All of you must write a one page summary of the program "Indru oru thagaval", announced our tamizh teacher. Not any Tamizh teacher, but it was dhothi-wearing one with Bharati-moustache who will scare even the toughest son-of-gun in the class. I, being the meeker one, was already putting sidelines and getting ready with the notebook.
One small hurdle to be crossed. It was program timing. It was at 5.55-6AM everyday! After all these years, it is obvious now what our teacher's intention was. But for a boy who care a lot about morning sleep and less about "learning", it was a tough to solve problem.
My dad was assigned with the role of human alarm. He being the early riser and my strict dad, did not help my cause. "Wake up" the sound woke me like a jolt. Radium on the clock showed 4.30AM. Appa, I cried. It is at 5.55AM and not 4.55AM. "I know" my dad replied, but you could use this peaceful time to study. Huh??? To add insult to injury, I was ordered not to read aloud!
After what felt like eons, the program actually started. Even with all those frustrations I thought what was told in that program made perfect sense even for my groggy head.
Now all is left was to summarize the content. But that is easier said than done. First I summarized it in 2 sentences. That is not enough is it? I tried dragging the sentence and leaving enough space between the words and lines (that could have fit fresh essay in them). Finally I managed to write up an entire page.
Our teacher want us to do everyday for that entire year. Not sure what I did. But I vaguely remember this, though I cribbed on the days I get to listen/write and did co-ordinate copies (I would like to think of sharing the load..or team work) on the days I could not manage.
I certainly loved the content which cranked the thinking part of my brain which till that point I did not realise that it existed.
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5 comments:
Yes, I do remember Ramanan Aiyah (for those who are linguistically unaware, this is not the "Aiyah Jolly" type, but rather the "Vanakkam Aiyah" type)... Though I havent attended his class (being in B section), I have heard a lot about him.
I think some of the very simple things like that shape people's life... I do remember Arulazhagan master who really had an impact on me when I was in school...
Reminds me of the Tamil teacher we had in school. He used to yell "Kolakkara!" when someone made a mistake, I could hear it from two classrooms away.
In contrast, my Hindi Teacher would often say, "Kis moorkh ne tumhe Hindi sikaya". My brother who had the same teacher once answered his question, "Sir, aapne sikaya" and he was so spell bound and would repeat that occurence in many classes thereafter!
Nice article. Took me down the memory lane too!
This is another one of those stories that I never tire of listening to. I can very well imagine your dad waking you up an hour earlier to study! Well written - I guess you managed to get everyone slightly nostalgic with this post.
In our school, our english teacher was the best. She made a difference and put extra efforts to bring out the best in her students.
I wonder, do they still have that program in Radio ? I remember, watching it on TV. Cant forget "Indru oru thagaval" jokes and information.
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