I have been partially blind since birth, but limited vision never stopped me from looking towards the sky. My fascination with astronomy began in the fourth standard when I came across a chapter in my geography textbook called “Our Solar System and the Universe.”

That chapter introduced me to a world far larger than anything I had known before. Suddenly, I had questions about planets, stars, galaxies, and everything that existed beyond Earth. I did not know it then, but that curiosity would eventually shape my entire life.

Where My Curiosity Began

During my school vacations, my father would take me to the Nehru Planetarium in Mumbai. One visit slowly became many.

I was fascinated by the shows, the models, and especially the colourful photographs of astronomical objects. I would spend time looking at images of distant galaxies and nebulae, imagining what it would be like to photograph something so far away.

Then came another moment that stayed with me. One night, my brother woke me up and asked me to come outside. He pointed towards two bright objects in the sky. One appeared reddish, while the other was bright and white. They were Mars and Jupiter.

Seeing those planets with my own eyes made the universe feel closer than ever before. The stars had found their way into my life very early.

Following the Expected Path

My family understood how deeply interested I was in astronomy. At the same time, they were concerned about my limited vision and my future. Like any family, they wanted me to have a secure career.

So, I followed a more conventional path and pursued Electronics Engineering. I completed my engineering degree with a First Class. But during my final examination, I developed severe pain and bleeding in my left eye. I completed the examination with one eye covered by a bandage and soon underwent a critical eye operation.

The recovery period changed everything. For several months, I was largely confined at home. I could not go outside or read. After completing my degree, I was eager to begin working, but my eyesight became a major obstacle.

I applied to several companies. Again and again, I failed their medical examinations. The career path I had prepared for was no longer easily available to me. At that point, I was uncertain about what came next. Then, astronomy found me again.

The Wednesday Astronomy Club

I came across an astronomy club that met every Wednesday at a school. At first, I joined simply because I wanted to get out of the house, meet people, and reconnect with something I had always enjoyed. But those Wednesday meetings soon became something I looked forward to.

Listening to experienced astronomers talk about planets, stars, and the universe brought back the curiosity I had carried since childhood. The chairman of the club encouraged me to participate. Eventually, he insisted that I give a lecture at one of the meetings.

I was hesitant. But I did it. That lecture became an important turning point in my life. For the first time, I realised that I could share my interest in astronomy with other people. I began volunteering at the club’s stargazing programmes, and with every event, my connection with astronomy became stronger.

Meeting Kaka and Creating Wondrous Heaven

During this period, I met Mr. Jaiprakash Udar, whom I affectionately called Kaka. We quickly discovered that we shared the same passion for astronomy. As we spent more time together, Kaka learned about my journey, my eyesight, my engineering background, and the difficulties I had faced while trying to find employment.

More importantly, he understood how seriously I wanted to pursue astronomy. We began discussing an idea. What if we created an organisation that could bring astronomy directly to people?

An organisation that could take telescopes to dark skies, conduct lectures, organise stargazing experiences, and help people see the universe for themselves. Kaka believed in the idea. And in 2016, we started Wondrous Heaven together. What began as a simple idea soon became my life’s work.

From Stargazing to Astrophotography

Through Wondrous Heaven, we conducted astronomy lectures, organised stargazing events, and travelled to darker locations where people could observe celestial objects through telescopes. I loved the directness of these experiences. You can explain Saturn in a lecture.

You can show someone a photograph of Jupiter. But everything changes when they actually see these objects through a telescope. That connection between people and the universe became one of the most meaningful parts of my work.

Over time, my journey also brought me back to a childhood dream. I wanted to photograph the universe. The colourful images of galaxies and nebulae that had fascinated me at the Nehru Planetarium were no longer just photographs I admired. I wanted to create them myself. That curiosity led me into the world of astrophotography. I began investing what I earned from stargazing events into astronomical equipment. Slowly, I built my collection of telescopes, cameras, mounts, filters, and other tools needed for deep-sky imaging.

Astrophotography taught me patience. A single galaxy or nebula can require hours of imaging, sometimes across several nights, before enough faint light is collected to reveal its hidden details. Over time, my work began receiving recognition, encouraging me to continue improving my techniques and equipment.