Saying good bye to my office staff

 As I  retired and was rready to leave on the last working day on 30th June, 2020, the most difficult moment to say good bye was to my office staff. I owe so much to Prasad, Dharavath Yugandhar  and Kotiah. What ever little I could achieve,a major share if the credit goes to these three. Prasad has been with me in this Journey for Women's Studies right from its inception. Prasad had joined my Centre for Women's Studies in the office in 2007 and I was not even having a room for the Centre. My history office worked as an office for the Centre too. Slowly, I could get a small room and Prasad, put a table and chair and we could get a desktop. Slowly we started admitting students into the Ph. D program and I could see how students flocked to him for all their work.What ever seminars and Conferences we organised he was central to the organisation of logistics from booking the Conference hall, making arrangements for tea, lunch etc. Then we moved to a bigger space and Prasad continued to be an asset for he did not shirk work and did what ever was told with a lot if sincerity. He had no hickups of even bringing tea cups inside and serving and I had to tell him not to do this for that is not his job and the canteen person can serve it. Prasad was in the journey when we got money to have our own building and finally have a separate Centre , the Malladi Subamna Centre for Women's Studies. In my forty years of experience in three Universities, Allahabad University, Maulana Azad National Urdu University and Hyderabad University, I have found him to be the best office staff one can dream of. Slowly in 2013 Yugandhar and Kotiah joined and even today most of my history students come to the Women's Studies office to get clarity. In the pandemic many call them too when they have an administrative roadblock and yesterday a history student called me from Jammu on some issue and said, Mam, I have spoken to Prasad Bhaiya and this is what he said.....Yesterday, they refused to leave me, they were so emotional, followed me to the Deans office and while I sat inside for more than half an hour taking to him, they waited outside. They were in tears and came to see me off near my car. I was very normal but you three moved me to tears and I finally realised that this inning has come to an end. They gifted me a beautiful Ganesh statue, knowing my fondness for Ganesh. I owe a lot to you three in all the administrative work that you carried out so efficiently and especially Prasad, words fail me. We as Heads and in other high positions get all the laurels and we hardly give credit to the people who help us from behind. You all are the silent workers and we cannot achieve much with out the force and support that you provide silently.Prasad, I will always remember with fondness your contribution to the Centre for Women's Studies in the University of Hyderabad. Yugandhar was posted to the main administrative building to work and Prasad,you were alone out here. You were my one man army.

My Last day at work in the University

 Some how  one gets so caaried away in this daily business of life  that many things get left over. The same happened with my blog. Finally I decided that now in 2021, I am again going to get back to my blog and start writing it. I will catch up on many of my earlier writings which are there on Facebook for it was easy to post on Facebook. Many developments occured in 2020. First of all, I retired on 30th June, after an academic career of 40 years in three Universities, Allahabad University,  Maulana Azad national Urdu University and Hyderabad University. As I started packing my books and emptying my cuboards from 1984, th most destreesed people were my students and the office staff. Little did I imagine then that life will cone to a standstill in march due to the pandemic. Hence, the day, i retired it was a quiet day and the University was closed due to the lockdown. 

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My, my, what a day, it was. The last day of my official duty and due to the pandemic, I thought, I will go quietly sign few papers and return home to get ready for the evening webinar at four. But, my students , Rizwan Ahmad,Pavithra Molugu, and Manu Jayas  had different plans. Pandemic or no pandemic, they were not going to let me have a quiet exit. I do not know, how the students manage to organise but they were able to get a cake, cold drinks some eatables and a big bouquet to the Centre for Women's studies. I really did not want them to waste their money but I knew there was no point telling them any thing for they will never listen to this. We had a grand party and I could see the history department also come and join. My Colleagues, Mnrajesh Mnrajesh Rajesh,Bhangya Bhukya,V.J. Varghese,, Anindita were all there. My students made me so emotional. I am so touched and, really it is moments like these that make me proud that I am a teacher and have been able to touch few lives.

Our Beautiful University Campus, 2020

 Our University of Hyderabad Campus in its full bloom and glory. It is indeed a pity that a year has only twelve months and a calender can select only twelve pictures one each for a month. I would want Ashish our PRO to think of a Calender with a picture for each day and I am sure there would be many more that would be submitted. It's high time we made a Coffee table book on our campus.

Good Bye uttrakhand

 As we say goodbye to Uttrakhand and travel via road to Delhi we are enveloped by a thick fog. The visibility even around eleven o clock is hardly 300 meters. There is a warning in Uttrakhand of a severe cold wave by the metrology department which is predicting a snowfall in Mukteswar, Nainital, Mussoorie from 23 rd December onwards. Good bye, Uttrakhand . A lovely trip and as I head home, to Hyderabad ,there is another kind of excitement to be back to the familiar sights and sounds.

Song from the film Masoom Shot at gagar ad Ramgarh

 Sharing the song of the Film Masoom shot by Shekhar Kapoor at Gagar, Ramgarh, Do Naina.... After the portion of Shabana is over and the camera zooms to the temple with Supriya Pathak and Jugal Hansraj. Thanks to you tube  and the film one can enjoy the natural beauty of Gagar for ever.When the film was shot the roof top of the temple was painted white but today it stands with a bright orange  in a stark contrast to the green surroundings. A visual treat to the eyes

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1NtFQHEZhQ

Gagar in Ramgarh

 Gagar in Ramgarh is another picturesque spot in the Kumaon hills, about seven thousand feet above sea levels. It is a very quiet secluded village but with a fantastic view of the Himalayas especially Nanda devi. One finds a lot of solitude here and if one is  quiet and pays attention to the sights and sounds surrounding us, one can hear the roaring of the wind and the whisper of the leaves. The area is surrounded by dense forests of deodar trees and one can peep down into a large number of valleys beneath. There is a small beautiful hill top Shiva temple whose bright orange top stands out amidst the green cover. This spot was made famous by Shekhar Kapoor when he shot his film Masoom and the song, Do nena aur ek kahani is shot here. After the portion of the song with Shaban Azami putting her two daughters to bed is over, the camera them moves to a shot of Jugal Hansraj and Supriya Pathak and both walk down the steps of the Gagar Shiva temple. Then the camera gives a shot of the thick forests, the Himalayas and the Nanda devi peak. The area is also surrounded by a large number or orchards.We stopped on the way and purchased some local wares made by a local artisans who had made beautiful bird houses and artifact's with the pine fruits available in the Jungles. A memorable spot and a place where one can admire nature and thank God for bestowing such beauty to our earth.

History Conference on Food.

 Finally a History Conference on Food. In history we have been talking  and discussing  so many issues but hardly any thing is heard about food. The H. K. Sherwani Centre for Deccan Studies at Maluana Aza National Urdu University in association with the United States India Education Foundation is organising a two day conference on Socio- Cultural assimilation and creation of native identity through food practices on 16 th and 17 th December. I am giving the key note address where I will look at the development of food practices, culture and ethos over the different periods in history. The organizer Salma Farooqui has brought in academicians, scholars and practitioners of food to deliberate on this issue. Looking forward to listening to some interesting papers on Food.