Rani Mukherjee runs with the Olympic torch near India Gate in Delhi (AFP). Sangeet Shirodkar with his torch (above). Picture by Amit Datta

Days after he had the honour of holding the Olympic flame aloft as part of the Torch Relay of Athens 2004, it still feels like a moment ago to Sangeet Shirodkar. One of the two Calcutta students selected to pass the Olympic flame on its journey around the world keys in an account of what happened in Delhi on D-day.

The torchbearers’ relay was launched in New Delhi on June 9, with several dignitaries present. The 105 torchbearers were briefed by the Athens Olympic Committee representatives. Sitting beside me were brothers Amaan and Ayaan Ali Bangash and some former Olympians.

The technique of passing the flame, which was to arrive from Beijing on June 10, was demonstrated. The torch, 65 m long and weighing 700 g, uses propane gas, we learnt.

Next day, Delhi chief minister Sheila Dixit flagged off the 33.2 km relay from Qutub Minar. Suresh Kalmadi, chief of Indian Olympic Association, was the first runner, followed by former Olympic coaches, singers like Palash Sen, corporate biggies like the Mittals and students.

The likes of Aishwarya Rai, Bipasha Basu, Rani Mukherjee, Aamir Khan and Vivek Oberoi from showbiz, and Kapil Dev, Anil Kumble, Rahul Dravid, Karnam Malleswari, Mahesh Bhupati and Anjali Bhagwat from the sports world also took part.

A few torchbearers who inspired me included Vivek Tanka, the youngest advocate general in the country. As former district governor of Rotary International, he had sent 980 runs of aid to the cyclone-hit area in Orissa. He also supports a school for children with cerebral palsy.

Then there was Vijay Bhatkar, inventor of the super-computer Param; R. Velmurugun, a pioneer in ayurvedic medicine; and Akshata Umesh, a Bangalore teenager who cleared the first round of Mission Mars but could not go further as she was below 18.

Arja was a Special Olympics gold medallist; Aslam Amin, although handicapped, was an MCA from Harvard; Ravinder Singh Nagar, partially-sighted, was a successful participant at the 2nd World Championships and Games for the Blind.

People lined both sides of the streets. I was the 11th runner, starting a kilometre after Qutub Minar and doing a 400-m stretch on the ring road. As we stepped off the bus, a huge cheer went up. Led by Palashda, we students shouted slogans like “Vande Mataram”, “East or West, India is the best” and “Sare jahan se accha, Hindustan hamara”.

A BMW bike approached me and the gas switch on my torch was turned on. Delhi student Karan Luthra passed me the flame as we hugged each other, shook hands and raised the torch in all directions. Then it was my turn, to the tune of cheers and a shower of flowers. I could see my parents and brothers.

My 400-m run finished in a flash. K.S. Sarma, CEO of Prasar Bharati and the oldest torchbearer, was awaiting my arrival. A handshake and bearhugs followed. I broke into tears when I passed the flame. It seemed like the months of anticipation and preparation were over in a fraction of a second. But it was a magical moment. I was surrounded by people asking me for autographs and a picture of me, torch in hand!

The spotlight shifted to the Dhyan Chand national stadium, where performances by Shankar Mahadevan, Louis Banks, Sivamani, L. Subramaniam, Kavita Krishnamurthy and Shiamak Davar followed speeches from Athens Olympic Committee representatives. A medley of Indian dances wrapped things up. Anjali Bhagwat lit the Olympic Flame, which continued its journey to Cairo.

The best part was being able to take the torch home. It will remain an inspiration to me.

 

Tollywood star Jishu Sengupta chills out with some Calcutta schoolchildren at a summer workshop in Gangtok

Scouts day out

The three-day annual programme of the 16th South Calcutta Bharat Scouts and Guides was full of fun and frolic. The first day saw several plays being staged. Ek Dhama Alu and Jhantu Mamar Jhankari by the cubs and rovers respectively, got the audience laughing. This was followed by a few recitals.

On Day II, the rovers presented Camp Three, a play depicting the problems Indians face when they go abroad to do business. The alumni association also staged a play. The best was saved for last, as the final day witnessed the cubs, scouts and the rovers dancing to the tunes of popular Bengali songs like Lal Matir Sarane.

The rovers also presented an Afghani dance, while the cubs and scouts performed a dance to the song Raja Rani by Euphoria. Next was prize distribution. Souvik Pramanik bagged the best cub award, while Arijit Mazumdar was declared the best scout.

Later, the scouts performed a drill showcasing their skills, did some gymnastics and staged a play on what they do when they visit an outstation camp.

— Subhajoy Roy,
Class XII, Mitra Institution

 

Cool summer

This summer workshop was one with a difference. Organised by Hum Institution in Grant Lane, students from schools like Abhinav Bharati, Bhowanipur School, Calcutta Girls’, Hartley’s, Queen of the Missions, St Joseph’s, St Xavier’s and Welland Gouldsmith were taken to Gangtok and Darjeeling to beat the heat.

A variety of workshops had been organised for the participants, from aerobics, calligraphy and mehndi application, to flower arrangement, gift-wrapping and pottery painting. The eight-day programme ended last month with us returning home loaded with goodies, gifts and report cards.

Candle making, talks on self mastery, dance, choreography and fashion shows went hand-in-hand with sightseeing and a bit of shopping. A surprise visit by Tollywood actor Jishu Sengupta, in Gangtok, during a handicraft class, was a memorable moment.

— Puja Vora,
Class X, Bhowanipur School

 

Busy bees

It was a busy summer as usual at Padatik, on AJC Bose Road, with a line-up of programmes like western dance, children’s theatre and creative writing, art of living, maths made easy and kathak by Pandit Birju Maharaj.

While the kathak classes added up to around 200 participants, with proud parents often crowding round for a look, the other offerings, too, attracted their fair share. Like maths made easy, where children of all ages joined in the games involving maths tables and Vedic maths methods of solving complicated calculations in seconds.

The workshops will end in a performance on June 20, at Bharatiyam Cultural Complex in Salt Lake, where participants from Padatik’s Salt Lake centre will also showcase their skills.

 

Picture perfect

Last call for budding photographers — a chance of a lifetime to express yourself and help the world look at today’s youth through your eyes. The Commonwealth Photographic Awards calls upon youngsters to send in their images on this year’s theme, Youth.

Judging will be on the interpretation of the theme as well as technical ability. The deadline is June 18. The award consists of a £2,000 first prize. Along with the award, entries are also being invited for The Young Snappers Prize (photographic equipment) for 12 to 18-year-olds.

Also, the Dan Eldon Prize of £250 will be awarded to a young photographer aged 18 to 30, who uses his or her work for social or humanitarian purposes. The winning photographs will be exhibited in central London and other Commonwealth cities.

For details on how to enter and to view winning images from previous years, visit the awards section of the website www.cpu.org.uk or contact the British Council.

Also coming up at the British Council are interviews by UK universities — June 16 by London Metropolitan University, June 17 by University of Leeds and June 24 by Broxtowe College.

 

Open door

Nexgen School of Management and Technology announced the beginning of its first academic session in July 2004. The institute offers courses in business administration, computer science and mass communication (journalism), on a spacious campus in Tollygunge.

It has been granted the authority to offer the 3+1 American degree Credit Transfer Program, which allows students to complete three years of an American university equivalent degree and transfer the credits earned to Troy State University (TSU), which has global campuses.

It also offers the College Level Entrance Program, which allows students to complete a four-year undergraduate course in three years by transferring credits earned through exams. Nexgen offers a six-month Bridge Course, preparing students for MBA studies in TSU, facilitating the completion of a three-year post-graduate course in two years.

Nexgen will provide students with recreational activities, a career counselling cell, scholarships for meritorious students and other facilities.