Ranjit Tilak Abeyseela Ginige, known as 'Tila', was born in Panadura, Ceylon, on 12 June 1927, the son of Abhayaseela Ginige, professor of geography at the University of Ceylon, Colombo, and Dora née De Silva. He was educated at the Royal College and the University of Colombo. After graduating, Tila worked as a lecturer in pathology and casualty officer at Colombo General Hospital under K G Jayasekera. In 1960, he went to Ghana as a senior health officer in Accra, Kumasi and other centres, before coming to England to specialise in surgery, doing junior posts in several hospitals, including Ebbw Vale. In 1972, he moved to London, Ontario, where he worked in Inuvik and many other parts of Canada, before moving to Nova Scotia in 1982. There he practised in Upper Stweiacke and Truro. He married Catherine Eagles. They had two sons, Tilak junior and Kashyapa, or 'Kash'. He died on 8 December 2001 in Nova Scotia.