Shri Thakurji's grandfather, Shri Bhupdevji Upadhyay used to delight him at a young age with stories from the Ramayana and Krishna Charitra. Thakurji used to get excited by these stories and used to listen with complete devotion. In his early years of education in Vrindavan, Shri Thakurji had the privilege of learning under the tutelage of the enlightened Shri Swami Ramanujacharyaji Maharaj.Along with the traditional teaching, Sri Ramanujacharyaji gradually taught Thakurji the Gita, Valmiki Ramayana, Srimad Bhagwat and other holy scriptures. Soon, under his eloquent tutelage, Thakurji obtained a master's degree in grammar and philosophy. . Thakurji attended various discourses of Bhagwat with his teacher.And in 1975 at the age of 15, Shri Thakurji, who was just a student, gave his first Bhagwat discourse in the city of Mumbai. Thakurji enriched his mind by learning new scriptures as well as satiating the audience with Bhagwat. The knowledge of classical music played an important role in his youth days.

Life Elements and Guidance

Shri Thakurji went to Shri Jiyaraswamy Math in Jagannath Puri where he was initiated into the Vaishnava sect by Shri Garudhwajacharya Maharaj, the master of the Math. He was entrusted with the responsibility of initiating disciples, according to the rules of the sect. His Guru Sri Ramanujacharyaji and well wishers honored him with the name of 'Thakurji'. And soon the spiritual society gave the grand and famous Thakurji the glorious name of 'Bhagwat Bhaskar'.Religious personalities like Swami Shri Karpatriji Maharaj, Swami Shri Akhandanandji Saraswati, Shri Ram Chandra Dongreji Maharaj, Shri Murari Bapu and Shri Ramsukh Dasji shaped Thakurji's thinking and left a deep impression on his mind.The institution 'Shri Krishna Prem Sansthan' was established under the guidance of Shri Thakurji. Here the teachings of the Bhagavata and the Vedas are offered at no cost to the students. In the year 2003, on the auspicious occasion of Ram Navami, the Institute has established a 'Goshala'.

Work

By the grace of Shri Krishnaji, Shri Thakurji can be the first young Indian religious leader to have achieved the feat of conducting more than 961 weeks of Shrimad Bhagwat Gyan Yagya.He has received tremendous appreciation all over the country and abroad where he has imparted the knowledge of the holy words of Bhagavatam. Thakurji's rendition of Ramayana and Geeta is equally inspirational.