Rejesh Satiija
Chairman
Sun & Sand Group of Company | London (UK)
Ancestry
Multan (undivided British India)
Birthplace
Shahbad, Kurukshetra (undivided Punjab)
Residence
London (UK)
A GOLDEN HEARTED MIDAS
He says, and firmly believes, “pushing yourself to the limit is worth it,” perhaps that’s the reason he has become not only one of the wealthiest Asians in the UK, but also one of the most influential Asians in Africa.
I was born in a nondescript house of Sulkhani village near Shahbad on 27 December 1967. My mother, Chand Rani, a school teacher, and father, Ram Swaroop, a government employee, could not give us all the luxuries of life, though they did teach us the essential life-lessons of discipline, integrity, honesty and hard work. They were very strict about respecting the views of others and not following shortcuts in life. My parents’ principles and ethics, in fact, later became our biggest treasures. Although I was the naughtiest among siblings, my younger brothers, Praveen and Ashish, played a great role in my life. Their support laid the foundation for the choices I made to become the person I am today.
I completed my school education from Hindu High School, Sonipat (Haryana), in 1982. Sumer Chand Saini was my favourite teacher who motivated me a lot; his lessons are still a motivation. While I was studying for Engineering, another teacher, Omprakash Chugh, inspired me a lot.
After completing my Engineering in Electronics and Communication from Government Engineering College, Sonipat, in 1986, my father wanted me to settle down with a secure job in MTNL as a Junior Engineer. However, I, despite hailing from a simple service-class family, had my yearnings to make it big. It was at this juncture that I read somewhere about an opportunity at an Indian procurement authority, ImPex, Lagos, Nigeria. My father was not happy with this decision, but, realising the potential of the African market, I took up the offer.
To lead the right life, we must lose our fear of being wrong
I started looking for trade opportunities and started exporting small goods such as metals and cables from Lagos. The year 1993 came as the best time of my life as I got married to Renu on 26 March, and, the same year, I was able to set up Sun & Sand Group of Companies in Ogun, Nigeria, which manufactured some specific spare parts for the automobile industry, thus, becoming the first Indian in Africa to trade with automobile giants Toyota, Rolls Royce, Nissan and Honda. With the help of my wife and friends, Kamal Parashar and Ravi Pruthi, I was able to diversify into mining and also purchased orchards in Canada. Never forgetting my country, all I want now is venture into affordable housing and create geopathic areas in India.
In 2002, we shifted to the UK as it is a global financial hub. Inheriting my father’s foresight, I ventured into technology too with Wasihub, a blockchain-based technology platform and aim to revolutionise the metal mining industry and bring optimisation and transparency to miners, investors and governments alike, with innovative breakthroughs in mining.
With more than 6,000 teammates helping me take my business to Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali, Ivory Coast, Niger, Nigeria, Togo, Senegal, etc, I ensure that they are involved in an innovative and contributing role. Though my customers are very important to me, my team’s wellbeing and high morale are my priority. They have helped me bridge the socio-economic gaps between India and Africa.
When God’s on your side, you get LUCKY!
The piety of my parents inculcated in me a deep faith in my religion. However, as I grew up, the why’s and how’s started popping up. I found my answers in Reiki and of late, in meditation. I also started believing in the power of the Supreme Being, humanity and the cosmos. At the same time, luck had strangely started favouring me. I didn’t incur even a single loss, market prices soared or crashed favouring me. So much did it favour me that they started calling me Lucky!
Today, I meditate and practice Reiki at least 2–3 hours a day. In a bid to show the world an alternate source of healing and brotherhood, I have set up the Reiki Healing Foundation Trust in New Delhi. It helped me progress along the path by increasing my empathy, attention, compassion and calming my mind. It gave me self-control. I strongly believe that my achievements have been possible because of my meditation, the sanskars my parents instilled in me and my faith in God who I felt was always on my side.
You grow when you help others grow
The old adage “give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach a man how to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime” holds true to this day. I strongly believe so and place a special focus on quality education for the underprivileged children in India and Africa. However, I don’t want to create engineers or doctors. I want children to be happy, content and successful, for which I educate people, which is the best medium of empowerment.
With that thought in mind, I set up the Sun & Sand Foundation, an NGO, in India, which aims at providing education to poor children in India. Soon we will open in Africa too. We are also working on another project on quantum speed reading, a Japanese system of learning that helps children in reading a book in a short span of time. These are my ways of contributing to society because in the course of time I have realised that our wellbeing is not complete if our surrounding has not been uplifted.
I feel it is important to live every day with everything that it brings – the joys, the sorrows, the successes, the failures, the confusion, the clarity. I want to enjoy life to its hilt the way it is. And Renu, my wife, is one of the major reasons for my happy, calm and balanced life. From the time she came into my life in the year 1993, she has not only ensured that I have a peaceful and stable home but also supports me in all my decisions giving me the courage to face the world’s challenges. She, in her stance, has taken up my ideals of uplifting our community and takes part in a lot of social activities whenever I am unavailable. Now that we have moved to London, we get to spend more time together with our children, Garima and Atul. They are pursuing their graduate programmes from London and New York University, USA, respectively. All of us love spending time with Chinky & Cherry, our pet dogs who have become our blue-eyed kids.
Parents blessings and family’s support has set luck to favour me irrevocably, which has become the real game-changer adding to positivity in me.
Philosophy
Jo tumko hai pasand wahi baat karenge. The message of this song makes it my favourite. I find it derogatory to make any negative comments on any living being or thing. Let’s make it a happy world, though, social media is an interruption!
I love…
To play Golf, meditate and read books. Spending time in nature is another thing that makes me happy.
Success Mantra
A positive attitude, some foresight and belief in God’s blessings.
I’d suggest the youth…
To realise their true potential and encash it. There is a lot of good in you. Don’t let the circumstances change them.
The world doesn’t know that…
I have been a wood exporter too. It was a short stint in Dubai.
Gallery
ISBN : 9788193397695