There are moments in life that don’t just acknowledge your work, but pause your journey-just long enough for you to look back, breathe, and smile at the road you’ve travelled.

Being featured in the “Global Thought Leaders of the Year 2025” coffee table book, launched at the historic Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge University, was one such moment for me.

It was more than a personal milestone. It was a reflection of a mission that began with a question I’ve asked myself for decades: “How can we make temples more relevant, efficient, and globally understood in today’s world?” That question gave birth to Temple Connect. It led to the creation of the International Temples Convention & Expo (ITCX). It became the heartbeat of every initiative I’ve taken since.

To be recognised as a thought leader on a global stage, in the company of visionaries from across industries and countries, is both humbling and energising. But I also know that no recognition is truly individual. Behind every such honour is a community, a team, and a purpose that fuels it.

For me, that community is made up of everyone who has walked with me – temple administrators who opened up about their challenges, spiritual leaders who believed in the need for operational excellence, collaborators who built systems and structures with us, and every devotee who reaffirmed that faith deserves good management.

I am grateful to Prof. Dr. Parin Somani and Nurbanu Somani of the London Organisation of Skills Development for this recognition. Their work in building platforms that celebrate global changemakers is not just important – it’s essential in today’s fractured world.

Cambridge has long been a space of knowledge and leadership, and to be featured at a venue of such academic and cultural weight made the experience even more meaningful. But I didn’t see it as a podium moment. I saw it as a checkpoint. A reminder that there’s much more to do – more temples to support, more systems to build, more stories to tell.

This recognition is not the peak. It’s a push forward. It reinforces what I’ve always believed – that tradition and innovation aren’t opposites. They are partners. And in the world of temple management, spiritual tourism, and cultural preservation, that partnership is now more important than ever.

So, as I move ahead from this moment, I carry with me the honour, the responsibility, and the excitement to dream bigger, work harder, and give back more. To everyone who has been a part of this journey – thank you. The path ahead is long, but we walk it with purpose. And that makes all the difference.