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The Cathedral & John Connon Alumni Magazine

The

2011

CLASS NOTES REUNIONS IN MEMORIAM TEACHER UPDATES

SPOTLIGHT

Malavika SarukkaiDavid SopherTHE BIG BOOK

An Undefiled Heritage

ALUMNI EVENTS

Celebrating TogetherTHE BIG IDEA

Medical Benefit Scheme


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ContentPresidents Messages

School Update

Celebrating 150 Years

The Big Idea

The Big Book

Spotlight

David Sopher

Malavika Sarukkai

Pioneers

Fleur Ezekiel

Changing Tracks

Rajeev Samant

Off the Shelf

Ashwin Sanghi

Teacher Updates

In Memoriam

Reunions

Class Notes

Editorial TeamMiel Sahgal (ISC 1989)

Udita Jhunjhunwala (ICSE 1984)

Shyla Boga Patel(ISC 1969)

Mukeeta Jhaveri (ISC 1983)

Mitali Anand Kalra (ISC 1989)

BusinessRohita Chaganlal Doshi (ISC 1975)

Design and PrintingRishita Chandra, Nikunj Parikh

Spenta Multimedia

This magazine is not for sale and is intended for internal circulation only. Amaterial from this magazine may not be reproduced in part or whole witho

written consent. Views and opinions expressed in this magazine are thoseindividual authors and not necessarily those of the Publishers.

Published by The Cathedral and John Connon Alumni Association, 6, P.T. MMumbai 400 001 and printed at Spenta Multimedia, Peninsula Spenta, MaMill Compound, Lower Parel, Mumbai 400 013. www.spentamultimedia.c

Our thanks to Mitali and Pankaj Kalra for their support.

Cover picture:History is captured through the lens of Raja Deen Dayal, cThe girls of the new Cathedral Girls School are congregated outside the sbuilding with the Sisters of the All Saints Community who superintended1883. Photograph from An Undefiled Heritage

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X-Cathedralite 2011

The Executive Committee looks foryour active involvement with the AsPlease do contact us on the CathedrHelpline (99305 77120) or through ou

www.catalumni.com

Executive Comm

2010 - 2011

Office Bearers

PresidentMukeeta Jhaveri(ISC 1983, Savage)

Vice-PresidentsRohita Chaganlal Dosh

(ISC 1975, Wilson)

Miel Sahgal(ISC 1989, Palmer)

TreasurerChitra Rajkumar

(1956, Savage)

SecretaryUdita Jhunjhunwala

(ICSE 1984, Barham)

Committee Members (ex-o

PrincipalMrs. Meera Isaacs

Shyla Boga Patel(ISC 1969, Savage)

Viral Doshi(ISC 1975, Palmer)

Committee MembersAmit Advani

(ISC 1994, Palmer)

Bibhash Asar(ICSE 1986, Palmer)

Gautam Shewakraman(ISC 2001, Savage)

Pragni Kapadia(ISC 1994, Palmer)

Prakash Thadani(ISC 1969, Savage)

Vikram Kothari(ISC 1974, Palmer)

o my fellow alumni,

May I begin by introducing myself: Mukeeta Jhaveri nee Kataria,Savageite and Head Girl (ISC 83), married to Pramit Jhaveri(HSC 81). Our kids, Nynika (Standard 11) and Prithvir

(Standard 9) keep us connected with our alma mater.Te great thing about Cathedral is the more it changes the more it stays

the same. I get a ringside seat of how the School respects history, traditionand values. Speech Day and Founders Day always bring back tears of prideand nostalgia. Yet the School recognises the benefits of a contemporaryglobal learning experience. Cathedralites today have access to sciencecamps in NUS Singapore, Model UN Programs at Harvard, MI, Chicagoand Beijing, Summer School at Stanford and Cambridge and scuba divingin Lakshadweep, among others.

Catalumni supports the Annual Cathedral Summer School at Manori.Te 10th edition this year saw record participation with 50 children fromthe Middle School engaging with 25 children from Manori village over

a week. Activities included astronomy, pottery, robotics, music, dance,football, kite-making, art and farming with top-quality resources includingTe Shiamak Davar Dance Academy and Anish Andheria from Sanctuarymagazine, amongst a host of others. Te camp provides extraordinaryreciprocal learning opportunities for both sets of kids. While the

Association subsidises the participation of the island children, it is reallythe untiring enthusiasm and meticulous planning by Shyla for over adecade that has made the Summer School an eagerly anticipated event onthe school calendar.

Te coffee morning for retired teachers was well attended as theywelcomed the pilot Retired eachers Medical Benefit Scheme and theopportunity of reconnecting with colleagues.

We had a fun get-together at Olive over cocktails on September 14 whenalumni enjoyed A.D. Singhs unique brand of generous hospitality to thefullest. After a hiatus of a year, the annual Alumni bash was held at BlueSea on Sunday, November 13 over Brunch.

Last year was an action-packed, event-filled year as we marked the150th year celebrations. Tis year we would like to consolidate and buildour network by creating vibrant chapters around the world, based on yourregistrations on the catalumni.com website. Suggestions and volunteers forchapter champions are very welcome.

You can also look forward to a new upgraded website where you cannetwork better with fellow alums. We are optimistic that we can establisha payment gateway to enable those of you who are still Indian citizens todonate generously with the click of a button.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Viral and Shyla fortheir stewardship and look forward to their continued mentorship. Inestablishing the eachers Medical Benefit Scheme at extraordinary effort,Shyla and Bibhash have provided us with an avenue to repay, in a smallway, the huge debt of gratitude we owe our teachers. As for the rest of thecommittee, a zealous band of committed folks, I have great expectationsfrom you in scaling up the scope and functioning of Catalumni.

Mukeeta JhaveriPresident (2010-11)

2011 Te X

Dear Alumni,

As Co-Presidents, we have had the privilege tohead this Association at a memorable time. Te150th year meant different things to different

people, but what came shining through was the amazingamaraderie and affection that this institution hasnstilled in all of us. We came from okyo and oronto,

Nairobi and Nagpur; alumni and teachers, bondedike never before. Generations of Cathedralites cameogether; grandchildren stood next to grandparents andang the School song. Te Cathedral spirit has left us

overwhelmed. And we believe it will never die.We have had many events during this year: we

tarted off on November 14, 2009, with a huge crowdand a wonderful dinner at Blue Sea. Te night hadall the ingredients of a bash of this kind; noise, some

mayhem, great music and food, and many excited peals ofyouuuuuuuuuu, I cant believe it. Of course, you cant,m 40 years older!

Tat evening we also felicitated 20 retired teachers,who had taught in the School for 25 years or more bypresenting them with a salver. We believe this gesturewas really appreciated and it gave u s a feeling thatapart from the camaraderie generated that night by thealumni, many wonderful teachers felt recognised for theirdedication, and the love we had received from them.

In keeping with this sentiment we decided to focus onomething lasting and enduring to commemorate 150

years: we launched a Retired eachers and Staff MedicalBenefit Scheme (see page 10). Our aim was to collectR150 lakhs (one lakh for each year of the School).

owards this Scheme, we had a fund-raiser: a veryelegant and extremely well-attended evening, at the

PRESIDENTS MESSAGES

Executive Committee Members 2011, from left to right: Viral Doshi, Bibhash Asar, Miel Sahgal, Prakash Thadani, Shyla Boga Patel, Vikram Kothari, Mukeeta Jhaveri,Gautam Shewakramani, Udita Jhunjhunwala. Missing from the picture are Committee Members Rohita Chaganlal Doshi, Chitra Rajkumar, Amit Advani and Pragni Kapadia

Crystal Room, aj Mahal Hotel, Mumbai, with our mosteloquent alumnus, Fareed Zakaria, as speaker. We arevery grateful to Fareed for being with us and helping u s toswell our coffers for this cause.

We also had a really great evening at Olive, Mahalaxmi,Mumbai where spirits were high and the music sublime.It was such fun! Tank you A.D.

We had a day-night cricket match against the Schoolteam, which they won; but our day will come! Tis wasfollowed by the golf tournament and then the big eveningat the urf Club which over 1,500 alumni attended onNovember 13, 2010.

Te 150th year celebrations ended on November 14,2010, with a truly moving and magical evening ChurchService, followed by high tea at the Senior School.

We are especially deeply grateful to Chitra, Rohita,Miel, Bibhash and Rama for their warmth and unstintinghard work and also to the entire Executive Committee forworking so harmoniously and propping us up wheneverneeded, making our tenure as Co-Presidents a pleasure.

We sincerely hope that more and more young alumniwill join us and take the Association to a new high. Tis

Association is but an extension of the finest day-schoolin the country, and needs new blood to make it the finest

Alumni Association in India.We have indeed been fortunate in having received the

warmth and appreciation of all those alumni who havetouched our lives over the decades.

Tank you.- Shyla Boga Patel and Viral Doshi

Co-Presidents (2008 - 2010)


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X-Cathedralite 2011 2011 Te X

SCHOOL UPDATE SCHOOL UP

Looking BACKMrs. Meera Isaacs, Principal, shares the highlights of Cathedrals 150th year

We are in the process ofrecovering from the yearswhirlwind celebrations and

are finally able to draw a collectivebreath of relief. Te past year hasruly been a blitzkrieg of events

month after exciting month. Apartrom the parents, teachers andtudents who contributed in every

way possible, the group of people whodeserve our unstinted appreciation

and gratitude is our Board ofGovernors each member a stalwartn his field, under the able leadership

of our Chairman, Mr. . Tomas. TeSchool has been able to retain itsmpeccable reputation largely because

of their wisdom and vision.Te fact that Cathedral is an

enriching and happy place, is borneout by the fact that a good number ofts teaching faculty choose to retire

unbelievable score of 98.63 per cent.At the ISC 2010-11 Examination

of the 106 candidates, 53 placedin the 90s, 45 in the 80s and theremaining eight in the 70s. AfterSchool hours, a number of studentstake the Advanced PlacementProgramme which has a separatecachet for US universities, the figuresfor which have grown to 102 thisyear, from the 2010 number of 80.

Out of a batch of 106 students, 70school leavers applied to institutionsof higher education overseas. Asusual, the US is the lodestar, with theUK, Canada and Singapore takingsecond place. At the College Board

our students have continued tomaintain high scores with a meanSA Reasoning score of 2,000 out ofa maximum of 2,400, as compared tothe world-wide score of approximate1,500.

A hundred and six bright-eyedyoungsters stand on the threshold ofnew and exciting challenges. Tey arepart of Indias golden brigade; I trustthey will return to their homelandas leaders in their respective fieldsto become agents ofmajor social change andto give back to societysome measure of whatthey received in suchabundance.

Despite the timespent on the 150thyear celebrations, thechildren gave an excellentaccount of themselves in

practising and playinghard and bagging avariety of trophiesalong the way in thesports arena..

Incidentally, ina Frontline survey, theCathedral School atLonavala which is in itsinfancy, was adjudgedone of the three bestresidential schools in

the country and the Number Oneboarding school in the westernregion.

Te first Fulbright eacher Exchangewas well appreciated by both schools.Mr. Jason Cervenec from theWorthington School, Ohio was like abreath of fresh air with his innovative

teaching methods, while our teMrs. Vatsala Kaul awed her Amcounterparts into sending herback with the prestigious Imp

Award from the Board of EducWorthington Schools, Ohio.

A fortnight in August wasearmarked for students ofStandard 11 to attend the ReaCambridge Summer Schoolprogramme conducted at CambUniversity. Te Sunburst YouthCamp in Singapore continues tinspirational for our students oStandard 11. Nineteen of our 2student entries from Standardand 10 were selected by Warwito participate in the WarwickInternational Gateway for Gift

Youth the highest number orepresentatives from one schofrom international participantdiversity of imaginative courseon offer Philosophical Probin Law, and Medical Sciences Shakespeare being just two ex

Te Eumind (Europe meetsprogramme got off to a fabulostart. Over the year, six Standstudents worked through E-Jowith their counterparts in a scBrussels which culminated in week visit to the Netherlands the summer.

Ms. Vaz, Mrs. Ganguly, Mrs. Isaacs, Mrs. Khanduri and Mrs. Shroff with Homi Khushrukh

alumnus and Governor on the Board

Te President of India, Shrimati Pratibha Patil, releasing a commemorative postage stamp of the school

Mrs. Isaacs releasing the

landmark book on the history of

the school at the gala dinner at

the urf Club

from the School rather than searchfor supposedly greener pastures.Tis year, we bade farewell to fivesuch committed members of staff.Our Senior School Headmistress Mrs. Rekha Khanduri retired aftera 21-year stint, the gracious Mrs.Ketaki Mazumdar, the Pre-PrimaryHeadmistress and Presidentsawardee was with us for 24 years,Mrs. Monica Sarin, teacher of the

Infant School, worked for 28 years,and Mrs. Neeta Kumar and Mrs.Sudha Chopra of the Middle Schoolput in 21 and 18 years respectively.

All these dedicated ladies gavethemselves wholeheartedly to theircalling.

I also take this opportunityto welcome, among others, ourtwo Vice-Principals, Mrs. JyotsnaMayadas and Mrs. Nalini Samuel who

have joined us from other schools.Both have impeccable credentials andhave already begun to feel at home intheir new environment; while Mrs.Rekha alpade who is a Cathedralveteran of 13 years standing wasgroomed by Mrs. Mazumdar to beher worthy successor.

Over the past year four formerfaculty members passed away Mrs.Cabral who was Head Mistress of the

Girls School in the mid-60s, Mrs.Dev and Mrs. Vasantha Subramanian both Headmistresses of theMiddle School and Mr. Pande Housemaster of Palmer House. Mr.

Anand our photographer for almosthalf a century also succumbed tofailing health. With their passinganother page in the history of ourSchool has been turned.

Each section of the School, fromthe Pre-Primary and Infant throughthe Junior and Middle School,works towards the final CathedralSchool product if one maylabel it so! Each has its own flavourand colour, each contributes withverve and panache to the greaterCathedral experience: whetherit be the relatively mundane butessential 3Rs, or the more excitingespousal of drama, dance, music, art,environmental studies, educational

trips and camps, science and mathsOlympiads or community serviceprogrammes. Te efforts of eachsection especially this year, have beenphenomenal.

At the ICSE 2010-2011Examinations, we sent up 146candidates of whom 76 placed in the90+ category, 51 in the 80s, 1 4 in the70s and five in the 60s. Raahil Shahwon the coveted honour of being thehighest scoring candidate with the


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X-Cathedralite 2011 2011 Te X

At the prestigious Londonnternational Youth Science Forum

2010, Arzav Jain and Vivek Merchantof Standard 12 were the only two

epresenting India from among 300participants from 46 countries.

Despite the heavy pressures on theSchool year, we simply could not passup the chance to send our studentsand an accompanying teacher for aweek to the Andaman Islands to studyhe diverse and unique eco-systems,o undergo a r igorous scuba-divingourse and successfully complete their

practical and theoretical assessmentso qualify as internationally-certified

one-star divers.Another new venture was to send

a group to Cape Canaveral, USA toexperience the thrill of space flighthrough motion-based simulators,

multimedia shows and numeroushands-on displays.

Te Cathedral Model UnitedNations, an entirely student-runaffair and the oldest conference ofts kind in the Indian subcontinentame of age, as it were, in its 14th

year. About 400 students fromboth national and internationalchools participated. A few monthsater, a Cathedral delegation of 21tudents and two teachers madets annual journey to Harvard forhe Harvard Model United Nations

where our team was adjudged theBest International Delegation.Another group of students had theopportunity to attend one more

MUN in the States, this time the oneat MI. Tey too returned in triumphwith 14 awards.

December 2010 saw the

culmination of student enthusiasmat the annual music concert, Encore.Te event, organized and hostedentirely by the students of Standard11, gives the Schools aspiringmusicians, singers and dancers achance to showcase their talents whilenotching up their all-too evident self-confidence. raditionally, the concertraises funds for two NGOs that theSchool supports VOICE and YUVA,the latter which had its genesis in theMumbai floods of 2003 and continuesto be largely run by young ex-studentsof the School. Tis year was nodifferent. R11 lakhs raised solely bystudent effort was divided betweenthe two organisations.

I must mention four highlightsof the years festivities. First, wewere privileged as an institutionof learning to have no less thanthe Honble President of India,Shrimati Pratibha Patil release acommemorative postage stampof the School designed by Mrs.

Ayesha Soonawalla, in the presenceof political luminaries, a galaxyof Cathedral well-wishers andstakeholders. Secondly, Dinesh

Vazirani - Head Boy of 1985 and histeam from Saffron Art curated anart auction at Te aj Mahal Hotel.Months of planning culminated in ascintillating evening where parents,

alumni and friends of the Schooloutdid themselves in lightening theirpockets for a new school building.

Tird, I would like to make special

mention of the Founders Week andthe School Play which brought underthe arclights talent that had beenhidden under the proverbial bushel.Written and directed by Roshan

Abbas the play, Gifted showcasedin song and dance, the essence ofSchool life. Our current Standard 12students, deserve plaudits for theirpassion, commitment and loyalty tothe School. I congratulate them onupholding the standards of Cathedralby living the credo of the School songSchool first self last. And fourthly,the official History of the School,An Undefiled Heritage written byformer students Mridula Maluste Class of 73 and Viral Doshi Class of75, designed by Gita Simoes Classof 59 and released in the presence ofover 2,000 well-wishers of the Schoolat a gala dinner at the urf Club onNovember 13, 2010. Te tome is amarvel of meticulous and painstakingresearch and documentation. Wecongratulate them on transforming alabour of love into reality and givingthe School a collectors item. Whilethe majority of us were at the urfClub, our Headmistress, Mrs. K.Mazumdar was in Delhi to accept thefour Education World-C Fore Awardsthat the School won for the year 2010 Te Best Day School, Best Faculty,Best Management and Best Alumni.

She flew back in time to be par t of theFounders Day Service on the 14th.

With the Founders Day Service,the firework display and theilluminated splendour of the fiveschool buildings, the curtain finallycame down on the festivities but theafterglow still remains, incandescentand magical.

It is my privilege and immensehonour to express on behalf ofthe School, deep appreciationand gratitude for the way you allsupported with enthusiasm and lanthe 150th year celebrations. Temammoth scale of the festivitieswould have been impossible if so

many spirited and caring people hadnot contributed generously from aspectrum of resources.

I must pay tribute to our teachersand administrators, who give somuch of themselves to our childrenand to this great institution. Teyear was particularly gruelling, butthe camaraderie and whole-heartedgiving of their time and energy,emphasised again why I feel so trulyblest to have the opportunity to workwith colleagues of this calibre.

As for our parent body, I cannotsay enough! Our PA was absolutelysterling. If it werent for theirinvaluable talent, grace and emotionalstrength, the various mega-events ofthe year would have been impossible.I wish to mention Rangita Bhatnagar,parent and alumna and Chairpersonof the Steering Committee forthe 150th year who worked like a

veritable rojan.Te Alumni Association came uptrumps as usual. Apart from themany ways in which they have alwayssupported their alma mater, theirregard for their teachers has takenthe form of a Medical Policy for allretired faculty members.

Celebrating the Spirit ofExcellence was the over-archingtheme of the 150th year. Excellencehas always been the hallmark of

the School. I quote Srikant Datar69, a tenured professor at HarvardBusiness School. He says of his yearsat Cathedral:

Te teaching was superb,the education outstanding,the friendships deep and theopportunities immense. We werechallenged to do more, thinkdifferently, play harder and go theextra mile. Te school educated meat three levels. Te first, knowledge humanities, mathematics andscience. Tis was the foundation. Tesecond was thinking skills: how tothink critically, communicate clearly,and be imaginative, creative and

independent. Te third was leadershipand teamwork how to listen,influence others, contribute to acommon goal and do the right thing.We developed these skills in class, onplaying fields and in interactions withour peers and our amazing teachers.I learnt at Cathedral, and throughthe words school first, house next,self last that in the ultimate analysis,the true measure of a life well-led iswhat we do for others, not what wedo for ourselves.

He has aptly summarised whatis even today, the essence of theCathedral experience.

Viral Doshi and Shyla Boga Patel, then

Presidents of the Alumni Assocation,

representing ex-students at the 150th Founders

Day Church Service

SCHOOL UPDATE SCHOOL UP

An excerpt from the Principals speech at theAnnual Prize Distribution ceremony

Dinesh Vazirani at the fund-raising art auction Gifted, the school play showcasing school life through song and dance

Q&A with Mrs. Isa

Looking forward, what are the msignificant changes in store for thSchool?

As most of you know, we want to upg

the Infant School building, and also s

an international curriculum apart fro

Advanced Placements that are availathe moment. God willing, all this will

pass. It will be my pleasure to share t

news with our alumni and parents as

when I can give some definite answer

Which new educational programare being introduced, and how wthat affect the teaching philosop

learning styles?Would like to introduce the IGCSE an

options to the ICSE and ISC. Tere w

a shift in learning styles.

Which classes will have the IBprogamme? Will the ISC be retaiWhat about the lower classes?We are looking at the Diploma Progra

at the moment i.e. for Standards 11 a

Yes, ISC would be retained unless it bunviable. We already have an extrem

curriculum for the lower classes. We w

continue with it.

Will this be different from theexperience that most of us (who through the ISC/ICSE system) haschool?

I dont envisage any difference. Te e

curricular life is extremely rich and vand it would continue to be so.

What changes can we expect to sthe existing school buildings andthere be any new premises?Te Infant School is in need of a thoro

facelift Te Middle School will have

a floor-and-a-half added in order to uthe FSI that is available. I am also

scouting around for new premises.

Would most students move on tocolleges overseas, or would therea seamless integration into Indiacolleges as well?

I cant imagine any change in the usu

migration to colleges overseas unless

course Indian colleges can offer more

they do now.

Looking Forwar


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Celebrating150 YearsBacktoSchool,OliveOnNovember10,wehadanincrediblywarmandwonderfuleveningatOlive.Itwasveryspecialasspiritswerehighandtheairreallyelectric.Teeveninghadex-studentsfromeverygenerationandera.Wearesograteful toA.D.Singhformakingthispossible.

Retronite,BlueFrog

InApril2010over200people

attendedamid-yearalumnire

union

atBlueFrog,Mumbai,toceleb

rate

150yearsofCathedral.Retro

music,

delicioussnacksandbeverage

s,and

alumnifromfivedifferentde

cades

ensuredafunevening.

2009FoundersDayDinne

r

BlueSea

Te149thFoundersDay

dinnerand

dancesawapackedhouse,ar

ocking

band,agorgeousMC,awell-s

tocked

barandadeliciousbuffet.Te

highlight

oftheeveningwasthefelicita

tionof

retiredCathedralSchoolteach

ers.

Olive2011AlumnifromfivedecadeswererepresentedatasultryOctoberget-togetheratOlive,MahalaxmSinghandhisteamhadaddedlitouchesofschooltodecoratethewhichcamealivewithlaughter,candtheclinkingofglasses.

FareedZakaria,TajMahalHotelMarkingthe150thanniversaryofourSchool,theAlumniAssociationorganisedafund-raisingeveningwithalumnusFareedZakaria(ISC, 1982).Teauthor,Vshowhost, editor-at-largeTimeMagazinedeliveredaninformativetalkonGlobalisation:TeNextPhase.

Cricket,PoliceGymkhana

Tisyearthecricketmatchag

ainstthe

schoolteamwasdifferenta

20-20

day-nightone.Tematchwa

splayedat

thePoliceGymkhana.Tesch

oolwon

andtheeveningendedwitha

delicious

spreadofidlisanddosasand

much

camaraderiebetweenthetwo

teams.


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e X-Cathedralite 2011 2011 Te X-C

List of Donors

Our very special thanks to the Mathrani familyfor their contribution in memory of Rajesh Mathrani

ABDAdhyanthaya, Surekha

Advani, DineshAdvani, Meena

Advani, Moleen ParsramAdvani, Prathibha

KhandelwalAgarwala, Sanjay &Nisheeta

Aggarwal, RishiAjmera, Dhaval

Anand, Jyotsna NevatiaAnonymous (2)

Arora, NikhilAshokkumar, ChitraAssomull, Anita

Bahadur, IndiraBamboat, Sheri

Batheja, VanitaMansukhani

Batliwalla, ZarineBendre, Ratnakar &Sanjeev

Bharucha, Hoshang,Homi & Nargesh

Bhat, RahulBhatia, Sundeep

Bhimbhat, NamitBhogilal, NirmalBieri, Freyan Crishna

Billimoria, JimmyBulchandani, Shonali

Chacko, Anna TomasChainani, Kiran

Chand, ShivaniChatterjee, PamelaChatterjee, Pria

Chawla, DiveshChinai, Darshana Ogale

Chinoy, Shonar LalaChowdhury, Martina

EsbergerChyla, Joanna

Class of 1984Cooper, Daryush

Crishna, NyrikaCurrimjee, SaeedaDLima, David

Dadachanji, BehramDaftary, Bharat Vinod

Daftary, ManuDamani, RakeshDastur, Kavsy D., Dara D.

Phiroze D.

Dastur, Shahin AdiDavar, Sorab D.

Dempo, NitaDeshpande, DeepakDesiraju, Keshav

Dhanak, Mira SagarDhanak, Sanjiv

Dinshaw, Kate &Kaikhushru

Doshi, Rohita & MaitreyaDoshi, SuketuDubash, Arvind

Dubash, Jehangir PhirozDubash, Simone

Dubash, anyaDujodwalla, Vivek

Fazulabhoy, MehlamGannon Dunkerley & Co.Ghose, Ragini

Godrej, Burgis, Nadir,Sohrab & Hormuzd

Godrej, JamshydGodrej, Navroze

Godrej, NisaGodrej, PherozaGodrej, Pirojsha

Godrej, RaikaGoel, Mahesh

Gokuldas, DilipGoyal, Rakhee

Grewal, AlekhGupta, AdityaGupta, Atul

Gupta, RaviHaidery, Niloufer Kurwa

Harendra, SandhyaHemchand, Kuber

Inoue, MichiyoJacob, RohanJaggia, Ritu

Jain, Girish & AditiJain, Indu

Jain, MuditJain, Renuka Calil

Jain, arangJaisingh, IndiraJassawalla, Cyrus

Jejeebhoy, Jehangir R.Jejeebhoy, Rustom J.

Jha, RohanJhangiani, Namrita

Jhaveri, Anand

Jhaveri, Nikunj

Jhaveri, SaloniJog, Sunita Rajwade

Jolly, ArjunKachwala, Shiraz

Kahlon, Gurtaj SinghKaka, PorusKalpataru rust

Kalra, Pankaj & MitaliAnand

Kapadia, Capt. Sohrab S.Kapadia, Ketan

Kapadia, PragniKapadia, RajeshKapadia, Rajesh M.

Kapadia, SurinKapur, Rajiv

Kar, PradeepKaranjavala, Shireen

Karodkar, AtishKataria, arunKatgara Family

Kavi, Jyotika RowKazi, Dr. Khurshid Parkar

Kewalram ChanraiFoundation rust

Khan, AkbarKhanna, Anupam AnandKhosla, Shantanu

Khullar, ShaliniKhumana, Rustam

Kochar, AnjaniKochar, Mrinalini

Kothapa, Vinod KumarKothari, MonishaKothari, Suneet

Kothari, VikramKumar, Anjolie

Kunjur, SandhyaLalkaka, Ratan

Lamba, Dev & PareenaLamba, SanjeetLalvani, Mohit

Lamech, MariamLatif, Zahra

M.K. ata rustMahadevia, Nisha Khattau

Mahindra, Anand GopalMahindra, AnuradhaMalkani, Falguni

Mansukhani, Anjula K.Mathew, Amrita

Mehra, Manoj

Mehra, SunitMehta, Russa F.Mehta, ina

Menon, MadhavaniMenon, Radha

Merchant, AdityaMirchandani, Anjali

Mirchandani, DeepakMirchandaney, Harish A.(Harry)

Mirza, ImranMistry, Cyrus

Mistry, DinshawMistry, Hormuzd

Mitra, AchintaMody, Feroza J.

Mody, Mohammed IqbalMohinder, MadhuriMoochhala, Sophie

Mukhi, VaidehiMulla, Jeroo

Murarka, ManojNanavati, Ajay Vipin

Nanavati, AnilNaoroji, NadishNarielwala, Jimmy

Nayak, Sujir AnanthNayyar, Vivek

Pandole, FarokhPardiwala, Dinshaw

Parekh, Siddharth DeepakParikh, RajulParsram, Jagdeep

Patel, GeetaPatel, Naushad

Patel, SanjayPatel, Shyla Boga

Patel, SunilPhatak, VinitPiparaiya, Rishi

Pohoomul, GauriPrakash, Kavita Mitter

Press, RashnaPuri, Rajnish

Rai, Sanjay

Ramalingam, HarshaRavindra

Rohatgi, RajeevSabnis, Rashmi

KharbandaSahgal, Miel

Sahney, Rajiv & JasjivSahni, Sunil

Sanghrajka, DarsSampat, Swaroop

Sanghvi, ChetnaTanawala

Saran, AartiSarin, Ramesh ChScrewvala, Ronni

Shah, AjayShah, Amita

Shah, BhowliShah, Sudha

Shahani, Neel MoSheth, GhanshyaSheth, Hemant

Shetty, Behroze OShivdasani, Anus

Shivdasani, MoinShivdasani, Pram

Shroff, CyrusShroff, Kunal K.Singh, Sanjiv Pau

Singhania, NawaSinha, Neel

Sopher, Simone HSrinivasan, Venk

Subrahmanyam, Suri, Radhikaafti, Pheroza

alwar Kapur, Pralwar, Gaurav

aneja, Priyaaneja, Gayatri

Tadani, Vinay CTirani, A.K.Takker,Sonali

Tomas, Shebaolani, Rohet N.

Unvala, FarokhUttamsingh, Vikr

Vaidya, Laxman Vakil, Firoze A.Vakil, Dr. Farokh

Vakil, Dr. Meher Vakil, Pheroza J.

Vandrevala, Jerx

ShireenVaswani, AshokVenkatrao, AnilVenkatrao, Rishm

Wadhwa, VivekWaney, Arjun

Yoddha, Jyoti

THANKTHE BIG IDEA

Cathedralites are all over theglobe, and many of us at thetop of our chosen professions:

doctors, lawyers, bankers, writers,actors, all giving off our best. Weare sought-after in universities,hospitals, MNCs, banks, just abouteverywhere.

Lets spare a moment to retrospecton how we got there.

It was the education we received.And, another moment for those whogave it to us: our teachers.

So it only seemed befitting that inhe 150th year of this outstandingnstitution we endeavour to give

back to them.Terein was sowed the seed for

our focus for this historic year.We wanted to start somethingmeaningful and enduring; somethinghat would stay long after we are

gone. We also wanted to have a planwhere donors could contribute to aentralised fund. Tese contributions

will be channelised and used in anequitable and dignified manner.Tese sentiments took shape in theorm of the Retired eachers and

Bibhash Asar and Shyla Boga Patel with some

nsured teachers at a tea held at the School on

August 6, 2011

Staff Medical Benefit Scheme.Firstly, the funds collected will

form a corpus, the interest fromwhich will pay the premium togive the staff individual medicalinsurance policies. Of course, thiscorpus will have to be topped upon a continuing basis. However,this is not about asking but aboutthanking.

Secondly, we also have a medicalemergency fund for those staff whomay not fall within the purviewof the insurance, or might needurgent aid. Each application willbe individually scrutinised by thecommittee along with Dr. SharukhGolwalla and/or Dr. Anand Gokani,

and assistance provided on the basisof certain criteria being fulfilled.

Tirdly, we have a group ofover 80 alumni/parent doctorswho constitute our doctors panelwhich will give free or partially-freetreatment to eligible retired staff. Weare indeed grateful to them.

We are deeply indebted to so manyof you for helping us to not onlyreach our target of R150 lakhs, but

are delighted to inform you that wehave exceeded it! But we will not reston our laurels.

Tank you all for youroverwhelming support. On April 1,2011, 44 teachers and staff receivedan insurance cover of R3 lakhseach. Te first year of this insurancescheme will be a pilot project.We have already covered Mr. D.Mazumdars expenses of R2,93,000for his cardiac surgery.

A governance plan has been set inplace and the fund is monitored andmanaged by a separate committeeconsisting of Chitra Rajkumar, ShylaBoga Patel, Viral Doshi, Bibhash Asarand Pranay Shah.

Te scheme is up and running andour dream for the 150th year fulfilled.

Lest we forgetBehram Badhniwalla (Wilson,

1957) had also mooted a similarscheme. Sadly, he passed away on

April 13, 2007 before he could see itbecome a reality.

- Shyla Boga Patel (1969)Co-Chairperson,

Medical Benefit Scheme

Teachers and StaMedical Benet Scheme

Te Lala sisters with Mrs. Khullar and

Mrs. Saldanha

Retired teachers listening intently to details of

the scheme


8/29

THE BIG

Sifting through the 350 pagesof An Undefiled Heritage

is like sifting through the

history of Mumbai, seen throughhe lens of the institution that is the

Cathedral & John Connon School

and those who have learned, taughtand grown there. As the team talks

about the making of the book, their

deep personal connection with theubject is apparent. Te exhilarating

and sometimes arduous journeyhas taken them through high teas

engaged in lively conversations with

alumni, trudging through schoolarchives, brisk afternoons huddled

ogether in the British Library in

London and many nights burninghe proverbial midnight oil.

It all started off quite by chance.

Te accidental discovery of TomasArthur Sava ges logbook dur ing the

Senior School renovations provedo be the seed, says education

onsultant Viral Doshi (ISC 1975).

Viral accep ted the book fromMr. Shaw for safekeeping with no

dea that this would lead to a tome

arguably more extensive than thoseon other world-famous prestigious

chools. He did, however, express

his dream of writing a history of theschool someday.

Tis dream was supported by

Mrs. Isaacs, who put him in touchwith writer Mridula Sood Maluste

(ISC 1973), co-author of the book.

Predictably, the tide of personal andprofessional commitments swept

them along for several years while

the project went into cold storage,until Mrs. Isaacs revived it in time

for the 150th year celebrations.She introduced them to art director

Gita Simoes (1959), and the team

was complete. With an excellentsupport crew including several

from the Cathedral family editor

Mandira Banerji, Niyati Mehta andNishita Mehta (ISC 2000) the

painstakingly put together treasure

took four years to complete.Mridula describes Viral as a

repository of information on theschool, adding, Hes actually a

historian. Te authors, with their

distinctive and complementaryapproaches to the process, were

both in school in the 60s and early

70s a vantage point in timestraddling several generations. Early

in the project they noticed that

the culture, focus and ethos of theschool shifted with each individual

at the helm, and segregated

chapters by Principals tenures.Mridula calls the book almost a

fictional biography, sharing how

they decided to make it a humanstory, with players and actors taking

centre-stage and the authors sitting

apart a little, watching from theperiphery as the plot developed.

As they eked out the story, detaile ddiscussions and dialogues ensued

over every facet of the book,

between themselves as well as withveterans from each period.

Gita noticed how the story kept

evolving as threads from one personsnarrative were picked up and joined

with others to weave the final tale.

She says, It was wonderful to actuallymeet the people, putting faces to

pictures, names and anecdotes.Te book snowballed, picking up

bits of dusted-off journals, faded

photographs and hidden memoriesalong the way. It became a larger

project than originally envisioned,

a self-propelled blending of archivalhistorical data with personal stories

and school legends.

An UndeledHERITAGE

Photo:VikramK

othari

Authors Mridula Sood Maluste and Viral Doshi and artdirector Gita Simoes speak with fervour, fond nostalgiaand even sheer relief as they reect on the mammothtask of producing the rst exhaustive documentation ofthe schools history

Gitas real joy came from

collecting beautiful images and

Viral highl ights her role i n one ofthe more meaningful outcomes

of the book. Our place in history

has been captured by the famousphotographer Raja Deen Dayal

and it was Gita who, through his

daughter, sourced two previouslyunseen photographs of Cathedral.

Viral expresses gratitude thateveryone was so forthcoming.

Mrs. Isaacs, who set them off on

the journey, gave them complete

freedom besides being verysupportive and involved, even

sitting through eight or nine hoursof interviews. Te support from

alumni was amazing, from Jehangir

Sabavala sharing his photographsand Salman Rushdie responding to

us in 30 minutes to the scores ofalumni who took time out of their

busy schedules to reminisce with us.

He adds, Te Board of Governorsgranted us access to all the minutes

of meetings dating as far back as

the 1920s including sensitiveinformation about each Principal and

reviews of teachers misbehaviour!

Te clearly collaborative processinvolved countless hours of

meticulous research and as Gitasuccinctly puts it, From all over the

world, it came together.

Coming off the four-yearrollercoaster ride, the trio behind the

book seems calmly satiated with thejoy of a job well done. As for the restof us, as we shut the book (whether

skimmed, read cover to cover, or

something in between) we should bedeeply grateful to them for bringing

alive our shared history.- Miel Sahgal

(ISC 1989)

THE BIG BOOK

2011 Te X-Ce X-Cathedralite 2011

Snapshots from HISTORY

Gita, Mridula and Viral

IHeadmaster TA Savage and the winning Old Boys Hockey Team in front of the newly-opened boys scbuilding on Outram Road, photographed by Raja Deen Dayal in 1901.IIThe Macdonald Medal for Leadership (Boys), instituted in memory of James Macdonald, HeadmasterScottish Schools from 1867 to 1902.IIIArtist Jehangir Sabavala (back row, second from left) with his peers on Poppy Day, 1936.IVHeadmaster James Macdonald (2nd from left), with Sir Jacob Sassoon (2nd from right), and one of trecipients of the Jardine Medal, Hannah Nissim, in 1899.VOld Boys fund-raising dinners were formal, black-tie affairs.VIDuring the Second World War, The Borderermagazine was published annually. Due to a shortage olimited type-written copies with hand painted covers were distributed.

Photographs from An Undefiled Heritage.

III

VI

V

I

II

I


9/29


In 1952, the b iggest news was that the Soviets werecoming. After the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917, theUSSR had not competed in the Olympics until theHelsinki Games. It was a big year for Cathedral too asalumnus Dr. David Sopher (Barham, 1944) representedIndia in water polo

His earliest memoriesI was in the first standard and beforethe end of every day our teacher

would give a sweet to the boy whowas outstanding on that day. Te boyeither behaved well or tried hard soit was not always the brightest boy.We all looked forward to this.

His time at CathedralI enjoyed my time at Cathedral.Colonel Hammond was generallykindly. His successor, HeadmasterMajor Bruce, however, neverhesitated to use the cane in his officeor slap one in class. No one daredcomplain. Assistant Head Nix-Jameswas an excellent and knowledgeableteacher. He never had to raise hisvoice. We had a lot of temps as mostof the masters went to the Forcesduring World War II. I think thismust have affected our enthusiasmfor study. Although we had anannual inter-house gala and waterpolo and swimming tournament, wenever had any other school sessions.

We had a regular evening swimmingsession at the Maccabi Club, whichis where we got the incentive to play

water polo.

Special friends and mentorsIsaac Mansoor and I were togetherat Cathedral, in Barham, in GrantMedical College, in JJ Hospital andleft for the UK at about the sametime. Isaac was my inspiration andhe was, till he passed away two yearsago, always ahead of me in waterpolo, swimming and also in studies.Sunday mornings we played matchesin leagues and tournaments onthe same teams Golwalla Baths(Parsis), Mafatlal Baths (Hindus),Maccabi (Jews) and Breach Candy(Europeans).

Te Olympic experienceIn 1950 we went to the MaccabiGames in Israel and then to the

Asian Games in Delhi. In 1952, wewere both chosen for the OlympicGames in Helsinki. Te Italians andRussians trounced us, as we werepuny in comparison. Water polo was(perhaps it still is) a dirty game alot of it under the surface andthose big guys did not change theirgame against us little folk. As acontingent, India did not do much(except in hockey). For us it was agreat social event. A feature reportedin the Indian papers (one doesremember odd things!) said that the

swimming changing room waplan and ones clothes had to bhanded to a young girl in the mof the room. Some of the Inditeam memberes, who had nevmuch as exposed themselves eto other men, found it disconat first, but had to get used toOverall the experience was go

And we did win against Mexic

Doing swimmingly wellAt the age of 62, still thinkingstrong swimmer, I had to be rfrom a rough sea off Long Islarealised that I had been neglecmy fitness. When I returned tLondon, I joined a training clulater took part in the World MGames, in the 55-65 age groupseven gold medals. I induced I

join the following year. He hadup his training after having a mheart attack and he swept the

with seven golds.

Te presentAt 82, now retired from my pof medicine, I live in Central Land still swim four times a wea bit of wood-turning and travmeet family.

- As told to Mukeeta J(ISC

DAVID Sopher

SPOTL

Isaac Mansoor (left) and David Sopher were

together in school and also represented India in

the 1952 Olympics

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10/29

2011 Te X-C

As a performer,Sarukkai isphenomenally precise

As an actress, she is achameleon She is alsoa master of coordinatingmovement and music,raved Pamela Squires in

Te Washington Postafter watching MalavikaSarukkai, (ISC 1974)perform at the KennedyCenter earlier this year.Sarukkai, perhaps themost celebrated BharataNatyam exponent inthe country today, andthe recipient of severalawards includingthe Padmashreein 2003 hasdelivered inspirationalperformances acrossthe globe, from Londonto Japan, France, Braziland Spain.

Over the years,Sarukkais body of workhas included exciting collaborationswith a range of artists, musicians,writers and painters. Her danceinterpretation of S.H. Razas painting

Bindu, in particular, was acclaimedby critics and audiences alike. Whenwe caught up with the ex-Cathedraliteshe said that her mother hadinfluenced her decision to take updancing. She was instrumental insending me to Chennai to furtherstudy the art of dance B y the timeI was 16, I knew the thing I loved todo most was dance It has been asplendid journey with great moments

of achievement, ecstasy and alsointrospection.

And while Sarukkai, who starteddancing at the age of seven, doesntremember performing in school,

she learnt a number of importantlessons during her time there. TeIndian classical arts of dance andmusic were not emphasised by theschool. I guess the emphasis wason a more western outlook. In life,one needs to find people with whomone can relate and be comfortable.Status, power and money are notthe defining attributes in makingfriends, she says. Sarukkai has

SPOTL

MALAVIKA SarukkaiAlumna Malavika Sarukkai is a world-renowned, award-winning Bharata Natyamdancer and teacher who has performed at major arts festivals from Khajurahoto Edinburgh

gained much by way relationships (shes stouch with school fri

Yasmine Stafford anmeets her other schofriends at dance concand school reunions)

She remembers he

being an average stuwhose mind was nocontoured by academstudies, but rather byworld outside. Yet, sdoesnt recall feelinga misfit in the classroTere were always stwho were competitivbut one didnt feel thpressure too muchpossible to be left aloBut if, say, a geograpor science lesson gotdull, this Savageite wabove taking some liSometimes, on the pof going to drink watleft the classroom. It

one a sense of bunkinof class! she confesses.

She has come a long way sinStandard 2 days when she wowait for the silver bus, which

pick me up at Nepean Sea Roatake me to school on Malabar So who was her favourite teacat Cathedral? I remember MrWagh who so painstakingly taus Hindi. He was patient and tvery hard to ensure that we pthe exams.

- Shikha(Standard 9

www.malavikasarukkai.com


11/29

2011 Te X-C2011 Te X-C

At the age of 18, Miss India, Fleur Ezekiel became the rst Indian to competein the Miss World beauty pageant

In 1959 another ex-Cathedralitecreated history. Fleur Ezekiel(1957) became the first Miss

India to represent her country on theMiss World stage. Unlike the heavilysponsored, ticket-to-Bollywoodevents these beauty pageants aretoday, in those days, Miss India wasa fledgling endeavour.

After leaving Cathedral School,Fleur became a part-time model andfull-time secretary at an advertisingagency. It was then that EvesWeekly, the organisersof Miss India, came toa show in which shewas participating. Atthat time we modelledfor fun as there wasvirtually no payment; youmight just be given theclothes you modelled,recalls Fleur who is nowFleur Madnani and livesin Pune. When I won the MissIndia title the crown was made ofcardboard. Te crown may have beencardboard, but the cup endures and isdisplayed in her bedroom in Pune.

Fleur had never left Mumbai, letalone India, when she was requiredto fly to London and competeagainst the most beautiful womenfrom around the world. I had neverleft my city and here I was going toLondon. I had to look after myselfand even wore many of my ownclothes. We were staying at theSavoy. It was cold and rainy and Iwas so green I didnt even knowthat you cannot wear trousers tocertain restaurants. I was nervous,but I just accepted it, says theBarhamite whose mother, Sophia

Ezekiel, taught French at CathHer brother Noel, also an alum

joined the Royal Air Force andin the USA.

When she returned from thcontest, Fleur slipped back inther job as secretary and modeIn 1998, she retired as Manag- Administration at a pharma

company and moved to Pune years ago. Fleurs two daughtenot go to Cathedral, somethinsays, Tey hold against me.

Looking back attime in school, shethe general knowleeducation and spoexposure made heconfident and helpon a public platforwas shy in school, now talk 19 to a dobecame more confiafter school. I now

look forward to our reunions especially enjoyed our 50th rein 2007.

Interestingly, whenever Fleapplied for jobs, she omittedmention of Miss India or Missfrom her resume. She says, Othe employers found out and wask why I didnt mention it. I wsay why should I? How is it relIf I had said so, you might havthought I was a floozy!

And how does she feel whethinks back to that momentounow? Its like a dream. Sometwonder did it really happen, bthe cup is there to remind me

- Udita Jhunjhu(ICSE

PIO

Crowning GLORY

(Above) Fleur Ezekiel in 1959 when she won the

Miss India crown. (Right) Fleur Madnani still

has her winners trophy at her home in Pune


12/29

2011 Te X-C

As we sit in his office in LowerParel, Mumbai, eating a meal madeout of the produce grown at hisfarm, I try to recreate for myself themind-space of a Stanford graduatewith a Masters degree in EngineeringManagement and a stint at OraclesFinance Division, California whotransitioned to entrepreneurship.He gave up Silicon Valleys heyday

to move to a fairlyundeveloped sectorthat meant both ageographical changeand spending time inrural India.

Very simply, hesays, he realisedthat the job was notwhat he was meantto do with his life.Tough it was greatfor so many reasons,including the money,it was, at the end ofthe day, a bit boring.

His guidinginfluences duringhis college years had

been the musingsof philosophersLeo olstoy, HenryDavid Toreauand MohandasKaramchand Gandhi,all of whom saidthat in order toensure a fulfillingand balanced life,ones time should be

ExpectationsRajeev Samant, gave up a nance job in Silicon Valley tolead a more balanced life and to be c loser to nature

Rajeev Samant (ISC 1985,Wilson), Founder and CEOof Sula Vineyards, has very

fond memories of his time in school.Boxing was his favourite sport tillhe had his nose knocked out and hiscompetitive edge is revealed whenhe recalls the thrill of being in thering with three floors of studentsshouting down and cheering him on.

divided equally between the cnature.

He came to a personal realithat it was time to go back toIndia, develop the familys farinterests, and allow himself tobe more aligned towards thesphilosophies.

Te thought eventually manas the creation of Sula Wines,household name for wine-drinIndians and for some years noglobally-recognised winery.

oday, he gets lauded for bea visionary entrepreneur. o hthese decisions are part of a seof choices made by a process oelimination and fortunate timIn 1993, when I returned to Imost of the traffic was going iother direction. Maybe it was to do something different theit would be now, because therless of us and no one knew whexpect out of it.

Recollecting his time in schhe says, I was a very good stuacademically and I loved all thextra-curricular activities. Herepresented the school in tennand badminton, and took a stinter-school chess. He was MuSecretary, loved Debates, squiover Elocution but accredits itgiving him the valuable opporof overcoming the fear of pubspeaking and leaving him withlong skill.

He reminisces about being of his class magazine and find

pieces of writing by Salman Rin the school archives. It was ttime Samant realised that thewinning writer is an alumnusdont feel that students are exenough to the schools heritagwhilst they are in it, he says, thats a very important part othe institution.

- Aliya Cur(ISC

CHANGING TRA

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And we have our obsession with Customer Focus to thank for that. Yes, were

known throughout the world for our tube fittings. And yes, weve been at it for over

60 years. But when companies are looking harder than ever for greater value, its

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13/29


OFF THE S

O the SHELFBusinessman Ashwin Sanghi (ICSE 1985) embarked on a parallel career as a writerwhen his rst novel, The Rozabal Line, reached bestseller lists. His second novelChanakyas Chant, will soon be made into a lm

What have you been doing sinceyou graduated from Cathedral?After completing my ICSE I went onto St. Xaviers College to get a BA inEconomics followed by an MBA fromYale. I then joined my family business in automobiles, engineering, realestate and manufacturing where I

continue to work full time. I also gotmarried and I have an eight-year-oldson Raghuvir, who goes to Cathedral.

Were there any teachers or otherspecific people during yourCathedral years that influencedyour interest in writing?My primary interest in reading wasfrom my grandfather who wouldgive me a book each week to read.However, in Senior School Mr. DavidElisha, an incredibly fine humanbeing, was my English teacher.He pulled me up for sprinklingcommas like salt and pepper! Ms.Hallegua taught me Mathematics,but she was the only teacher whocorrected my spelling mistakes in myAlgebra answers. Finally, there wasDr. Krishnan. He had a chance toread the manuscript of my first novelbefore it was published and predictedthat it would do well.

How did you embark upon yourwriting career?During my MBA at Yale, I wrote acolumn for our newspaper. Manyreaders came up to me and told methat they liked my style of writing short, crisp sentences devoid ofbig words; self-deprecating humour;sarcastic but witty observations andsincere insincerity.

persona and am entirely businoriented. Evenings are mostly around family. I work Mondaythrough Friday, but Saturdays reserved entirely for my writinam also completing a PhD. in cwriting.

What triggered an interestUV purchasing the rights tsecond book?

When I wrote ChanakyChantI didnt realise ththe fast-paced story wideally suited to develoa screenplay. Te novwas released in Janua2011 and by April it reached #1 on India bestseller list. Fromonwards I began toenquiries for the firights. Siddharth RKapur, the CEO of

Software Communications, gaconfidence that UV would doto the story. Inking an agreemquick and painless given the faboth parties to the agreement the very same thing.

What is your next novel abo

Although I cant share details osubject, what I can say is that mthird novel shall be a thriller wliberal doses of my usual ingre history, mystery, mythologconspiracy and theology. I hopthat this book will be available mid-2012.

- Reenita Malhotr(ISC

When I returned toMumbai, I continued tocontribute a few articlesto newspapers andmagazines but I realisedthat it wasnt exciting meanymore. Between 2003and 2005 I read over 30books in order to research Rozabaland in 2006 I ended up writingTe Rozabal Line. I couldnt find apublisher for over 18 months butwhen ata-Westland published it in2008, it became a national bestseller.At that moment, I knew I was hookedto my parallel career as a writer.

Does your career have a rhythm ofalternating between writing andrunning your family business? Oris there an overlap?I have constructed Chinese wallsbetween my entrepreneurial life andmy literary one. I usually write earlyin the mornings. By the time I getinto work, Ive discarded the author


14/29


Mrs. Chitre

Mrs. Chitretaught Hindiand Marathiin the MiddleSchool for 15years untilretiring in 2002.She spends

her retirement pursuing hobbiessuch as making cloth handbags andcushion covers and visiting the USA

to look after her grandchildren. Inthe evenings, she teaches almost allsubjects including Maths, which isher first love, to the underprivilegedchildren at the YWCA. Does shefind it different teaching childrenat the YWCA versus Cathedralites?Mrs. Chitres answer is a resoundingno children are children andvery affectionate whatever theircircumstances. Warm as ever, shesends her love to all her ex-students.

Mrs. Nina Dandekar

Yamuna, Ganga, Gomti, Ghagra,Gandak, Kosi, Som, and JCRS tothe power of B! Generations ofCathedralites learned the rivers ofIndia with the help of the elegantMrs. Dandekars rhymes andacronyms. Mrs Dandekar, Head ofGeography and Economics at the

Senior School, retired in June 2003.She has four grandchildren fromher two children. Mrs. Dandekarstill gives some lucky childrengroup tuitions. She looks back onher teaching years very fondly andconsiders Cathedral to be her secondhome, a place of warmth and love.Her greatest happiness in life is tomeet her ex-students.

Mrs. S. Kapoor

Mrs. Kapoor, who was also theBarham House Mistress, taughtGeography for 20 years at Cathedral,first from 1973 to 1980, and thenagain seven years later, until sheretired in 2000. In between, she wasthe first, and only, female teacherat La Martiniere Boys College,Lucknow. After Cathedral, Mrs.Kapoor taught at Marble Arch, anICSE school in Andheri, and also

coached children in Geography.Tis year is her first year of fullretirement. She has two sons and adaughter. She no longer plays thetabla due to her arthritis, but stillmanages to beat the building kids attable tennis every once in a while!

Ms. Ashwina Mullan

Ms. Mullantaught atCathedral forthree years.She was theStandard 5 classteacher for thefirst year and

then taught English, History andGeography to her Standard 7 class.In 1985, she moved to Pune tobecome Mrs. Madraswala. In Pune,she soon joined Primrose Nursery

School. oday, Mrs. Madraswala isPrincipal of Primrose. An athlete andswimmer in her youth, she has notime for much else, except reading,which she still does with a passion.

Mr. P. X. Swami

Mr. Swami taught Hindi andGeography in the Senior Schoolfor close to two decades, retiring

TEACHER UPD

From the STAFF ROOMin 1991. In his post-retiremenavatar, hes an author, lyricisttranslator. Author of two booon Mother eresa and the othabout a man from Vasai who eup at Nagasaki), translator of books and a writer of bhaktisseveral of which have been relon CD, Mr. Swami lives in TaAn ex-student called Jerry, whMr. Swami had encouraged toup the tabla, went on to becom

assistant to a music director inUSA. He helped Mr. Swami relhis first LP Atma ki Awaaz. MSwamis books and CDs can beat the Examiner Press, a shopthe Share Bazaar, Fort.

Mrs. Vilma Heredia

Mrs. Heredia dedicated 32 yeaof her life to teaching in theMiddle School, retiring in 199Mrs. Heredia lives in Andheri commutes almost every day twhere her son, Nigel (a Comm

in the Indian Navy) lives, to loafter her grandchildren. Everyyear, she travels to the US to vher daughter Rael who is marto a professor from Johns HopUniversity. Mrs. Heredia is enlife as much as she enjoyed tea

- Compiled by Shona(ISC

Mr. and Mrs. Heredia in Baltimore, Mar


15/29


16/29


N MEMORIAM IN MEMO

Mrs. Jean Cabral

Acting Principal and Headmistresspassed away on December 27,2010 in Newcastle, UK aged 81 years.

I was sad to read about the demiseof our beloved Headmistress Mrs.Jean Cabral, a great favourite ofmine. A soft-spoken but strict lady,who knew every child in school,always lent a ear and tried to helpn any way she could. Fair, just and

caring, with a heart of gold.I will always remember the days

of the strikes in Mumbai. We weren the Standard 1 classroom when

during one strike several menushed in. Mrs. Downey closed the

doors and asked us to be quiet andit under the desks. We peepedhrough the slatted doors when we

heard Mrs. Cabrals soft but stern

Christopher Charles Velu(1920 2004)A ribute to an Inspiring eacher

he doorbell rang one hot andsultry Mumbai afternoon in1958. I was 11 and in Standard 6.Standing in the hallway was Mr.Velu, the Cathedral choir master,organist and the schools headof music. My life was changedforever. As an Anglican, a studentat Cathedral School and a boy, I wasin along with my brother with noaudition.

Poor Velu had the almostimpossible task of forging a choirwhich produced beautiful musicon Sundays, high days, weddings,recitals and other celebrationswith limited raw material. Teperfectionist would want to squeezethe best out of us while we justwanted to get through the list ofhymns, psalms and anthems asquickly as we could. One could sensea collective but silent groan when hesaid, Once more from the top.

Eventually, there was a growing

Joan Dev(1930 2011)Middle School Head Mistress

Born Joan Margaret Parkinson inLancaster England, the younglady who was School Prefect, HockeyCaptain, House Captain and anaccomplished seamstress to boot,had an early calling to the teachingprofession. From playing school inher backyard to eacher rainingCollege in Leeds she always knewwhat she wanted.

Unable to resist the dashingPunjabi charms of Dharam DevKhattar who she met while he was atLeeds University, she married him atthe young age of 21 and sailed off toIndia. Te clan not only embraced hervery quickly but encouraged her tohold school and homework sessions

voice as she told the men, Get outyou hooligans and leave my schoolchildren alone. She stood with herarms held out wide against the doorwith Mrs. Downey by her side. Noother teacher came out to help. Teystayed put in the staff room.

Te men left as she walkedtowards them, pushing them backtill they left our school. We were soproud of her. Mrs. Downey and Mrs.Cabral came into the classroom andspoke to each of us, calming us. Teygave us all a small hug or a squeezeon the shoulder and told us never beafraid, stand up tall, do your best,keep alert and no one will touch you.

After that we had a gate put at theinner entrance of our school.

Another time, owing to anappendix operation I was not allowed

appreciation of what we were doingand the heights Mr. Velu was tr yingto get us to scale. Tis appreciationof choral music, grudging at first,helped develop an interest in morecomplex forms other than thepopular and bland Bernadine of PatBoone. Bach, Shankar, Ellington,Hendrix, Haydn, Te Stones or TeSteve Miller Band are all the same tome: good music is good music and Iowe my catholic tastes to the door heopened for me.

He had a tough job made tougherby the standards he had set himselfand us, but I never ever saw himlose his temper or resort to violence

in a time when both corporal andcapital punishment were the normat school. His restraint, whencompared to the behaviour of someother teachers, was remarkable.Yes, he was a gentleman, but al so agentle man.

As head of music for bothschools Mr. Velu was also a keenand competitive choir master withhis eyes set on winning the Victor

on their veranda in Delhi making herthe first working woman in the family.

Her career in Mumbai took offimmediately upon arrival when Mrs.Adcock, the Principal of a privateschool hired her unseen. Tis schoolwas to later become Walsingham.TeAngrezlady from Leeds had notrouble commuting from Andheriby train, bus and taxi to reach her

Malabar Hill school often wadingthrough floods.

When she went to see Mrs. JeanCabral of the even then famousCathedral & John Connon Schoolfor the admission of five-year-oldVijay not only was he admitted butshe too was hired on the spot as aStandard 5 teacher.

She worked at Cathedral Schoolfor over 30 years and became Head

to use the stairs and had to be inclass all alone during the breaks.Mrs. Cabral would regularly come tosee if I was okay.

Many years later, I was at theairport going to Udaipur for myhoneymoon when I heard a voicesaying, Gooloo Chothia. I lookedaround to see Jean Cabral giving mea big smile and then a hug, askingabout my family, classmates andwhat I was up to. She was down fromthe UK and was on her way to Goa tomeet her late husbands family. Tatwas the last time I saw her, 36 yearsago.

In our time, she was the best

Headmistress we had. May her soulrest in eternal peace and happinesswherever she is.- Gooloo Khambatta (ISC 1968)

Paranjoti Cup which we did wicouple of times. No insignificabauble this, but the equivalenthe Olympics or the World CuVelus love of music was sharehis son Romesh who sang in schoirs in the UK, including ExCathedra, which I would recomto anyone interested in beautichoral music. Unfortunately, Rpassed away tragically a few yeago and our lives lost the joy hbrought to them.

For good teachers such as MVelu, it was not a job but a voTey generously shared theirknowledge and experience, ho

that their charges would fly hithan they could and rejoiced ithought. Tey are the true herand their worth is priceless tosociety.

Tis is written in gratitude his unflinching efforts to turnsows ear into a silk purse. It iswritten in memory of his son,friend, Romesh Velu (1950 - 2

- Owen Berkeley-Hill

Mistress. By her own admissioenjoyed my teaching professiocontinued to stay engaged everetirement by giving private tuShe received the MBE Medal(Member of the British EmpirQueen Elizabeth II in 1961 forcontribution to the field of eduand social work in India.

Post-retirement and the lo

her husband, Mrs. Dev movedCanada via exas and Singapwhere she continued to teachEnglish. Mrs. Dev (pronouncas dev as in devil and not asthav) will always be remembby Middlers in the 70s for hefirm hand, her supreme Engliefficiency, her love for her adhome and her memorable acc

- Mukeeta Jhaveri (IS

Mr. J. N. Pande

When I joined school in January1960 in Standard 3, Mr. J.N.Pande who hailed from Dharwar,Karnataka, was a teacher in theower classes for Hindi and Marathi.

Terefore, I had the opportunityof being taught by him. He had anexcellent physique in those days andused to be our coach for Hockey andFootball. Te schools performance inHockey was the best in Mumbai. Astudents went to higher classes, Mr.

Pandes career also rose. Later, hebecame the Head of the Departmentof Hindi. In those days, the Schoolused to have one English play

performed by the students and thisencouraged Mr. Pande to start Hindiand Marathi plays.

Mr. Pande later became PalmerHouse Master and his students lovedhim because of his friendly nature.He lived in an apartment allotted

by the School, in what is now theMiddle School, and therefore hewas easily accessible to studentswho wanted extra help in Hindi andMarathi.

His wife Jaya used to alwaysaccompany him to School andAlumni Association functions.

Born in July 1930 in Mumbai,he passed away on November 20,2010 at the age of 80. He was a veryfriendly and sporting teacher. Hehad two sons, Sanjay and Sangam,both of whom had graduatedfrom the Cathedral School andthen got admission into Americanuniversities, after which they never

returned to India.When Mr. Pande retired fromschool, his sons sponsored theirparents, who then migrated to theUnited States. Mr. Pande used tovisit India once a year to take care ofhis ancestral properties in Dharwar

and other assets. He was neverdependent on his sons and even inAmerica he used to teach yoga tosustain himself.

I am proud to have been hisstudent and the credit for what Iknow in Hindi, Marathi, Hockey andFootball goes to him alone. Duringthe last six months of his life, he washospitalised and taken good careof by Dr. Anand Gokani of BombayHospital, who was also an ex-student. His end came on November20, 2010. But before his death, hisyounger son Sangam had passedaway in America. S anjay his elderson, completed the funeral rites of

his father on November 22, 2010.Mr. Pande will surely beremembered with gratitude byall his students for his supportand guidance.

May his soul rest in peace.- Ambika Morarka(ISC 1968)


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Jehangir Sabavala

Jehangir Sabavala, a great artist,friend and supporter, was a man ofimpeccable taste and comportment,of etiquette and letters. Sabavalawill be remembered not only for hisart, but also for his uncompromisingcommitment to beauty, and thedignity, integrity and generosity ofspirit that he always stood for.

Cutting an elegant figure, Sabavalatouched several lives during thecourse of his own, both within andbeyond Mumbais art fraternity,of which he was an integral part.Apart from mentoring young artists,encouraging gallerists and supporting

several charities, Sabavala always had

N MEMORIAM IN MEMO

Tribute to Mrs.Subramanian from her 4M(1980-81) studentsRohit Poddar:Mrs. Subramanianwas a big influence in my life as myclass teacher in 4M. Incidentally,she was also my mothers teacher inhigh school in Calcutta whom shealso influenced greatly. When wemoved from Bangalore to Mumbaimid-term I struggled initially. Mrs.Subramanian was the one whoimparted a high level of confidence inme during this transition that helpedme not just in Cathedral but alsoin life. She remained a tremendoussupport through the years. I takenote of her comparatively earlydemise with a great sense of sadness.Her husband, I believe held a seniorposition with IFR and the Atomic

Research Institute and her brilliantsons Ajay and Arvind have madesuccesses of themselves too. Godbless their family.

Shima Mehta-Dholakia: She wasthe best teacher I ever had and wasmore of a mother figure than ateacher! She was extremely warm,loving and approachable and I solooked forward to going to school in4M. I was thrilled when she was there

time to lend his ear and offer a fewwords of advice to anyone who soughtthem, making it a point to nurtureevery relationship he was a part of,whether personal or professional.

Born into a well-known Parsiphilanthropic family in 1922, Sabavalaattended Cathedral (1939) beforejoining the Sir J.J. School of Art inMumbai, and then studying at thebest schools and ateliers in L ondonand Paris. Over the course of hisartistic career, which spanned morethan 60 years, Sabavala never pausedto survey the past, but always pushedforward, constantly challenginghimself and his boundaries of hisunique modern idiom.

Since his first solo exhibitioheld in a hired room of the ajMahal Hotel, the artists work been featured in over 30 solo sheld across India and several ocountries. Sabavala was honouwith the Padmashree by theGovernment of India in 1977, Lalit Kala Ratna by the PresideIndia in 2007.

Jehangir Sabavalas passingmarks the loss of a true gentlea respected mentor and one ofmost important pioneers of Inmodernism. He will be missedand remembered with great foby all of us.

- Dinesh Vazirani (ISC

to bless us on our wedding day. Tatwas the last time we met but I cannever forget her influence on my life.ina Kapur:She was a happy,jolly soul with her big red bindi, aready smile and those impeccablesarees. She was a huge source ofencouragement and inspirationto me. Having been an Honoursstudent, I remember when my gradesstarted slacking, no doubt thanksto the sudden discovery that boysexisted and werent as bad as wedthought, she took me aside and hada frank heart to heart with me abouther belief in me and how much shewould not like me to let down thisfaith. Tat resonated with me and Idid indeed pull up my socks! Tankyou, Mrs. Subramanian. May you restin peace.

Shivas Nath:All through a childsschool life there are very few teachersthat leave an indelible mark. Youremember them your entire life.Mrs. Subramanian most certainlydid. It was not because she made methe king in our class play, or that Iraised my game and almost baggedthe progress prize; neither was itbecause her sons Ajay and Arvindwere my friends, or that I learnt how

to cycle in the long passages obuilding, Kenilworth on Peddaor that I was the class fish tanmonitor.

She was plain fond of me anlooked out for me in class. I alwlistened to her and loved her. WI do not know, it just was that

Maleeka Rafiq Lala:Her largheartedness, love, joyfulness agenuine warmth towards everof us made my move from DubMumbai almost easy. I was onfive who she privately tutoredschool to get us up to speed anbuilt a bond with her that helpbe the confident and loving peam today. She taught me how unconditionally, built my self-and was truly a second mothe

me, as my parents were still awnever forget her beautiful sarehow she helped me befriend thwho today are my closest frienGod bless you Mummy and mfind joy and peace wherever yomoved on to and I hope our pacross again sometime as I neverecent years, had a chance to tyou for your love, encouragemand support.

Mrs. Ammon

Mrs. Ammon joined Cathedral inJune 1980. She is rememberedondly by the teachers with whom shehared hours on Te Verandah. Sheaught Home Science and Cookery,

as a sixth subject, for the ICSE till itwas no longer offered, after which sheaught Hindi.

She was a perfectionist and strictdisciplinarian in most aspects ofher life and always sought to raisehe bar of her students work. Her

brutal honesty resulted in her comingacross as a bit harsh. She had a goodheart and meant well, says Mrs.Neena Dandekar who joined the

Mr. Anand

Who doesnt rememberMr. Anand, the schoolphotographer, a familiar face atevery sporting meet and event fromhe time we joined school till theime we passed out? Tats right;

Mr. Anand was associated withhe Cathedral School for over 50

years. You can still see Mr. Anandsamiliar stamp, even today after allhese years. And strangely, while

we may think of Mr. Anand asour own - as the Cathedral Schoolphotographer, the one entrustedwith capturing so many of ourmemories, my wife points out thathe was the photographer for herchool as well.

So its really saddening to know

Cathedral family on the same day asher and shared scr umptious luncheswith her for the 18 - 20 years theyspent teaching at school. Bhagwan,apart from his peons duties, ensuredthat their lunch was heated in theHome Science lab oven and laid outon a tablecloth. Tat stopped whenhe retired but Mrs. Ammon wouldpersonally warm up everyoneslunch in the oven so that they couldcontinue to enjoy their meals infive-star fashion. Friends and familyunanimously declared her the perfecthostess. Her recipes were legendary.Even the lazy boys were able toproduce edible brownies and fried rice.

that Mr. Anand is no more. But hewill be remembered by generationsthrough his photographs, every timewe pull them out to show them toour friends and our children.

- Mehboob Quasim (ISC 1989)

Mr. Anand fascinated me the firsttime I met him when he took our5A class photograph. I got to knowhim well after I tracked him down torecord our batchs 20-year reunionat Blue Frog in Mumbai in January2010. We became extremely close.He was a wonderful person, a giftedphotographer and had a joie de vivrethat I shall never forget.

He was the life of our reunionand had most of us in splits with hiswisecracks and jokes last January.

Te death of her son, Donald,in April due to jaundice was atremendous source of shock and griefto her which many of her friendsbelieve was the cause of her suddendeath in early August.

Mrs. Ammons Home Science classwas the highlight of my week. I stilluse her recipes and they formed thebackbone of my culinary talent. Ijust wish I hadnt taken almost 20years to tell her that she was oneof my inspirations for my HotelManagement degree, as she passedaway a few days before I was to meether at the tea for the retired teachers.- Maleeka Rafiq Lala (ISC 1989)

He named Simran Mulchandani,Ashutosh Phatak and Rohan Sippy,Te Tree Idiots. He flirted andproposed marriage to ina Kapur,Sangeeta Gokhale and myself. Hespent hours questioning the entirebatch why the three most beautifulgirls of their batch were still singlein their late 30s. We promisedhim that if wed been older or himyounger hed be married to oneof us.

He was the official schoolphotographer for many SouthMumbai schools and had an archiveof photographs at home that wemust not lose. For with him andhis work would die memories ofthousands of students.- Maleeka Rafiq Lala (ISC 1989)

Hemant WatsaClass of 70, Barham

Hemant was diagnosed with aterminal disease in March 2011and passed away on April 17, 2011.He is survived by his wife Glenda anddaughter Yaamini and mother andbrothers Uday and Rohit. Hemantived in Australia for many years and

came to India four years ago.His life is one to celebrate. We

know this both from the way he lived,and his thoughts about others whohad left this world.

when a Cathedralite, a year older,passed away. It sheds light on who

Hemant was. It came as a shock tohear of his passing away. No doubthe is pursuing a higher academiaand wondering what the hell we areall feeling so morose about. I havejust poured a glass of outstandingAussie red wine in his memory. Itoast his success and his reaching ahigher level than any of us have yetachieved, but no doubt we all willsooner or later. Enjoy!By Class of 1970 friends of Hemant

We knew Hemant as full of lifewith positive energy and everyone

he met, however fleetingly, thoughtof him as jovial. He was generous,thoughtful and always had an openhouse. He had more depth than wasapparent, and an important partof his life was as an activist with aconstant effort to help those thatwere less privileged.

He was a gourmet cook andhad even dreamt about starting arestaurant!

Hemant wrote the following


18/29


REUNIONS

Work on our reunion began two years earlier,given the time-consuming task of locatingclassmates, many who had not been seen for

almost 50 years. Cathedral provided sketchy records;however our popular blog, Seventh Heaven, namedafter a newsletter from our Standard 7, helped. Teenergy Jacob Matthan put in was amazing s eekingout our teachers and classmates the world over. Bymid-2009, we had 73 confirmed as attending coming from as far as the US, UK, Israel, Mauritius,Malaysia and Canada and of course, those in India.

Our next task was to plan the events for our seven-day bash. Having agreedthat the reunion wouldstraddle Founders

Day, the events weremeticulously planned all unique fortheir generous hosts,ocations, menus andother bandobasts. Tesencluded a Breaking

the Ice ceremony heldat Middle School oversamosas and chaifollowed by a curtain-raiser at cocktails and dinner hosted jointly by ElijahOoky) Elias and Viney Sethi at the Bombay Gymkhana.

On day two we had anElvis Evening dinner anddance hosted by Vijay Nayar at his penthouse atMarine Drive, while on day three the Findian Eveningwas hosted by our Finnish se ttler, Jacob Matthan.Dinner was a traditional, delectable South Indian feastand during the evening an e legant coffee-table book on

hey came from USA, Hyderabad, Delhi, NewZealand, Chennai, UK, Holland etc, reuniting

after 25 years to celebrate the Class of 84. BlueFrog in Mumbai had pulled out all stops to make surethe reunion was unforgettable. Given the number ofempty bottles, loud laughter, squeals of delight, photosessions and unabashed dancing that followed, wesuspect Blue Frog wont forget that night in a hurryeither. It was a wonderful evening shared not justwith long-lost classmates but also with several of theirspouses or significant others. As the night wound up,we parted ways with a promise to do this again for our30th reunion (which is not far now guys!).

- Udita Jhunjhunwala

Class of '59

Class of '84

the Class of 59 was unveiled by Annikki Matthan each copy signed by all the classmates present!

Te midpoint of our reunion was the FoundersDay Church Service at St. Tomas Cathedral. Teservice was followed by the Alumni Dinner Dance atBlue Sea, Worli and an opportunity to meet 700 otherschoolmates and (perhaps) old flames!

Te next day we headed to Alibaug for an overnighttrip. Cocktails and brunch were hosted at theKapur Bungalow perched atop a hill. Planned andcommissioned by our late classmate, Ashok Kapur,it was completed just in time for our reunion. Teevening was spent at the regal Ruia House where hosts

Ashok and Anil hada band playing 60smusic, dancing, party

games and an amazing48 mouth-wateringdishes, each namedafter one of us!

Te class of 59rested on day six andon day seven Piloo ataand Armeane Chokseybrought the curtaindown with a lavishdinner at Piloos Breach

Candy home. Te sit-down Parsi feast was a fittingfinale to the Mother of Reunions.

A DVD and a CD of photographs were prepared byGita Simoes and Husnain Chinwala respectively, tohelp recall those wonderful moments, moments thattook our breath away!

- Vijay Shivdasani

Left to right: Husnain Chinwala, Shivi, Jacob, Bill Shiri, Ramesh Mirchandani, Viney Sethi (at back),Noel Ezekiel (front), Ooky Elias and David.The ladies: Gita Simoes, Anjula Mansukhani, Asha Agarwal, Harmo Malik, Sheryn Mulla, Parvin Surti,Seeta Nayyar, Saroj Malkani.The men behind the ladies: Anil Ruia, Vikram Savara, Naubir Mohindar, Peter Miovic, Adi Cooper,Arvind Thadhani, Atul Kapadia, Venkat, Ratan, Khurshed Balsara, Vinay Dabholkar, Robert Tyabji,Arun Sethi and Jangoo Moos.

REUN

Planning for this event began a year earlier,not because we were disorganised but becausewe were so excited and to give classmates

from around the world enough lead time to firm uptheir travel plans. So it was decided that a week ofcelebrations, with a trip to Mahabaleshwar thrown in,would give everyone adequate time to catch up and gohome with a host of happy memories.

Our festivities began with an evening receptionhosted by Meher Amersey and Rashida Anees foralmost 90 people. It was set in Rashidas beautifulhouse. It was an enchanting evening where old tieswere renewed, gentle handshakes and warm hugs wereaccompanied by loud oohhs and ahhs as we lookedat each other in awe and amazement! Some of us had

not met for 50 years while others were reliving earlierget-togethers. Schoolgirl tunics and boys shorts hadgiven way to exquisite saris, high-fashioned pants andimmaculate suits; some heads were without locks, andjust a few displayed the effects of the good life.

Te celebrations continued as we left for theMahabaleshwar Club early the next morning. Duringthe bus journey we recounted stories and sang songs.Te Secretary of the Club, together with his staff,

Class of '60

he night of January 2, 2010 was simply magical!Te Class of 1985 met for its 25th reunion, in acelebration that lasted almost 12 hours. Cyrus

Mistry and his wife Rohiqa most graciously hosted thisget-together at their home and this will remain one ofthe most memorable evenings in all our lives.

Class of '85 Almost 100 ex-students and six teachers partiin this evening. In addition to the Mumbai crowdclassmates from Dubai, the US, London, Delhi anPanchgani attended. Given that some still resembhow they looked whilst in school and some, verydifferent, someone put it very well when they saiwas surreal and awesome to meet familiar strange

It was a real pleasure to have Ms. Hallegua, MrMahableshwarwala, Mr. and Mrs. Kochar and Mrjoin us that evening. alking to them brought bacwonderful memories from school and even thougyears had flown by, it seemed like just yesterday.

We sang the School Song and cheered for our SHouses, as if we were still in school. At about 3 a.mwhen some of us were losing steam, we were joineby our friends from the Class of 1984 who also hatheir 25th reunion the same evening and we parton. Tank you Cyrus, Neel and Anand for your hearranging such a memorable reunion.

I left at 4 a.m., thinking of all the good times screpresented for us, and how even though we havea long way, our school bonds will never leave us.

- Priya Khubchandani La

arranged delicious meals and even set up a gala in the garden for the final evening of the three dthat we spent there. Dur ing the day, we went arsome local sights. Tere were walks and shoppinand lots of bridge, billiards and table tennis. Teevening was outstanding as the Secretary, a wizhis guitar, belted out all the popular songs of thand we sang along with him. Aching muscles anjoints were ignored as we jived and became kids

We returned to Mumbai to an elegant dinnerhosted by the Four Musketeers Ajit Mehra, DKeidan, Meraj Manal and Pratap Gidvani. Everywas touched by their generous hospitality and waffection which allowed us to renew our friendsin a relaxed and informal atmosphere. Te weekbegan with a successful class Golf tournament bclearly, it was the Founders Day Celebrations th

brought back emotion-loaded nostalgia, particuthe Church Service which allowed us to relive animportant event of each schoolday.

Our final bash was a sumptuous dinner at RoDeas home. Many ballads were sung, the goodbwere tearful and promises were made to remainconnected electronically. It was a fitting finale tweek of renewals, reflections and remembrance

- Jyotsna


19/29


Ratan Lalkaka(Palmer) did hisgraduation from Wilson College andhen joined Air India for one year.

Ten moved to Burmah Shell, wherehe worked for 35 years. After retiring,oined the Petit rust as their CEO for

10 years and is now involved in trustwork after his retirement from there.Married to Perveen Gazdar (also fromCathedral), and he lives in Mumbai withhis two children and two grandchildren.

Alyque Padamsee (Savage) Ad-guru,actor, playwright, producer and director.Was the Chief Executive Officer of L intasand is still very active in the theatreworld.

Jangoo Dubash (Wilson) formerowner of Rogers and Co. Retired, he liveswith his family in Mumbai.

Habib Datoobhoy(Wilson) joinedhe legal profession and used toepresent the Aga Khans interests in

Mumbai.Farokh Bharucha(Savage) living in

Miami, worked for the US Coast Guard.Ian Brown(Savage) was a Captain

n India Steamships, he is now liv ing inoronto, Canada.

Bobby Jones (Barham) was anxcellent athlete, now living in Australia.

Fali Kumana(Barham) joined hisamily business after school, now livingn Pune.

Farrokh Mehta(Wilson) formerlyn advertising, now an avid producer of

plays. He is married to Vijaya Mehta whos very active in Marathi Teatre.

Foy Nissen(Palmer) anthropologist,worked and retired from the BritishCouncil. Is living in Mumbai.

Robin Omeris living in London.

And those who are, sadly, no longerwith us:Solu Batliboi(Wilson); Soli

x cathedralite 2011

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