Caught red handed by Botany Professor
I was not very keen to attend the Botany and Chemistry classes for I had come to know that you just need to somehow pass – get 35 marks – for it is not added in the Final Exam marks. That was it ! I had learnt all these new tricks only after coming to Kolkata – people here always refer to the previous year Question paper and prepare accordingly – they had done so in their Board Exams as well – I had never done this – I used to mug up the entire syllabus !! How foolish of me !!
Anyways I used to bunk those classes and maybe loiter in the College Ground or maybe take a quick nap in the hostel – although I always used to be with Kakoli – but in case she was absent then I used to go to sleep in the Hostel.
One day the last 3 periods were of Zoology Practicals – I was running up the stairs when our Botany Professor – PD – most probably – was coming down. She saw me and recognized me as well !She said – You there – where were you? Why did you not attend the class?
I was dumbfounded – I could not even say that I was not feeling well etc. for I was running with full force towards my Class . She just mentioned this – If you fail in the Pass subject – you will have to repeat the class – are you aware of this? I just looked down – had nothing to say actually !!
Another instance was with the English Professor – she was very attractive lady and pretty smart as well. We had to complete 40 classes or so of English or else we would not be allowed to sit for the Part I Exam ! So one day she was taking our Attendance and I kinda hovered behind her back and started counting my number of days – she just turned around and gave me a real dirty look – but cooled down and asked what exactly I was trying to do. I told her that I was counting how many more days are left for me to attend – actually she looked straight into my eyes and I had no time …nor the brains to cook up any story other than this !!
One day a sudden Botany Practical Test was taken and I knew nothing of it !! I mounted the stem/root/leaf – whatever – I do not remember well – on Mustard Oil ! I remember the teachers were screaming with shocked expressions and I was called in for explanation – they were all laughing actually – and all of them knew of my ‘missing stunt’ at Gir, Gujrat. We later went to Mukut Manipur with the botany Students for a one day excursion! When the Professor was announcing – she looked my way – Kakoli also used to sit with me – and said – No need to worry – you’ll not get lost this time !!
There were stories of ‘Ditching’ and ‘Dumping’
Often the girls who just knew me but were not very close to me, used to say that I must have had some 100 boy friends etc – for they used to think that I am pretty outgoing and smart ! Well folks! You know my life till date – not a single good looking man came in my life – till my 12 th class – obviously I was busy with the Boards and the boys of our class were just our rivals !
In fact we used to say in Class 12 th that the boys of our class were lucky – for they could ‘eye’ girls from Class 8 th onwards whereas we were just stuck with around 12 -15 boys of our class …and no one even worth having an affair with! To this comment of ours, the boys used to thank their Lucky stars for even they found us utterly boring ! In fact I think that co-education is a much more healthier way to grow up for we come to know about the psychology of boys pretty well…and vice versa too. We get awarded for the same reasons, punished for the same reasons ….we exchange notes – sometimes we manage to behave well with the boys also – its not that we were ‘ Lockhorns’ all the time !! So this way the opposite sex is not considered such a big deal……as Girls from ‘Girls’ School think them to be…and boys from Boys’ School think girls to be !
The reason is pretty simple ! the girls and boys from non-co-ed. background judge and come to know about the opposite sex – either through cousins or through novels, movies, TV Serials etc…and we all know that such media is ‘utter bullshit’ (please refer my Views and reviews on Cinema in this site ) – the Follywood Directors are just making money. Period. The Authors have a tendency to introduce as much pain and perversion to make it a Best seller . Period. But the young heart and mind thinks that ‘what the movies show is the Ultimate truth’ – for it is the most effective medium of communication !! Thus the current state of affairs – the Lioness falling for a Rabbit and the Horse falling for a Pussy Cat…how long can they live under the same roof eh? And just imagine the progeny – the mixed breed of a Lioness and a Rabbit …do you understand now folks? Why on Earth isn’t anyone happy? Complete Mismatch – that’s it !!
Therefore I would suggest that such schools should invite the opposite school for Debates, Skits, Fest, Fairs so that boys and girls interact face to face and not imagine what the other person would be like! Let them meet and know each other. And please do not cite a single mms example and create a hype about it – just one or two stray incidents cannot – should not snatch away the small amusements of people ! And in fact even if they fall in love – please let them do so – that is normal. An 18 years old boy can fall in love with a 16 years old girl – they can marry later…. instead of a 21 years young girl becoming the bride of some 48 years old haggard man just because he has a good bank balance !!
Anyways, I diverted from the topic ! So after 4-6 months, I came to know some girls more closely and then I heard real life stories – which really did shock me – it was more or less like some ‘Z’ grade movie stories …like the kinds of ‘Javaani solah saal ki’….’Bhigi jawaani’…the cheap movie posters that one can see while traveling by road in a car or bus …and if the same person happens to possess brains as well – then he/she will bloody well understand what exactly will be the content of such a movie !!
I heard instances of how certain girls went ahead and did the needful – you know – the entire process etc. and even got pregnant!- had aborted !!! and had got pregnant again !! Well (deep sigh) it takes all sorts to make this World I guess – so we used to hear the stories and I was amazed to see some such girls – later when I knew of her background – well I simply couldn’t believe that middle class girls could be so shameless and bold !! I mean getting pregnant before wedlock etc. is heard in 2 classes – either the very rich and shameless – like the people connected to the Glamour World – for constantly viewing semi nude girls, men cannot really be blamed for ‘humping’ them….and the extremely poor and down trodden – for they are not educated – they do not know the essence of Literature and do not understand the subtle natural beauties of life – they just know how to proliferate for that is the only entertainment they have in life – no electricity…TV…books nothing !!
Later I understood why the name of the entire College gets tarnished – for there are some such kinds of frustrated , perverts everywhere maligning the society at large – so probably the reason why I heard such rumors about Brabourne when I was about to join the College !!
Anyway some of such ‘bold’ girls were not even smart and good looking – so it was understood that they were ‘dumped’ after proper…improper usage – Use and Throw – but there were some girls who were smart and good looking as well….but even they were dumped….or maybe vice versa ! – I wondered how some men have the heart to let go of someone so smart and good looking ! It really made me delve in the Male psychology – for I though that if he (Men) can dump pretty faces and devastating figures as well…then where do I stand ?…what if my husband leaves me after marriage?!…such questions always played on my mind !
A very sad case of Marriage !
There was a very petty girl in the Physics Department in our hostel. She was a bit dark but had extremely beautiful features – in one word – She was ‘beautiful’ ..and very decent as well. She was of a very shy nature – like even if non-veg jokes were discussed among us girls – she used to quietly leave the room and go from there ! such was her decency !
Her parents found a groom for her and got her married off in a lot of hurry – he was most probably a Doctor in the Defense !I saw his snap and found him to be very ugly – nothing compared to her – but since she was a very quiet kind of a girl – she must have just agreed.
She came back after 2 months – and I was with Seema – my room mate and looked at her in a kind of a teasing manner – and asked her how she spent her honeymoon etc. She barely managed to smile- she looked real sad. I made this comment to Seema – how come she is looking so sad – usually girls are supposed to look all glowing after honeymoon !
Later we came to know that she had applied for Divorce – after 3 months of marriage ! He turned out to be a ‘nymphomaniac’ – he used to loiter in his house in just a tiny underwear – right in front of his parents and they said nothing to him ! – then he expected her to be an ‘adept’ in the ‘humping process’ for he was under the impression that girls in Girls College / Hostel are heavily into all this ‘sex’ related nonsense – thanks to the Film world here – for showing semi-nude bitches gyrating on the pole all the 24×7 hours of the day…what else will men understand of a woman ?!…initially it was just the ‘vamp’ but nowadays its worst – for the Lead Actress is seen wearing a bikini in the entire movie !
She was too shocked for words ! It was such a traumatic incident in her life !!We all felt very sad for her !! If only her parents had found out more from the neighborhood then probably she would have been saved from this torture ! Later when they were trying for Divorce – then the neighborhood people came forward and agreed that he was ‘abnormal’ after all …although how come he worked in the Defense as a Doctor is still a mystery to me…maybe he was clever enough to ‘hide’ his disease in Public !!So folks !! appearances can be so deceptive !!
A dead crow in the water tank – Inauspicious Symbol.
Part II came and my days in the college – hostel were numbered. We were all preparing for the exam. The first 3 theoretical papers went well – and I scored pretty well in that – although others could hardly get good marks in it. But the most scoring paper was of Genetics & Cell Biology – we had prepared sure shot questions ! Translation and Transcription was to come and I had beautiful point wise notes and diagrams on them. I had prepared them very well during our preparatory holidays. Everything was just fine …but Gods had a different plan.
The day before the genetics paper I went to take a bath and I could feel that the water was smelling awful. Thinking that its just my illusion – I took a bath and came out – not feeling particularly fresh . That evening while we were strolling in the Hostel premises, we saw some of the workers on the terrace who were cleaning the Water tank – they took out a dead crow from the tank ! I felt like puking and I understood that I was right after all when I was feeling puckish while taking a bath.
That evening I sat to study and I could not proceed further than ‘ Mitochondria’ – I just got stuck to it – I just had to brush up – through all the topics – I had prepared them all very well –I was very happy with my previous 3 papers for I had done very well in the most difficult papers – and Genetics was always the easiest !!
But I just got stuck to Mitochondria – then suddenly I took out Cheiros’ Guide to Hand and started reading it ! Seema – my room mate was also studying when she noticed that I was reading Cheiro’s – she asked me whether I had a paper on Palmistry the next day ! She was also a Libran and was an adept in sarcasm. I put the book down and tried to concentrate in Zoology – failed to – went off to sleep. I woke up and remembered that I had not touched Genetics at all – I wanted to open the notes and study – but had no time !
I just went for the Paper. We got the Question Paper – all the questions were known to us – it was the easiest paper – all girls were smiling – but I had forgotten everything – my mind was totally blank – I felt like crying – Jhilli was beside me – she looked at my facial expression and mentioned that why I looked so sad ? I had no words – my mind was just a blank sheet of paper !!I wanted to break down there – Mitochodria had also come – I attempted that – and was going on writing on that only – for I remembered nothing else – I attempted few more questions and that’s all !! I got some 48 in this paper whereas all the other girls – even the ones below average got 85 plus !! – since it was the most scoring paper – my percentage went down drastically – I got 57% – not eligible for M.SC.
The bigger picture – couldn’t get 1 st division in B.Sc.
Well folks – I never was interested in M.Sc. to be very frank ! but the typical Bengali family that I belong to – had I got a 1 st Div. which was very possible – for that year most of my batch-mates got M.SC – thanks to the extremely easy paper on Genetics – I would have had to take M.SC. !! Well – I would have had to stay in some girls’ hostel and complete 2 years of M.Sc. and probably become a Chasmish (specy with spectacles) Professor in some College – what a terribly ‘yuk’ idea!!
And moreover I had to go to Ambala folks – the major Turning Point of my life ! Punjab has definitely a special significance in my life – born in Chandigarh ( Chandi + Garh = Abode of Goddess Chandi – Kali or Durga : The name ‘Chandigarh’ was kept by the great Sikh Saint – Shri Guru Nanak ji) and ‘bowled out’ completely and spiritually in Ambala ( Amba + Alaya = Abode of Maa Amba – Durga)!!
Ambala – where I got formally introduced to the MAN of the era – Swami Vivekananda …through his Complete Works.
