Hats Off to Dr. Rajasekhar & Family
(Dheeraj Appaji)
When I visited Dr. Rajasekhar’s house recently, I had such a heartwarming experience that I couldn’t resist sharing it with you!
Even before we entered, Jeevitha Rajasekhar had already opened the doors and welcomed us with great warmth. She seated us in the living room. There were already large sofas, and when extra chairs were being arranged, she personally helped the assistant. Watching that made us feel a bit overwhelmed.
Just then, their younger daughter Shivathmika Rajashekar walked in, greeted everyone respectfully, and served water. Even as we were still absorbing this affectionate hospitality… Dr. Rajasekhar entered with a smile!
We all stood up, shook hands with him, and congratulated him for his strong comeback with “Biker.” As he greeted everyone by name, Jeevitha Rajasekhar and Shivathmika Rajashekar brought snacks—jaggery-coated cashews and mixture. Then we honored Dr. Rajasekhar and took photos. Since some of us who were clicking pictures were missing from the frames, Shivathmika Rajashekar herself took over the responsibility of photography—something I found truly delightful!
With senior journalists who had known him since the beginning of his career, Dr. Rajasekhar went down memory lane, recalling films like Repati Pourulu, Pratighatana, Vande Mataram, Talambraalu, Aahuti, Ankusam, Magadu, Allaripriyudu. Listening to him, I too revisited memories of where and in which theatres I had watched those films.
He also shared details about his current projects and the flood of offers coming his way. When we asked about his elder daughter Shivani Rajashekar, he mentioned that she is busy with her apprenticeship at Apollo, alongside pursuing films. Managing cinema along with an MBBS is no small feat!
Meanwhile, what touched my heart even more was Jeevitha Rajasekhar personally serving us juice, coffee, and tea.
From the moment we stepped into their home, I couldn’t help but observe Jeevitha garu closely. Her simplicity was captivating. She felt like a typical middle-class homemaker—there was absolutely no trace of celebrity status in her behavior. Not even for a moment did she carry the aura of being a famous actress or director. It felt like she was warmly receiving well-wishers visiting after a long time.
Despite being in media for over 25 years, I must say—the “image” we often build through media was nowhere to be seen in real life.
Even when we invited her multiple times to join our conversation, she remained busy with hosting duties. At one point, as Dr. Rajasekhar was speaking with us, Shivathmika Rajashekar came and adjusted his shirt collar—such a small moment, but it reminded me of my daughter and felt incredibly sweet.
That day, despite having a “Biker” success meet scheduled shortly, Dr. Rajasekhar continued chatting with us, almost forgetting about it. Eventually, we reminded him, took individual photos, and took our leave.
As we were leaving, Dr. Rajasekhar personally walked us till the lift—that itself felt special. But what stood out even more was this: instead of sending it through a helper, Shivathmika Rajashekar herself came downstairs to return a phone that one of our seniors prabhu garu had forgotten. That gesture will stay with me forever!
