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“I always say don’t take your home to work, and don’t bring your work home,” Mumbai-based fashion designer and special educator Anjali states assertively.
Perhaps it`s this belief that empowered the 62-year-old to navigate personal challenges without letting her responsibilities as a mother and a professional get affected.
At the young age of 18, Anjali had unknowingly found her purpose when she encountered people with special needs while volunteering at a school. “While working with them, I fell in love with them,” she shares.
With a background in fashion and textile design, the Santacruz resident also pursued a special education course after her hesitation was overpowered by persuasion from others and the realisation that she could help numerous intellectually challenged people.
“The education field wasn’t my cup of tea. But I jumped into it, and it became my cup of tea,” she reminisces.
Balancing work and motherhood
While moving forward on this professional path, Anjali married in 1987 and gave birth to her daughter, Vallari, in 1989. For the former, embracing motherhood and career went side-by-side.
“My daughter wasn’t even one year old when I started taking her to the special school I used to work at. People suggested me to be careful, saying these adults with special needs might harm her. But I told them that they will take better care of her than me. She grew up with them,” the mother of one shares.
In 2000, when her daughter was 11 years old, Anjali started her own creative centre for adults with special needs – Advitya – focused on providing vocational training to adults with Autism, Down Syndrome and other intellectual challenges.
Overcoming personal challenges
While she was thriving and helping others professionally, her personal life was in turmoil due to a troubled marriage. “I was an unwanted bride in the family,” she expresses. Anjali spent 18 years in court fighting legal, financial and emotional battles before getting the divorce decree. But all this while, her responsibilities didn’t take a backseat.
“I had to run my house and run Advitya. I had to take charge of my daughter, and not let the situation impact her life. I didn’t want her to have any baggage or bitterness. I didn’t want her to think marriages are bad or parents are bad,” Anjali shares.
Navigating her own emotional turmoil while protecting her daughter and running an NGO wasn’t easy. Recalling those moments, she adds, “I never let anyone know what’s going on in my personal life. Balancing everything was challenging. But looking at my daughter, I kept going. You form a purpose for something good in life. For me, it was giving good values to my daughter.”
Anjali also derived strength from her parents, who helped her in overcoming these challenges. “My parents were my strength, especially my mother. Even today, at the age of 84, she supports my NGO strongly and looks after the work in my absence,” she shares proudly.
From timid to strong
While it was a challenging time, Anjali believes that it only made her stronger. “If I wouldn’t have gone through that, I wouldn’t have been as strong as I am today. I would have been timid,” she states, adding, “If there are no challenges in life, there is no fun.”
Vallari, now 35 years old, is happily married and settled in Switzerland – a fact that her mother shares proudly.
Here, in Mumbai, Anjali’s passion for social development keeps her going. “Advitya will celebrate its 25th anniversary this year. Now, we have started building a home for adults with special needs in Karjat, Maharashtra, where they can stay till their last breath,” she concludes
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