Entrepreneur Rachna Khanna: Our mom let us go wrong and reinvent ourselves

She’s a woman from a small Indian town; but she’s always been a woman who could see far beyond. She’s a woman who was brought up in a conventional, conservative family and lived a fairly conventional, conservative life; but she’s a woman who is hugely progressive in the freedom she gave my brother and I, to make our own choices and do what we wanted to. Like all mothers, she stands right behind us as our biggest support. Though I think my mother’s biggest gift to us was that when it came to us she never thought she knew it all. She grew with us. She explored with us. She dreamt with us. She made her own mistakes as a parent and let us make ours.

 I think my mother’s biggest gift to us was that when it came to us she never thought she knew it all

In her own crooked way, my mother gave us that critical birthright every child should have – the space to make choices, go wrong and reinvent ourselves; and she did this without judgment, even when she disagreed with us. It’s not that she keeps her opinion to herself; she voices it and yet in her own way, respects ours.

Her belief in our beliefs; her faith in our faith and her happiness in our happiness is overwhelming; sometimes so much that it feels unnatural. How can she love and trust us with so much conviction? But I guess that is her wisdom. And in many ways, knowingly or unknowingly, this is the wisdom I have carried to my venture – the conviction that in the end the only thing that concerns a parent is their children’s absolute happiness. Thanks Ma, for forever rooting for that!

Her belief in our beliefs; her faith in our faith and her happiness in our happiness is overwhelming

Rachna Khanna is the founder of Pinwi App