Book, Education in South Asia and the Indian Ocean Islands

 Today early in the morning on 29th December, I received by post  the book, Education in South Asia and the Indian Ocean Islands which is edited by Hema Letchamanan and Debotri Dhar published by Bloomsbury, U. K. I have an article on Madrasas as an enduring space for Muslim girls in this. This is an interesting book which has articles on Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka Comoros Island, Maldives, Mauritius, Seychelles and Zanzibar on contemporary education. It will take me some time to read all the articles but the book certainly looks very gripping. I have written in many books and keep getting books at regular intervals but I am very excited on being a part of this book for Debotri is the daughter of a very dear friend of mine from Allahabad days. Debotri has emerged as a bright up coming scholar of Gender studies with some very interesting work on Gender and currently teaches in the University of Michigan, USA. I have yet to meet her. Ratna Dhar  her mother and I were class mates in Allahabad in BA. and in MA I joined history and she English Literature. We were neighbours and would often  drive our cycles to meet each other and discuss everything under the sky. She stayed with her grandmother and I have some lovely memories of that beautiful house where we would sit and chat for hours together. We were also very concerned about the future and in which direction it would take us. I did  not know then that Feminism could be a discipline which one can study for it never existed though the things happening  around us related to women and  girls did affect us and we were very much sensitive to these and many other issues. Ratna little did I imagine then that I would be writing  a chapter for a book edited by your daughter. So proud of you and her.