I was in the “A”,section throughout my school career .It is a misnomer even now among parents that “A”,section is the best section in a class .The feeling stems probably from the fact that people normally say things like “Yeh restaurant A class hai”,or stuff like that .!Also ,maybe because of the fact that “A”,is the first alphabet in the language ,so it will be the best section –“First Class”!!.But this is not true at all .I remember 9 C having the brightest children of our class in it .But being in “A”,was not a disadvantage either and I made some friends for life here .
I remember the name of my class teachers with great clarity .In 5th it was Mr Thapa ,in the 6th it was Miss Massey ,in the 7th it was Mrs Collingwood ,in the 8th (oh I can never forget her till my last breath!!),it was Mrs D’Zouza,in the 9th (the neatest looking man I ever met in my life,infact so neat that I gave up trying to look neat because the ideal was so unattainable!! –oh so wonderfully organized ),Mr Rathke,in the 10th Mr Chhetri ,and in the 11th it was the the omnipotent,the omnipresent ,the ambi dexterous and the Jack of all trades and the master ofALL OF THEM –Mr D’zousa.There were subject teachers who I remember very well (how can one ever forget teachers ?!).Mr Gaur ,Mr Chaturvedi ,Mr Padam Singh ,and the don of Hindi ,Mr Chhetri taught us Hindi .Since our family had migrated from Myanmar ,we were not good at Hindi,and we were allowed to take “Lower Hindi”-a very rudimentary form of Hindi .But the teachers were good and Mr Chhetri in particular was a genius .I still remember him teaching us Rahim and Tulsidas .He was a artist –he moved while he taught ,there was modulation in his voice .He would get angry and he would laugh .In short –he never taught like a machine –he was a dynamic soul and reflected every bit of it in his personality .Unfortunately ,he passed away a couple of years after we left school in Agra ,I where he had gone to attend a conclave .
Maths was taught to me by Miss Massey in the junior classes (she was good at geometry ),and by Mrs D’Souza in the middle section and Mr D’Souza in the senior classes .They were the ultimate Maths teachers (they taught English as well!!).Mr D’Souza was a specialist in Additional Mathamatics (Trignometry ),and boy was he good .!!I cant even get down to explain how brilliant he was at his job .I remember him as a man who appeared as if he was always in a hurry .He walked briskly ,was bald and was lovingly called “Daddoo”!(as in frog ,because of his name D’Souza).He knew that he was nicknamed so and one day, as I went looking for him and asked someone in the corridors “Have you seen Daddoo yaar”, prompt came the reply from behind me “Yes ,I am right behind you”.!!Great man –though prone to losing his temper and sometimes raising his hand .He also was a wonderful musician who played the accordion on every conceivable occasion,and he was also the one who initiated me into debating .I am not going to get distracted here –otherwise the blog will never end .He came from Goa and had two distinguished sons –Phillip and Richard D’Souza
Then there was the science department and the man who headed it was like a God –not only for me ,but for generations of Josesphites .Mr G.C. Gupta .!How does one introduce a God ?I feel so defeated even attempting it Sir .I feel so inadequate at it .He was the most unique human being one could ever meet in life .And I would say that the world consists of two sets of people –those who met Gupta Sir ,and those who did not .Always wearing a Kashmiri topi ,fair (leucoderma ),a bachelor ,and a celebrity –no one who lived in Dehradun could miss him .I still remember the power of his reach and status.I had gone with my father to Elloras (at that time called Milkmaids),and as usual it was crowded .A lot of people were buying the normal bread ,butter ,eggs ,pastries etc .People were actually queued up and there was a lot of noise and chatter .Then ,in walked Mr Gupta to buy something .The queue actually disintegrated ,and there was pin drop silence .Everyone just stood –some with folded hands ,and all with smiles –and did the honours by asking him to take buy his stuff . “No ,but why should I not wait for my turn”,he replied .He was so surprised as to why the offer was being made to him in the first place .And inspite of my father almost cajoling him to break the queue (sorry Dad ,I am in no way trying to imply that you broke rules and conventions !!),Gupta Sir waited ,looking into the ceiling .A wonderful ,wonderful teacher ,he taught me Physics and Chemistry which I have not forgotten till today .He had written several books and he was a very energetic teacher .He was a man worthy of the respect and love that was bestowed on him .He lived with his mother near the Bindal Bridge .I was moved beyond words when I met his niece at a school reunion a couple of years back in Gurgaon .I asked her a lot of questions about his last days on earth which he strode like a colossus .When my Mom passed away ,he came home and embraced me .When my father passed away ,he embraced me at our house .When my brother got married and we gave a reception –he was there for it .!!He was like a father for all the Josephites .If the world deserved a bachelor –it was Mr G.C.Gupta .Because Gupta Sir could never be onwned by one woman ,or a set of children .He was the property of the world –just like the sun and the moon .!!
(To be Continued .I would like to add here ,that the views expressed on the blog are totally my personal views .I don’t expect everyone to agree with my perceptions .I also don’t want to enter into any debate .The blogs form a part of a book which is going to be released soon).
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