A visit to the Alma Mater is always a wonderful experience, getting to meet many old Teachers is an icing on the cake; being able to share such an occasion with old classmates is a boon and when such a combination of blessings happens on the doorstep of a Ruby Anniversary it is Heavens’ gift.
The batch of DAV students who passed out in the year 1986 had such a wonderful once-in-a-lifetime opportunity on the 15th of March 2025. We were, in all, 48 classmates (Science and Commerce Groups put together) who now came from 4 continents with 12 of our teachers, some of whom also travelled from other cities, who lived this unforgettable reunion at our School Auditorium in the Girls School premises. This campus was the only school then, when we studied and the school was still DAV Higher Secondary School. Some of us had the proud privilege to witness the launch of the other group schools and be a part of the inauguration Haven programmes in the 1980’s.
It was the first time that we met after completing school, when we last walked the classes, the corridors and the campus of our school as students, preparing to step into the real world as young adults; yet, when we reunited and with our teachers joining us, it felt as though time had not passed at all. We were all dressed in white shirts and trousers which was a close cousin of Khaki in colour, most sticking to some shade of beige. We had also recreated the School badge as it existed then and all of us proudly pinned them on; one of our classmates had even saved his old school belt and wore the same on that day. In all, it was such a festive atmosphere recreating old times.
The memories, the nostalgia and the emotions that went through our minds as we entered the school in a familiar place with some not-so-familiar additions adding a new look to the campus, like this auditorium itself, was an amazing experience. The excitement and anticipation were palpable and the day was pregnant with the promise of replaying and reliving countless memories.
The classrooms where we learned and played pranks, the rooms named Takshashila and Nalanda, the labs where we experimented and broke test tubes and pipettes or disfigured Vernier Calliper equipment, the playground where we had shared laughs and games, where we had our NCC parades, the basketball court which groomed many of our players, the corridors where we had walked with youthful energy and sat on the floor to have our lunch, the notice boards which we broke while playing cricket and almost all these places where we kneeled down for punishments —they all held a special place in our hearts and this day was an occasion when all such memories played out in front of us as if they happened just yesterday. This had been our second home for many years, under the watchful eyes of our teachers, Vice Principal and Principal, all of whom nurtured our growth.
Amongst us, there were so many changes with grey hair, receding hairlines and expanded midriffs, however, what has not changed is the warmth and friendship, which will last this lifetime. The faces of our teachers brought out many emotions – some of them still had their bright smiles and eyes full of wisdom while some had changed what with their many years of teaching. Not often do teachers get to see the outcome of their hard work. On this day, though, looking around at the diversity of achievements, accomplishments, successes, growth and the heights that we have all scaled, the teachers witnessed how the seeds that they had sown had grown leaps and bounds.
We began the event by paying homage to a few of our classmates who had passed away in recent years. We then invited and escorted our teachers one by one on stage with students taking turns in sharing a lot of memories, anecdotes and learnings. We even gathered the courage to recall some of the tough messages and punishments that the teachers had given us, including caning received from our then Principal Mr Ram Kalia. The energy, excitement and love in the room was infectious. What made this even more memorable was the affectionate recall of many instances that our teachers had of many of us, even after several years have passed, reflecting their personal involvement in shaping not just our minds but our character and values.
The clock was set back not just when we were addressed as children but well and truly, when our Kindergarten teacher Mrs Sudha Rathna, sang the “Smile” nursery rhyme and all of us with childish enthusiasm played back the “Ha-Ha-Ha” with our hands up, tears rolling down our cheeks. At the group photograph session, we even sang the full School prayer without any mistakes, which, though seemed ritualistic then, carried so much more meaning now for us.
We ended the morning session with a sumptuous “Elai Sappadu” lunch with teachers which we had organised at Hotel Maris. We promised to stay in touch, not just amongst ourselves but with our Teachers, too. As we bade our goodbyes, there was a wonderful feeling of belonging amongst our friends along with a deep sense of gratitude for the School and the teachers who had left such a lasting impact on our lives. The reunion was not just a recall of the past, it was also a firm reminder of the enduring power of education, the lasting value systems inculcated by the Institution, the profound influence of teachers and the timeless connection between those who teach and those who learn.
We bow our heads in reverence to the teachers who made it to the event despite their advancing age – Mr Balaguru (Physical Training), Mr Suriya Narayanan (Physics and NCC), Mr Asokan, (Engineering Drawing), Mr. N Kumar (Electrical Gadgets), Mr Varadarajan (Tamil), Mrs Mahalakshmi (Tamil), Mrs Saroj Bagga (Primary School) , Mrs Soumithri (English), Mrs Geetha Balachandran (Economics), Mrs Jayashree Pillai (Mathematics), Mrs Urmila Vaidyanathan (English, History & Civics) and Mrs Sudha Rathna (Kindergarten). We have also connected with many other teachers who, owing to advanced age and other limitations have not been able to join us and we met them at their residences – Mr T T Varadakutti (Mathematics), Mr. Satish (Commerce), Mr. R Venkateswaran (Chemistry), Mrs Vimala Srinivasan (Physics), Mrs Meera Ramadoss (English, History & Civics), Mrs Pramila Bai (Biology), Mrs. Ganga Krishnan (Biology).
We also owe a special thanks to the DAV Alumni Office – Mr Bhanu Kumar (President), Mr Megh Kalyanasundaram, Mrs Anuradha for their extensive support in making this event a grand success.
The three letters “DAV” have left a lasting imprint in the sands of time and will continue to stand as a timeless beacon of strong value systems and quality education.
