Kamlesh Patel (Daaji) Age, Wife, Family, Biography & More

Bio/Wiki
Full name	Kamlesh Desaibhai Patel [1]The Hindu
Other name	Daaji
Profession(s)	• Spiritual leader • Author
Physical Stats & More
Height (approx.)	in centimeters- 175 cm in meters- 1.75 m in feet & inches- 5’ 9”
Eye Colour	Dark Brown
Hair Colour	Grey
Career
Awards & Honours	• 2023: Conferred with Padma Bhushan by the Government of India • 2020: Awarded with Ramakrishna Bajaj Memorial Global Award by the Priyadarshini Academy for his outstanding contribution to the promotion of Holistic Healing through Spirituality and Yoga • 2018: Honorary doctorate from Tirupati’s Sri Venkateswara University
Personal Life
Date of Birth	28 September 1956 (Friday)
Age (as of 2022)	66 Years
Birthplace	Kalla, district Bharuch, Gujarat
Zodiac sign	Libra
Nationality	Indian
Hometown	Kalla
School	After finishing primary school, he went to a nearby town for further education.
College/University	• Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda • L. M. College of Pharmacy, Ahmedabad
Educational Qualification	Honors degree in Pharmacy
Religion	He considers himself a student of spirituality.
Hobbies	In an interview, on being asked what his hobbies were, he replied, "My hobbies and interests and the way I spend time are all the same. It is in the sharing of Heartfulness meditation, in the development of Kanha Shanti Vanam, and in supporting many of its related projects. Those things capture my interest, attention, and time.”
Relationships & More
Marital Status	Married
Family
Wife/Spouse	Pratima K. Patel
Children	Son(s)- Akhilesh Patel and Sahat Patel Daughter- None
Parents	Names not known
Siblings	Daaji has an elder brother and three sisters.
Favourites
Book	'The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna’ by Mahendranath Gupta
Food	Homemade Gujarati food, which is cooked in remembrance of the god
Colour	White

Some Lesser Known Facts About Kamlesh Patel (Daaji)

• Kamlesh Patel (Daaji) is an Indian spiritual leader, meditation guide, and author. He is the fourth president of Shri Ram Chandra Mission, which is a non-profit organization that was founded in 1945. In 2023, he was conferred with Padma Bhushan by the Government of India.

• Born into a family of agriculturists, young Kamlesh wanted to become a doctor. In an interview, he revealed that he once scored 241 marks out of 300 in an open medical test. At that time, the cut-off was 241. There was another student who also scored 241 marks but received higher marks in Biology than Daaji and was offered the seat instead.

• Daaji’s family didn’t allow him to go outside Gujarat for his studies. So, he applied to L. M. College of Pharmacy in Ahmedabad. The day he went to fill out the registration form, he was told that the college does not accept students from the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, where he graduated from. Daaji didn’t hesitate to submit his application and told them that if they have a vacancy, they could call him. As Daaji was just walking out, the principal called him to his office and told him that his performance was exceptional, which is why he was making an exception for him and enrolled his name.

• At the age of 24, he moved to New York City. and practiced pharmacology. There, he established several pharmacies including Marg Pharmacy Inc, Pharmacy Inc Carewell, Lindenwood Rx Center Inc, Woodhull Rx Prescription Center, and Slope Drugs & Surgical Supply. 

• He and his wife raised their sons in New York City.

• He is financially associated with Santosh Khanjee in a chain of hotels.

• He started practicing heartfulness meditation while he was a third-year of Pharmacy student.

• His spiritual guru is Shri Ram Chandra of Shahjahanpur.
  

  A picture of Shri Ram Chandra of Shahjahanpur while resting on a chair

• At a young age, he set Swami Vivekananda as his inspiration and began meditation on his own.

• In 1976, he met his guide Shri Ram Chandra of Shahjahanpur aka Babuji, the founder and first president of the Shri Ram Chandra Mission.

• In October 2011, he was proclaimed as Parthasarathi Rajagopalachari’s successor. Later that year, he came back to India and got settled at Chennai’s Garden of Hearts. After Chariji’s demise on 20 December 2014, Daaji became the third president of the Shri Ram Chandra Mission.

• In August 2012, he was appointed vice president of the Shri Ram Chandra Mission.
  

  Daaji greeting his followers and children in Hoshangabad in 2022

• Since 2003, he has been working mainly for the Shri Ram Chandra Mission.

• He attended his first meditation session under proper guidance after one of his classmates offered to take him to a professional meditation trainer. His first out-of-Gujarat visit was to Shahjahanpur in the summer of 1977 with his friend to meet their teacher and guide Shri Ram Chandra aka Babuji. According to Daaji, it was one of the most memorable meditations he ever had.

• Since 2014, he has been associated with the United Nations Department of Public Information.

• He founded Kanha Shanti Vanam in Chepur, Hyderabad, which is a meditation center where millions of practitioners gather from within India and abroad to learn, practice, and serve the community.

• His articles have been featured in many popular media houses including Huffington Post, Chicago Tribune, Times of India, and Business Standard. Daaji’s Radio City Swaran series, Dil Ki Awaaz, ran for twelve episodes.

• He has penned several books including Designing Destiny (2019) and The Wisdom Bridge (2022). In 2018, Patel co-authored a book titled The Heartfulness Way with Joshua Pollock, which was among the top 10 best-selling non-fiction books in Hindustan Times’ Nielsen chart in February 2018.

• He is good friends with Baba Ramdev.
  

  Kamlesh Patel and Baba Ramdev