Latha K Chirayil (1996)
It was an accidental landing at the then REC Calicut: no particular affinity to or knowledge about what an engineer does, particularly an electronics engineer, but just following an elder sibling’s path who knew exactly what he wanted to do…
First day’s experience of walking through the Rajpath carpeted with yellow flowers, gazing at the manicured garden within the circle in front of the main building (MB) and entering the grand campus through the MB – it was love at first sight.
Admission process was long. Registration numbers were being called, slots were getting filled fast, there was tension in the air. There were lots of kids and their parents: people wearing turbans, long sherwanis, pointed Rajasthani shoes, women with their heads covered by the pallu of their sarees, men in suits, some women with stylised hairdos, and all speaking indecipherable tongues, as if they all had just stepped out of Doordarshan shows. It was national integration all at once… End of the day, I was among the chosen ones and my future was set. 😊
Freedom was the highlight of my campus life. Freedom at a college ladies’ hostel with 7 pm curfew sure must be laughable by today’s standards… but it was quite something back in 1992. Travelling alone to a place that was 3-4 hours journey away from home by bus… an acquired affinity to the once nauseating smell of diesel; letters filled with love from home and VIP status during visits home😀; first set of sneakers (did know them only as shoes then), shirts and a pair of jeans for the lab; own bank account (though not fat) and own address without the prefix D/o… all meant a lot to me.
A group of like-minded semi-rebellious girls cramped into a staff-cottage-turned-into-ladies’-hostel exclusively for first year students to protect them from ragging 😀. There were 4 to 5 bunker beds per room. Food was hardly palatable to the kids spoiled by home-cooked meals of micro families. We were, however, being fused together in friendship. A heap of footwear in front of a room meant snacks from home or hot gossip, and everyone jumped in uninvited. The 7 o’ clock curfew meant we often had to jump the LH Annex back gate, while returning from hours of walk and chatter at the “Happy valley“ and “Sorrow valley” after sunset (it was beautiful).
Studies took the back seat right from the beginning. It was always studying to pass the exam hurdle… cramming through the night before the exam… neither for knowledge, nor for high scores. Did not have the wisdom or guidance to know that what was taught there was meant to be applied for the rest of our lives.
I remember loving the mechanical lab record for filling it with near fictional write-up & 3D drawings and hating Engineering drawing for the precision it demanded. Loved digital electronics for no reason and hated power electronics for being put on the spot for giggling after reading funny chits that were on circulation in class. Dreaded Digital Signal processing, but loved the first programming assignment to draw a circle. The lone personal computer in the new block of ladies’ hostel, where we moved in the second year, was used for playing the ‘Bricks’ game most of the time and doing some useless coding at times. Only that much is retained about all that is remotely academic.
On the other hand, hostel life has left vivid and brimming memories. Friendships were growing. Some of us bunked an exam after a favourite midnight movie and sharing leftover dinner hours after midnight. We frequented a friend’s house in the campus and rummaged through their kitchen like a population hit by famine. The big screwdriver we had for labs found other uses in the form of breaking open coconuts (from the terrace) and cutting jack fruits (from the valley). A bunch of us friends had all the 10 rooms on the same floor. However, most of the time, all of us were together in any one of the rooms and the fun was unlimited. We travelled in a group across Kerala and visited each other’s homes. In the final year, we went for a class tour without permission, as we were denied permission for the trip that used to be officially called “Industrial Visit”. The plan was perfect and we had a great time, but someone informed the authorities. Boys were admitted back without question, but all the girls were suspended from the hostel. Parents were called in and each was asked to provide a letter stating that we went with their permission. Parents were more progressive and trusted their children; every parent gave that letter and supported us 🙏.
The Friendships formed there are for life and the memories are worth cherishing for a lifetime. We relive those memories and add new ones at our batch reunions whenever possible.
Being an electronics engineer was not my destiny, however. It was the early years of IT boom. After graduating in 1996, most of us were swept away by IT firms and what little of electronics that I learned was never used. Soon after reaching Chennai for an IT job, my local guardian entrusted me with fixing their faulty television. Getting out of the situation unscathed, masking my ignorance, required some skill indeed! It was also a task explaining to people what we did in the office: spending more than 12 hours at office and no physical proof for the work done😂
It was not actually engineering that I learned in REC. It was life skills… out of the box solutions, working under pressure, facing deadlines sans fear, street smarts, cultural sensitivity and more importantly a friends’ network as good as family to have our back.
Thank you REC, I wouldn’t have it any other way.