Getting caught by a teacher for a haphazard act, a culturals stunt, a calamitous seminar... Seem like three disjoint events, with very low correlation coefficients, don't they??? These dis-articulate events during my UG are very much related besides the fact that i had a part to play in all of them!!!
It was within first few weeks after we joined college that this happened. Myself, Mahesh and Viji filled our plates and settled on a table opposite to a person - for dinner. My friend just brushed aside a chilli which was already on the table. That wretched thing, to our astonishment, landed perfectly a few inches away from that person. She was giving us cold stares as we were blinking at each other. All the three of us were tensed that the "good manners" and "apology" parts of our brains were crippled. We thought, "Tonight we are going to be the scapegoats of this senior and her accomplices". We started to peck the food when another girl came and asked this person, "Akka, can i sit here" . This lady replied, "I am a lecturer, call me Mam". Even now, i remember the ludicrous reaction we gave!!! We took our plates, shifted to another table behind her and started giggling, unable to control ourselves. After this incident whenever she saw me at college, she would give a "terror look" for which my eyes would react automatically by going to the ground!!!
As fate would have it, she was our "Digital circuits mam" the very next semester. Sitting in the first bench, i was looking at the ground as usual, dumbfound, during the first hour. But as days passed, i started answering in her class and she stopped giving her very own "terror look". The next semester, she handled "Computer Architecture".
One day, she asked for a volunteer to handle seminar on "Assembler Directives". Meanwhile, i had developed a liking for this mam. So i obliged with enthusiasm. The seminar was to take place during 3rd hour. During 2nd hour class (which was a veeeeeeeeeeery boring one), we were playing passing letters as we would do almost everyday. It was at this time, my cerebrum came up with a splendid, fantabulous, superb (running short of adjectives!!! :p) idea of passing the questions which i am going to ask during 3rd hour with the answers, to my friends so that they answer instantaneously - to paint a good picture of our class to this mam (she was not that happy with our class at that time). I did as the intellect inside my skull ordered to do and also gave instructions to my friends during the break.
Break got over, Mam came to class, asked me to start. I went on stage sans any disinclination, started with the greeting and asked the first question, "So, what is, an assembler???". That alert creature, for whom this question was assigned was looking at me as if she had no connection to it, whatsoever. I looked at her for 2 or 3 seconds. Alas, no reaction!!! I had no other choice than to call her out by name and make her answer. I started explaining, and now, it was my turn to get alert. I decided to put forth the questions which i had prepared to intersperse my lecture with, calling out the names of specific individuals to whom the answers had already been given. I would not have asked 3 or 4 questions - Mam started laughing and said, "Suriyah, I can understand what is going on. You have already given these girls the answers, right???". A sheepish grin was all that i could give her for an answer!!! But, it was one of the rare occasions that she smiled in our class. Thank God!!! She did not fire me for my indescribable, intelligent act!!!
The annual culturals, christened PEACE (Periyar Annual Cultural Events) would be the sole reason of soaring mercuries in our college. This happened during our final year, during which our department was under the pressure of acquiring the overall shield for a hatrick (which had never happened before). The "Periyar Maniammai College of Technology for Women", had become "Periyar Maniammai University" opening doors for menfolk too. One among the events was, "5 minute skit" - a group event. A topic would be picked from the lot by each team - you discuss what to do for 2 minutes and actually execute your 2 minute plan for 5 minutes on stage. Almost all the departments had men (or boys!!!???) participating in the team. Ours was the only "only girls" team. Boys, we thought were always an edge over girls in creativity.
The first team, a "boys only" one, came to stage. We were sitting with our fingers losing the crowns of their nails. Started, their "awesome" display of creativity which made us relax and recuperate our confidence. Our team picked a chit and it read, "HANDLING SEMINAR IN CLASS". The word "SEMINAR" made me think of my previous astute behavior. For the first discussion minute, we decided that this can be acted on stage. For the second minute, we zeroed in on the cast:P Kani was the teacher, with myself(the culprit both on stage and in the actual event), Rukku, Beulah, Vidya, Siva being students. Though Kani caused a minor calamity in the beginning, we somehow managed to end it decently with a "message". We were given second prize for this event. Hurray!!! we did what the other departments haven't done, we completed a hatrick, made a landmark!!!
The title of this post, i think, is clearly explained by now!!! :P
