About the Author

Anuja Mohla

Namaste, I am Anuja Mohla and founder of Apni Heritage, LLC. I was born and raised in Delhi, constantly immersed in Indian culture. Although my parents are Punjabi, they only spoke in Hindi to prevent confusion from learning too many languages. I was exposed to Punjabi when I would visit my relatives in Punjab. As I grew older, even though I could understand Punjabi, I wanted to be confident conversing in Punjabi. 

At fifteen years of age, I moved to America to pursue higher education and better career opportunities. I met my husband in college who is also Punjabi.  Because he was born and raised in America, he is not as fluent in Hindi or Punjabi. Over the years, we have adapted our own hybrid of English, Hindi, and Punjabi language in our household. 

After we had our son, I quickly realized the importance of both passive and active passage of one’s heritage to the next generation. As a mom with a full-time job as a physician as well as studying to obtain a MBA, I attempt to converse with my son in Hindi and Punjabi. However, it has certainly been more challenging than I thought. As he was picking up more English words from reading books, I realized there was a lack of diverse bilingual books for early learners. My son’s love for books and my desire to share my culture with him inspired me to start Apni Heritage in 2021. 

I feel communication is the foundation and language is the mechanism for forming any relationship. Communicating in one’s native language can help strengthen one’s relationship with their family and community.  My hope is to contribute to Indian society by creating high-quality bilingual products that can be used to teach kids Indian languages in a fun and exciting way. My wish is to make it easier for busy parents to teach their children about their culture and their heritage by bringing them closer to their roots.

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