school Archives

An Ode to Tuition Teachers… From a “Slow Learner”

After I flunked a dozen-odd kindergarten interviews, I was told by my parents that I’ll spend more time with my preschool tuition teachers – Julie Miss and Rosy Miss. I may not have learned my letters and my poems, but I learned something – and that something was imagination.

Sonali Kokra July 23, 2016

Culture

Raksha Bandhan in Co-Ed Schools: An Enforced Ritual for Involuntary Bro-Zoning

Raksha Bandhan remains a painful memory for many of us because of the involuntary “bro zoning” that went on in co-ed schools. Teachers would ensure that girls tied rakhis on the wrists of their male classmates, rendering any other relationship between them illicit.

Jackie Thakkar July 15, 2016

Gender

The Gurgaon Woman’s Misogyny is a By-Product of Slut-Shaming in Schools

In a now viral video, a Gurgaon woman is seen slut-shaming a girl, saying she and her friends “deserved to be raped” because of the clothes she wore. It reminded me of the culture of aunty establishment that has always been prevalent in our schools, where girls were reprimanded for the length of their uniforms.

Jackie Thakkar July 14, 2016

Love and Sex

My Teacher, My Lover

KS taught me in high school, playing Higgins to my Eliza Doolittle. Over time, though, we became intimate. I now wonder about the moral and legal boundaries of that experience.

Amit Tandon July 8, 2016

POV

Too Cool for School: What I Learned from Being Homeschooled in Mumbai

Most kids complain about their grades, their history homework, their annoying PT sir. Being homeschooled, I complained about being taught embroidery and having to draw the entire history of ancient Rome in charcoal. But most annoying were the aunties who asked the question, “Do you have any friends?"

Viveka Shah June 22, 2016

Sports

Liverpool FC: Always the Best Man, Never the Groom

This season, under the leadership of real-life Santa Claus Jurgen Klopp, Liverpool FC finished second in the English Premier League. Of course, putting up the club’s highest individual total in premier league history (97 points), and losing just one game in 38, wouldn’t be enough...

#VALUE! June 15, 2016

Culture

Open House Day: When Teachers Turn Into Monsters

For students who’ve just got their results, Open House Day or the final PTA meeting is that time of the year when the teachers snitch on the students. This dreaded occasion goes by many names, such as Dard-e-Diwas, Yellallympics, or, as Terminator fans would say, Judgement Day.

Nihal Bambulkar June 4, 2016

Love and Sex

There’s No Love Like Puppy Love

Where are the days of puppy love? In a horribly adult age when most relationships are easily labelled “complicated”, I long for the kind of love driven by impulses, immature promises, and the constant blip of hormones.

Nihal Bambulkar May 20, 2016

POV

It Takes Just One Teacher To Change Your Life

When my parents expected me to pursue medicine, my tuition teacher pointed out to my mother that I had a flair for English. Today, I find myself in this beautiful place in life where I tell stories for a living. It’s true: All it takes is one person to believe in you.

Karima Khan May 2, 2016

Modern Family

Confessions of a Backbencher Mom

Have I failed as a mother if my son is not acing every single life experience just because I chose chor-police over chess mastery?

Sharan Saikumar April 24, 2016