a vast panoramic
view stretches before my eyes
the majestic grandeur of the snow peaked ranges of kanchenjunga
each time i look at this vast expanse
i stare into a horizon of sheer beauty in front of me
i have visions of the great life ahead
the dreams i can fulfil…i am filled with a dreamlike mystical wonder
my eyes are open…i am a dreamer…just waiting to come into this world
i have drawn all my lifes inspirations from these
mountain ranges
the rising sun creating golden skies
the setting sun displaying red and purple shadows onto the mountain
peaks the himalayas are to be my childhood for the next ten years
what a paradise for my education
away from home in st pauls school darjeeling
my father a famous industrialist from a hugely
successful business family my mother a movie star having just released
her first bollywood movie which launched her into stardom and instant
fame all over india oh what a glory…what a birth…i have such good
fortune to have the prefect childhood…the perfect life
i am truly a blessed child
as a child i intensely disliked my father and his
arrogance
the false authority he wielded…his only interest was in money and power
and control over others…these qualities always made me revolt against
him and reject his advances towards me
i disliked his insistence that i become like him
to make friends with other children in school only after he had examined
their parents status in society…i found him to be extremely vulgar in
these matters and always wanted to distance myself from him
i loved my mother and was attracted to her fragile and
innocent qualities
she was beautiful and humble and always considerate towards others and
to human sensitivities…even being a superstar did not distract her from
her daily simple routines of going to the kitchen and preparing meals
for us or
for guests…always insisting on serving us herself…she was radiant and
full
of compassion towards all those who met her and never ever considered
money to have any special or real value in her relationships with people
i loved and admired these simple qualities she lived by…and she became
my idol and what i would wish to emulate once i grew up
my father only wanted me to become the greatest
industrialist and
although my mother secretly wanted me to become a movie star like her
she only wished me happiness and always told me to live my own dream
always whispering to me never become a businessman like my father
my parents gave me the name rajnish
raj means king and nish means night
which means king of the night
or lord of the full moon
my father was shivraj and my mother vimlesh also known as vimi
my father took letters from both their names to make my name
i was born 20 january 1961 at 3.05 am
i have a sister shona who was born 19 january 1963 at 4.30 pm
my parents were planning that we both have the same birthday
the doctors got it wrong…had my sister been born just 8 hours later then
we both would have the same birth date
this created a huge problem for both of us always fighting on which date
we would celebrate our birthdays…and as so many relatives could not
come two days in a row…two cakes…they decided that we both celebrate
our birthdays together with one large cake cut from opposite sides
on 19 january of each year
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