A modern-day Mum Ruvini Dinapala

9 February 2015 11:27 am By Shihara Maduwage

“Super Mum” does not even begin to describe our cover personality this month, Ruvini Dinapala. She is a loving mum to her five kids, a devoted wife to Roshan Dinapala, the Managing Director of Dinapala group and a trail-blazing career girl who manages her own hotel. With all this going on in her life, she still finds the time to cook yummy dishes, design her own house and look flawless and glamorous.

A quiet and serene personality, she seems like a person who can be sensible and responsible even when there is absolute chaos around her. This is what makes her such a good wife, mother and a multi-tasker. Ruvini was born to a family of eight. Her father is a well-known business personality and is the Chairman of Guruge Gems. She studied at Sirimavo Bandaranayake in Colombo and later attended Ferguson High School in her last years of school. She has recently completed her foundation in Gemmology at Allied Gemmological institute Colombo and she is hoping to do her Diploma in the future. She describes herself as someone with very strong ethics when someone who is focused on her work and her family. Ruvini spoke to LW about her family, her passions and her life as a woman who has to juggle with multiple roles daily.

Part of a big family

Ruvni’s straight-from-Sound-of-Music-family consists of seven members, who all have very different personalities and attitudes. “My husband is Roshan Dinapala. We met at a family wedding and then we got married after a relationship of one year. Roshan studied at Trinity College up to Advance Level and then he attended to “Dorset Institute of High Education, England for his Management Degree. After completing his degree he joined his father’s business and achieved more success expanding the business to the present standard through his determination and dedication. Roshan is the Managing Director of Dinapala Group which has 26 branches Island wide. We are also the Authorized Distributor for Philips in Sri Lanka. We have four sons and a daughter they are Sachin, Dhilen, Aveen, Dheveen and Sinelya. My oldest son, Sachin has completed his studies and hoping to attend an university abroad. He loves “kick boxing” and taekwondo and he is a good guitar player. My second son Dhilen just finished his Ordinary levels and he is in to rugby as well as athletics. He loves cooking with me especially when he wants a new dish which he finds from internet. When we go out he likes to order new dishes, he is always up for a change and he is very adventurous. My third son Aveen is in grade 6 and he’s the most mischievous one in my family. He loves dogs and adores all animals. His pet-name is “Suri”. He is also crazy about nerf toys. The last of my babies are the twins and they are still in kindergarten. My youngest son Dhereen is close to me as he was the youngest boy so he seeks my attention always. He loves to play spider-man and super hero squad figure. My youngest and only daughter Sinelya is the most kind and caring one in the family and adores her father and her brothers. She loves dressing up even though she is only four years old. She is pretty and loves to use my makeup. I have always wanted a daughter so her birth was like a dream come true for me. One of our favourite activities as a family is to go to the beach. My husband and my children all enjoy spending time at the beach with each other.” Ruvini explained that she had always dreamt of having a big family and a house filled with laughter, joy and lots of little voices and pattering feet. “I wanted to have children because I love my big family. In my family whenever we meet, we always have so much fun with so many people around and there is always reason to meet such as parties, weddings or anniversaries. I love that about my family and may be that was the reason for me to have five kids.”

Professional in travel and hospitality management

Even though running her huge and sometimes-wacky household takes up most of Ruvini’s time, that is not all that she does. She also manages two hotels and does a marvelous job at it. “I am Director at Peacock Beach Hotel, Hambantota - a 100 roomed hotel which is owned by my father. Also I manage a 5 bedroom villa in Kandy, which was given to me by husband so I could get some experience in hotel management because he has already bought an 85 room Apartment hotel in Marine Drive, Colombo which we plan to open in September, 2015. The villa “Seya Lake” which I manage is located at lake round, Kandy surroundings in the midst of a beautiful and breathtaking view. The distance to the villa is about 50 meters away from Kandy Lake and walking distance to the Dalada Maligawa. It has 5 bedrooms with AC, TV and Wifi facilities. “Seya Lake” has an ancient architectural value and it was the residence of former Mayor of Kandy Sir Bennet Zoysa. It is truly a cozy relaxing and serene place especially for families.”

Ruvini’s passions

Apart from managing her house and her hotels, surprisingly Ruvini does find the time to enjoy some free time and indulge in her favourite leisure time activities. Howveer, even when she is letting loose and having fun, she still cannot forget the fact that she is a mum to five youngsters. “I enjoy cooking for my family and friends and I mainly love Italian food. My prawn toasts and brownies are favourites of my family and friends. However, as a mother I always keep in my mind to prepare balanced meals every day for my family. I got this cooking skill from my mother because she is an amazingly talented cook. When it comes to fashion, Ruvini’s motto is ‘less is more.’ “I have a very simple approach to fashion, my signature style is feminine and glamorous as for accessories. I like to wear rings and watches and I love perfumes. I do most of my shopping when I travel to make sure it is unique and one of a kind.” Apart from her family, one of the things that Ruvini is very proud of is the home she built for her beautiful children and her husband. “We recently moved to this house of ours, I did see to all of its work including interior by myself. It took nearly four years to build our new house. The reason to take such a long time is that we wanted to make sure everything was in perfect order and just the way we wanted. To make our plan successful, my husband and I travelled to China and personally selected everything we needed for the house. My husband Roshan trusted my selections for interior items as he knows I have the skill and ability in that area. Therefore he was satisfied with the final outcome.”

Daily challenges

Even though Ruvini always seems perfect and put-together, her life is not without challenges, the biggest being managing to divide her time among her many responsibilities in life. “My day starts at five in the morning as I have to make tea for my elder three sons because they only have the tea I make. Then I drop my second son at grounds for practices by 6 am. Then send my small ones to school by 7 am. After sending them I do my workouts mostly at home and it’s a must for me. After that I engage with work related to my hotel. I am usually free by late afternoon, then I go shopping if necessary. By 2 all my children come home and I am always with them by that time. My husband comes home by 6.30 in the evening. We usually have our dinner by 7. I love that part of my day because I cook what they like for dinner and that’s the time we all get together as a family. I learnt time management from my mother. In my family I have 6 sisters and a brother, even though she had us she always managed to make her own income yet not to miss anything such as cooking for my father as well as for us and her grandchildren. So I look at her life for inspiration.” As one can imagine, bringing up five children has not been a bed of roses or a walk in the park. “The most challenging part in my life was when my children were young I had a really tough time to bring them up specially the twins. But my in-laws live close by so I had immense help from them.” However, it was also one of the most beautiful times of life. Most importantly I feel that I am blessed to have the privilege to wake up to a beautiful and loving family in a house with a view of the Dalada Maligawa and I could wish for nothing more.” Photographs by Nirmala Dhananjaya