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INDIAPICTURESend an email to
[email protected]A
s little girls, we played
School-School. The whole point
of the game was to get to be the
teacher and boss over the ‘children’.
Endless afternoons were spent mimick-
ing Miss—teaching the class, firmly
punishing or reprimanding them, then
deciding to reluctantly forgive later.
Tests were conducted in a tense atmo-
sphere. Correcting the answer scripts
was the best—with the flourish of a red
pen you got to decide your friends’
fates. Perhaps we were preparing
ourselves for the harsh adult world
that awaited us.
All this was so long ago that
‘superheroes’ had not entered
our vocabulary. For every little
girl—and boy (except those
determined to become engine
drivers)—our teachers were
our heroes.
Then, growing up, we
saw the world in a new
light, and their capes
began to fall away.
We learnt to see
our teachers asfallible, ordinary. But no matter how
cynical you got, a handful of teachers
remained unforgettable. For me it is a
certain Miss De Santos, who was firm,
principled and wise. She looked
thoughtful most of the time, but
rewarded you with the kindest smile
when you managed to win her
approval. My little heart felt a spike of
joy that seems priceless to this day.
This September, we celebrate our
most loved teachers with writer
Devapriya Roy (p 114). The cover
story on how sugar can make us sick
(p 86) is an important read—just
ahead of the festive season. Kind-
ness of Strangers (p 94), ‘Word
Sleuth’ (p 102), ‘In the Land of
Nirvana’ (p 124), the Drama
(p 106) and Bonus Read
(p 132) are all worth a read.Until next month, then!DEAR READER
Sanghamitra Chakraborty
editorTo Miss,
With Love
Reader’s Digestreadersdigest.co.in 11