User:Tarstar128/Kanai Lal Mukherjee

Kanai Lal Mukherjee
Dr. Mukherjee is a retired biology professor, who has admirers and friends in several continents, including India, many parts of Europe, and throughout the United States. He went from the slums of India to a prestigious professor and sought-after priest. Kanai is a friendly man with one philosophy: Always try to stay happy. This philosophy is why so many people admire him, and how he came to advance so far in his life. Currently, Kanai is eighty-one years old. His birthday is on July 4, the United States' Independence Day. Though retired, Dr. Mukherjee is still an active Hindu priest, and travels across the country to perform pujas, marriages, and other ceremonies. He has grandchildren in the Chicago area, Nashville, and in Allentown PA. He often visits his grandchildren, and spends a lot of time with them. Kanai Lal Mukherjee is also head of the Association of Grandparents of Indian Immigrants (AGII). DVDs are $5 a piece, and copying is highly encouraged, as there is no copyright. His website (AGII) has downloads, fun and games, and online ordering.

His Childhood
Kanai was born in the slums of India, in 1926. He had 11 siblings, some so old that they were getting married when he was still a child. His father was a blind priest who depended on Kanai to take him places. His father never beat Kanai, because otherwise he had no one to be his replacement eyes. Kanai's childhood was wild, from swimming in the Ganges to sleeping on the open roof. Kanai was a favorite of his next oldest brother, who let Kanai get away with everything, even if it meant he had to take the beating for it. One of Dr. Mukherjee's favorite stories of his childhood is about when one of his older brothers got married, and instead of getting hand-me-downs, he was given a new coat and a new pen. Kanai, of course, promptly lost the pen, but since each brother had an identical pen, he stole his next oldest brother's. That brother knew who took it, yet silently took the beating. To this day, Dr. Mukherjee still regrets exploiting his brother like that. Once, when Kanai was a young boy, he and the younger siblings were supposed to be taking a nap. Of course, they were chattering. When one of the older brothers came in, they quickly pretended to be asleep. But, the brother being smarter than that, came up with a sneaky plan. "Raise your hand if you are asleep." he said. And, Kanai being young and gullible, instantly raised his hand. Kanai's family depended on his blind father, and later his older brothers. So some days there would be a feast from a puja that his father had led, and other days there would be nothing and the children would have to go without. In this horrible situation, Kanai often went up to the roof when no one was there and cried his heart out, poor child. But one day, after he had cried and cried and cried, Kanai decided that he would not spend his life crying. And so, he promised himself that he would always try to stay happy. To this day, that is his philosophy. Always try to stay happy.

Marriage Hardships
Kanai worked hard and managed to get into college. Later, as one of the most low-payed teachers, he began a class in another college. In the meantime, Kanai had gone from a skinny young boy to a handsome young man, and his family was very proud of him. He was their pride, as he moved forward into society and sent much needed money back to them. And so he was when he first saw Bibha. She was young and beautiful, and what's more, she was a working woman in a time and country where women did not work. Many male teachers around the college campus were trying to get her hand, and Kanai believed he had no chance. Yet, he still kept his philosophy from childhood: Always try to stay happy. And so he knew that his love would end up a mess, he was still the jolliest man in the entire college. And this, along with his looks, was catching the ladies eyes... and this included Bibha. And so they decided to get married. But there was a problem: Bibha was not a Brahman like Kanai and his family. Even if you live in the slums, it is tradition not to marry out of your social status. And his family would not allow Kanai to marry Bibha. Yet, because he loved her, he couldn't help it, so they got married. Almost no one from his family came. But they managed, and later his family would come to accept it and move on.