Bunking classes — those were the days

While admonishing my son on his low attendance in college the other day, it was but natural for me to reminiscence about my college days. Yes, we did bunk classes too but definitely not as outrageously as the present generation does. Naturally, Mayank tried his best to justify his dismal attendance with the flimsiest excuses possible... Boys tend to forget that their mothers are much smarter than them and then there is also the 'Been There Done That' factor to contend with!

Situated in a beautiful and idyllic location, St. Bede's was a home away from home for all of us staying in the hostel. Getting up early in the morning to attend classes was a challenge as the Shimla weather demanded that we continue to snuggle up deeper in our comforters but since we had strict nuns disciplining us and ensuring we followed all rules and regulations laid down, this was all but a forgotten dream and we acceded to sitting in our classes as all good girls should!

And the few times we did bunk, it was only because we were out basking in the sun on the numerous and comfortable wrought-iron benches situated strategically around the college campus, making us too lazy to walk and attend a class, or hunger pangs that had us gorging on 'channa-bhatoora' or 'bread pakoras' in the college canteen or setting out towards 'Pappiji ka Dhaba' situated in Sanjauli to eat stuffed 'paranthas' and guzzle down delicious cold coffee, or make a hurried dash to The Mall to catch a quick bite at Embassy and satiating our appetites with their famous burgers and tomato soup. But then all this depended on the amount of pocket money we had left with us.

So our attendance did falter at times but not that drastically as there was also a rather hefty fine for missing classes that was a dampener to all such evil thoughts! But, I must tell you that there was one class that usually had full attendance. And that was Sir Rana's English class. I know I never missed a single one and I think a majority didn't either. We sat through all his classes looking all 'goo-goo' eyed and listening intently to every word. 

If I can still rattle off quotes from Shakespeare's works and recite whole paragraphs of John Keats and Lord Byron's poetry and appreciate literature to date, it is all thanks to Sir Rana and his charismatic teaching. I distinctly remember that I scored the highest marks in this subject and completed all my assignments with minimal effort and dedication. Blame it all on Sir Rana's enigmatic personality.

This takes me back to one such class, where for some reason, only half the class was in attendance. But as loyal friends usually do, we tried to cover up the other's absence during roll call by shouting out, "Present Sir" a couple of times too many. There was a pin-drop silence when Sir Rana raised his head from the register and said, "Interesting to note that I have full attendance today when nearly half the class is missing!" As good friendships go, you must give us the benefit of being the best as we had covered up our tracks a little too meticulously than was necessary. Since it was indeed a rather amusing situation, it was not surprising to see Sir Rana's face break into a smile and we thus could breathe again and have a good laugh.