Monthly Archives: Oct 2014

Mary Kom, Multiplex, and a feeling of Pride

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Long story short, I went to a mall with my friends when I was dragged into the multiplex to watch a movie. My friends sponsored my ticket (yay me!). Inside, I was giggling, chatting around, giving spoilers and critiquing as the movie was progressing.
True, I held Mary Kom in high regard. True, I was not comfortable with the casting for the film. False, I hated the movie. 2 hours passed quite easily, and the last scene took us to the final match where Mary Kom was announced the winner. The emcee asked the people in the stadium to stand up for the national anthem. A melodious instrumental version of the Indian national anthem reverberated inside the multiplex. I wondered whether we should also stand. It was our national anthem after all, and the least we could do to show respect to our anthem, country and the freedom struggle is to stand straight, still and silent.
I even conveyed my thought to my friend. Just then, I noticed a guy from the 1st row stand. I ignored it thinking he may have a phone call to attend. Then, a guy from the 3rd row and later a guy from the 2nd row stood up. They all have phone calls to attend? Lucky that I was part of the last row, I saw the entire 4th row stood up in unison. It was the 100th Monkey Experiment, revamped. That gave me the needed signal. Even I stood up, and urged my friends to do the same. Soon, the entire multiplex hall was witness to a rare phenomenon. The audience was standing in rapt attention, respecting the national anthem. I didn’t see the screen-light of a single smart-phone turn on amid this. We stood straight with pride on our faces.
The anthem met its end, and people sat back as if picture abhi baaki hai (there’s still more to see). The credits started to roll, and we started moving slowly towards the aisle. In some strange way, I felt connected to all of them. I knew none in that crowd, apart from my friends. But, I felt that I could talk to any of them. Few were from north-east, few were from Kerala, and one was a Punjabi. All so different; yet so same. Because, we all stood for our national anthem. We all loved our country this much. I felt elated.
Back on our way to the food court, I saw my friend’s faces. Even they were in their own trances. We did discuss what we just witnessed. We all were civil services aspirants, so naturally we were reminded of the rules and procedures of the National Flag and National Anthem of India. But, did the audience back in the multiplex know about the rules? Maybe not. Yet, they stood up. That, in my view, was amazing. Thank you, director sir — for this unprecedented experience. Thank you for being the unwitting cupid in uniting a set of 100 strangers, even for a bare minute.
P.S. The gray, bold phrases are actually hyperlinks.

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Good morning, Principal Sir!

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Mata, Pita, Guru, Deivam.
Such is the importance of Teachers (Gurus) in our lives that they precede God. When asked, a saint gave an epiphany “Guru precedes God because it is the Guru who shows us the God and His true essence!”
To the point. This year’s Teacher’s Day is special to me. Since, my Alma Mater’s Principal SAdhiappan was honored by a Teacher’s Award by the Prime Minister of India. Frankly, I did not know about it until 8th September, when my father was scrolling through Facebook. It was past midnight when he came to my room and announced, “Your headmaster won an award from Modiji!” I couldn’t contain myself. A phantasmagoria of memories came flashing through my mind.
Back in 2007, after my 10th standard board exams, we were discussing which school to opt for. My father suggested, “Why not Motilal Fomra?”. “Moti what?”, I retorted. “Yes! I studied there. It’s a great school and you’ll learn a lot of practical things”. I wondered what ‘practical’ things I could possibly learn. I knew Algebra, Civics, quadratic equations, Nuclear Fission reactions, et al. We went to the narrow lanes of Sowcarpet where the school stood. The façade of the school was amazing, it had a semblance of a temple. We made our way to the headmaster’s room. There he was, S. Adhiappan sir. I didn’t realize the gem in him until an hour passed in his company. He made me appear for an entrance test; in the mean time my father talked to him and to his former Accountancy Sir. I noticed that he received several accolades for his contribution to teacherhood.  Under the school’s aegis, a lad scored State 2nd rank in Hindi!
A little forward, and I’m sitting in the classroom preparing for a school program. I was the emcee, I had never done a thing like this before. My class teacher knew this, and insisted that I do it. Minutes before the program, Principal Sir came to me and uttered some magic words to me. “Take a few deep breaths. Stay calm. Don’t forget to show respect in your voice. And do what you do best!” The program was a success. He helped me find my niche. I hone my oratory skills by participating in debates, speech competitions and more.

I was selected to emcee for the Sports Day!

Months went past our eyes and there we were, a day before our 12th standard board exams. He looked at his batch, his eyes told what his mouth didn’t. He was proud of us, no matter how smart or silly or dumb or athletic we were. The results came, and he spotted me. He congratulated me, “Good job! You’ve come first in Science group!” I touched his feet, and he gladly blessed me. The time was around 9am, since the daily prayer chants were reverberating throughout the school building. “Time and Tide wait for none. Best Wishes.”, he signed in my autograph book.
When I was studying in college, I did a stint in home-tutoring. The kids were small, jovial and hardly interested in studies! I found a way to make studies interesting to them. I started narrating them the science behind counting numbers and the grammar behind the usage of “its” and “it’s”. Tough it was, but the results made me forget everything. Their mother would give me an occasional cup of tea at times when I would go there straight from college. She would voice her concern when her children would not show results, and would be on cloud nine when her daughter would score a 5 on 5! I realized that teaching is all about passion, it cannot be forced. When they scored beyond my expectations, I would walk all the way my home with a smile on my face. Being a teacher to someone is in itself a blessing.

Here I am; graduated in B.Sc. Chemistry, worked in one of the best companies in the world, and currently preparing for civil services. But I still remember my Principal Sir. His gestures, his words, and his etiquette has influenced me a lot. Not only his, but all my teachers have influenced me greatly. It is my math teacher who advised me “not to write the answer to a math problem unless you fully understood the logic behind it”! In fact, my teachers have made me the Vk that I am. A belated Teacher’s day wishes to all of them. I want to see glee in their eyes, the kind seen when a teacher meets her successful student after a long time.