apart from the top bit, where it says place of birth and it says "Karachi".
0:53:23 > 0:53:25So that, for me,
0:53:25 > 0:53:28that's important, that's important.
0:53:29 > 0:53:31Karachi is where she was born.
0:53:41 > 0:53:46I'm sure I can provide Amara with the best life and the best possibilities and the best future.
0:53:46 > 0:53:54But if you really, really ask me, I really wish Amara was with her mum.
0:53:54 > 0:53:58But her mum did have to make a choice.
0:53:59 > 0:54:04And I try not to think about it too much, but it does come into my mind.
0:54:07 > 0:54:11I think, Amara, growing up, when they talk about adopted children
0:54:11 > 0:54:16wanting to know their identity, she is going to ask those questions, because I, as somebody who has
0:54:16 > 0:54:21picked her up, am asking these questions, she's going to ask them. And rightly so. And rightly so.
0:54:26 > 0:54:31And I'd love to come back with her one day and, you know,
0:54:31 > 0:54:36come to Karachi with her and show her place. You know, this is where she's born.
0:54:37 > 0:54:38But she won't...
0:54:40 > 0:54:42She will never be able to find her real parents.
0:54:55 > 0:54:58I don't know how to articulate this, but being here in Pakistan,
0:54:58 > 0:55:02I really struggle with my conscience sometimes,
0:55:02 > 0:55:07because living in the west, I feel so privileged that, you know, if you're poor,
0:55:07 > 0:55:13there's somebody to help you - there's social security, there's welfare.
0:55:13 > 0:55:15You know, if your husband's beating you up or something,
0:55:15 > 0:55:17there's somewhere to turn to.
0:55:21 > 0:55:24I don't think anybody who doesn't come from a third world country
0:55:24 > 0:55:30or a developing country can ever understand the moral dilemmas that people face here.
0:55:32 > 0:55:39And it's really hard, being totally westernised, trying to come here
0:55:39 > 0:55:40and understand it all.
0:55:59 > 0:56:06Hello, baby! Hello, baby boy. Hello, my baby!
0:56:06 > 0:56:09Can I have a hug? Oh, love you.
0:56:09 > 0:56:13Look at you, Zachary. Hello, gorgeous!
0:56:13 > 0:56:16I love you, sweetheart.
0:56:16 > 0:56:21Oh, look, Zachy, there's Blueberry in there.
0:56:23 > 0:56:25She's been sleeping all this time.
0:56:25 > 0:56:28Look at little Blueberry, Zachy.
0:56:28 > 0:56:32'I just kind of wanted to, to savour that moment to myself.
0:56:34 > 0:56:37'I wanted to just look at her.'
0:56:41 > 0:56:48I wanted, really, to shut all the other noise out - the noise
0:56:48 > 0:56:52and the distraction - and I just wanted to just look at her.
0:56:55 > 0:57:00'And you know, in a way if I could have said it to her, I would have just wanted to reassure her,
0:57:00 > 0:57:04"Look, I'm going to look after you, I'm going be your father
0:57:04 > 0:57:08"and I'm gonna give you the best life that I possibly can do."
0:57:10 > 0:57:15Oh, my boy, listen. Shall we go out and see Karachi?
0:57:20 > 0:57:23This is our little family.
0:57:25 > 0:57:28'It also felt that it was, um...'
0:57:28 > 0:57:35it felt like the end of a very long journey, not just the journey to adoption,
0:57:35 > 0:57:41but the whole journey of getting married, finding the family house,
0:57:41 > 0:57:44having Zach and everything coming together.
0:57:44 > 0:57:50So it felt, it felt like, you know, it was ultimately her destiny to be with us and, uh,
0:57:50 > 0:57:56and so she is going to, she is going to experience a very, very, very different life.
0:57:59 > 0:58:02Steve and Zach stayed in Karachi for four weeks.
0:58:02 > 0:58:08It took Saira another two months to get the British Visa
0:58:08 > 0:58:11and bring Amara back to Oxford to meet the rest of her family.
0:58:16 > 0:58:22- Zach, what are you doing? - You can see. Can you see?
0:58:22 > 0:58:24- I can see you.- There you go.
0:58:27 > 0:58:29- Aw, look at that. - Zach, come here, darling.
0:58:29 > 0:58:34- Catch me!- What did you say? Did you say to Mummy,
0:58:34 > 0:58:36"Come out the computer?"
0:58:36 > 0:58:40- Yeah.- Did you see Mummy on the computer all the time, did you?
0:58:47 > 0:58:50In six months' time, Saira and Steve will be able
0:58:50 > 0:58:54to apply to the courts to legally adopt Amara here in the UK.
0:58:56 > 0:59:00Only then will she finally, officially, be their daughter.
0:59:18 > 0:59:21Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:59:21 > 0:59:24E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk.