Life Sketch - Aai

The word itself conjures up a world of love, of warmth, of understanding and of belonging. All of this, and much more, is embodied by Barodekar Aai. She has been a Guru and a Mother to her flock of followers and devotees for the past few decades.Indeed, so dear are these devotees to Aai, that they have become a family, Shantaai Parivaar.

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Aai, Dr. Neela Anil Barodekar, née Shikharkhane, was born on 7th February 1948, in Satara, Maharashtra. Growing up in a typical middle-class Maharashtrian CKP (Chandraseniya Kayashtha Prabhu) family, she internalised the teachings of simplicity, humility and piety. After completing her B.A. and doing a professional Stenography course, she took up a job in a private company. It was while working here that she met Baba, Shri. Anil Yashwant Barodekar, and they both grew close together, eventually marrying on 24th November 1968.

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After her marriage into the Barodekar GSB (Gaud Saraswat Brahman) family, Aai left her job and concentrated on home-making, as taking care of the joint family was a full-time occupation. Soon, their daughter, Aparna, was born, followed by their son, Amarendra. As the children grew up, Aai followed her dream, and with Baba’s unstinting support, completed a course in Homeopathic medicine and became Dr. Neela Barodekar. The Barodekar family had always been very religious, celebrating festivals like Ganesh Utsav and Navratri with great fanfare. The family also used to host many religious gurus like Gulab Baba & Shitole Baba. Aai always had the seed of religious greatness in her, and the exposure to such saints brought out her latent spirituality. Aai continued all the religious and cultural traditions, and also immersed herself in the service of God and Humanity.

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It was during the year  1992 that she met Atak Maharaj, who became her Spiritual Guru & Mentor. Atak Maharaj initiated her into Shantaai worship and exhorted and encouraged her to guide and help people.

Today, after decades of selfless devotion to the Goddess Shanta Durga, and to her followers, Aai is venerated as a living ‘roop’ of the Devi herself, and her countless devotees flock to her home and ashram seeking her darshan.