She was born in the garage of the family home in Nakuru, Kenya, the third child of what eventually will be six children to Kanti and Kamla Gohill. Her grandparents had moved to Kenya from Gujurat, India when they were young to help the Brits build their brick homes and the railroads in East Africa.

In traditional Hindu Gujarati households, the aunt, who is the father’s sister (called foi, or phoi) names the children and she gave this newborn girl the name Poonam (which means Full Moon). The family was delighted with her choice. The grandfather walked into town a few days later to register the birth with the authorities and came home with an official birth certificate. He had given the baby the name Pratibha (which means Intelligence, Splendour, and Brightness). The aunt was incensed. How dare he take away her right to have named this child! In protest, she refused to call the girl Pratibhaat all. In fact, she would not even use an Indian name and chose an English one instead, just to annoy her family. She called her Tina. And Tina is how she has been known ever since.