Xaverians went into flashback mode at the 39th ALSOC reunion, with The Telegraph
Xaverians went into flashback mode at the 39th ALSOC reunion, with The Telegraph
For around 1,000 old boys and teachers of St. Xavier’s Collegiate School Flashback was more than just the theme of the evening at the 39th Alsoc Reunion on December 17. Organised by Alumnorum Societas (ALSOC), the St. Xavier’s School Old Boys Association, in association with The Telegraph, it was an evening to relive the best days of their lives. From their love for Panditji’s Canteen samosa to playing football in the rain, from bunking classes to being summoned to the principal’s office for sporting long hair, the St. Xavier’s College grounds turned into memory lane for ex-students. Xaverians from all corners of the word had travelled back to their city for this evening. There were tables dedicated to various batches to ensure that no one missed meeting their batchmates. The school was lit up with lights and violinists set the mood. There was an LED dance performance by Sveta Musica from Goa before Xaverian DJ Harish took over the console and got ’em grooving to popular English and Bolly numbers. t2 was there to soak in the spirit of Xaverians Reunited.
TT Bureau
Published 28.12.16, 12:00 AM
For around 1,000 old boys and teachers of St. Xavier’s Collegiate School Flashback was more than just the theme of the evening at the 39th Alsoc Reunion on December 17. Organised by Alumnorum Societas (ALSOC), the St. Xavier’s School Old Boys Association, in association with The Telegraph, it was an evening to relive the best days of their lives. From their love for Panditji’s Canteen samosa to playing football in the rain, from bunking classes to being summoned to the principal’s office for sporting long hair, the St. Xavier’s College grounds turned into memory lane for ex-students. Xaverians from all corners of the word had travelled back to their city for this evening. There were tables dedicated to various batches to ensure that no one missed meeting their batchmates. The school was lit up with lights and violinists set the mood. There was an LED dance performance by Sveta Musica from Goa before Xaverian DJ Harish took over the console and got ’em grooving to popular English and Bolly numbers. t2 was there to soak in the spirit of Xaverians Reunited.
Boys from the batch of 2015 ruled the dance floor. Flashback: From getting suspended for sporting long hair to having mobile phones confiscated, every second day we were at Father Peter’s office for some mischief!
Joint conveners Pradyumn Kajaria (extreme left) and Partha Paul (second from right), Alsoc managing member Dipen Datta (extreme right) with Father Benny Thomas, principal. “It is wonderful to see ex-students coming back and reliving old memories, sharing old secrets and cherishing days they have spent here. It feels great to see how they have grown up and become responsible men,” said Father Thomas.
Debanu Das from the 1991 (ICSE) batch was back in school after 25 years!
Flashback: The most common line used during a fight was — I’ll meet you in the backfield. Boys would settle their scores in the backfield of our school.... I also remember playing soccer in the rain. Our shoes would come off as none of us could afford high-quality soccer shoes in those days.... It was a different kind of fun altogether.
Shomudro Chaudhury (extreme left) of the 2006 batch took a groupfie with his batchmates. Flashback: On the last day of school we were all sitting on this ground and sobbing. Every time we come back here, we remember that day.
The logo at the entrance was a popular selfie corner.
Arijit Roy from the 1992 batch was busy taking videos and panorama shots of the school and WhatsApping his friends who could not make it to the reunion.
Twins Avimanyu (left) and Upamanyu Mukhopadhyay with their partners Neha Murad (extreme left) and Varsha Bhargava were back in school after six years.
Flashback: We brothers were not at all athletic so on every Sports Day we used to hide in Panditji’s Canteen so that we did not have to participate in the relays.
Roopen Roy (right) from the class of 1969 and Sanjay Bajoria from the 1980 batch were busy chatting about their teachers when t2 joined them.
Flashback: Our mathematics teacher thought it was geometry class but we were supposed to have algebra. He told us to take out graph papers, which obviously none of us had. Our class monitor was scared to say anything, so all 140 boys got slapped — Sanjay
Our class teacher in Class X was a priest from Belgium. One day while teaching he spotted a crow on the window sill and told us, drive that black parrot away! — Roopen
Amish Raja from the batch of 1990 posed with wife Krishna before hitting the dance floor.
Flashback: In class when teachers would ask us questions, we would try to hide behind friends. Also, I learnt to copy my dad’s signature at a very young age!
Rajiv Doss, who has been teaching accounts and commerce in Plus Two for the last 18 years, was looking forward to meeting his old students.
Flashback: I have never thrown any student out of my class or written in anyone’s diary or called for parents, yet there is always discipline in the classroom.
Friends from the 2009 batch posed for t2. Flashback: We never know the true value of a moment until it becomes a memory.... Our entire class was making a racket when Father Boris caught us. The entire class was called out roll number-wise and we had to touch our toes and feel the pinch of his famous cane! We all miss him and wish we could go back and stand in line for him to cane us again.
DJ Harish, a proud Xaverian, set the mood with numbers like Kala chashma, We Will Rock You, Sooraj dooba hai and Nashe si chadh gayi....
Agniv Basu of 2015 batch was the first to hit the dance floor, letting it rip with I Want to Break Free and inspiring the likes of Sharat Singh (extreme right) of the 1990 batch.
The LED dance performance by Sveta Musica from Goa.
Musicians played some classics on the violin at the entrance.
