Entering a new School-- New Era: Mount Hermon School, Darjeeling 1957

MOUNT HERMON SCHOOL Darjeeling

1957 and a new Era and a new environment and a new School up in the hills of Darjeeling.

So early March from Dim Dima Tea Estate 4 steel trucks were tied up in the tea garden Willy's jeep to take our belongings up into Darjeeling. Our Tea Estate Manager Uncle Austin had two children George and Gwen who were my seniors by a few years already were students of Mount Hermon and my elder sister and me were joining the new session hence all our belongings were loaded and shipped off early in the morning.

Baba decided to take the old Ford Prefect 1928 model into the hills as he wanted to show off that he too owned a car. We left Dalgaon at 8 am post a hearty but tearful breakfast with Didibhai howling away and me in tears. We took 3 hours just to get into Siliguri as our car heated up and we had to fill up the radiator time and again which in itself was a long story (Blog 3 had details)

We had packed lunch in Sukna forest area and then we started the climb into Tung, and our car really struggled on the road. Our refill were much more and thankfully the mountainside had these cute bamboo water connection so getting water was not a problem but wearing a suit and then doing the exercise was an odeal. By the time we hit Kerseung our Car and Didibhai both got sick. My sister started puking all over and our car refused to move and needed longer cooling down time.  By the time we hit school it was late evening and children from all over the world were checking in. The car just broke down near the school gates and we walked the last few steps into the compound tired and hungry.

Mrs. Williams who was going to be our Teacher was there to greet us as was Mr. and Mrs. Murray as well as Mr. and Mrs. Steward and a host of pretty looking teachers all from New Zealand and UK etc. I was in shock as the school was huge. I mean huge with kids like me running around wild and screaming or crying as the case may be and my sister who was two years older than me holding my hand and telling me to run back to the car.

A matron took us inside and took me to the boy’s dormitory while someone else took my sister to her dormitory and soon we assembled for dinner. The dining room was like a palace to me… so much food and so many kids eating all at once. This was facanating for me as I came from a middle class joint family back ground and now rubbing shoulders with the “who is who” of the world was just a dream. Their ENGLISH WAS PURE WHILE MINE WAS JUST ABOUT ADEQUATE and the first friend I made was Sonam Wangyal and Shankar Dev. Sonam is still with me in FB and that night as I lay down tucked in my blankets I felt cold- confused and scared and felt that my parents had abandoned us and run off.

Next morning at 6 am while it was still dark we were woken up and I went to the locker room and took out my tooth brush and paste and was helped by a beautiful Angel Tara who was the Ayah under the matron. Tara spoke fluent Bengali so conversation was not difficult and she helped me with my new uniform and slipped on the tie and soon I was ready for breakfast.

I was taken to my new class and saw Mrs. William there and I think it was class 2 and soon I was given a huge pile of books and brown paper and labels and everything smelt new. I never had new books before and a school bag too and my own seat and chair. WoW and an angel sat beside me. She was Sasi Burloung from Siam (Thailand) and I fell in love with her instantly….. Maybe I still am. She was stunningly beautiful and we became great friends too.

The day passed off well and we had PT for one period and what I did not do during class I made up in the PT class. I was very very good in sports as it came naturally and whatever sports task was given to me I did well and became a pet with PT Mam Miss Samson. Post classes we were allowed to play in the front of the school ground reserved for the juniors and now I had good cricket equipment to play with and wooden wickets too and a real bat. My sporting career got shaped up here.

In meanwhile my homesickness was getting cured but whenever I met my sister and saw her cry as she never got over her sadness I too would hold into her and cry too.

In fact Ma had to come back for her the following Saturday and the 3 of us stayed in Planter’s club for the weekend and things got slightly better as for the next one month we were allowed to go out on weekends.

I loved the swimming pool as we had 2 days of swimming which was great. We really had a blast and in spite of the cold it was fun. Open air and the Queen of mountains Kanchanghanja right in front of us with her peak covered with a huge blanket of clean snow and I never got tired of that view EVER.

We had forests all around us and Mrs William would take the class out on walks during classes and show us nature and we saw how spiders spun webs and how seeds became flowers. We grew flowers in beds dug by us and we planted the seeds and watered it too and my learning was more outdoors than books and today if I love nature and mountains it was because of Mrs Williams. We went for picnics to Lebong Race course and had our own adventure with monkeys. We invented adventures too and Robin Hood was my favourite.

We saw movies in school and John Wayne was my hero as was Tarzan and other movie characters. Comics were read and reread so many times and I never got bored. We were taken to town once a month I think and given Re.1/ to spend and I would use it on pony rides and toffees. We could not leave Mrs Williams reach and she kept a great watch over us as would some of our seniors too.

I don’t remember which house I was allotted to but our leader was Benu Chatterjee who was the hero of every one. My heroics in the sports field got our team points and in junior school I was quite popular. Organised games in Cricket Football and hockey happened as per season and I learnt the fundamentals through good players and Robin Sir. Mr Murray played for New Zealand in cricket and he was a great wicket keeper and my first sports hero. Although I was fond of bowling I wanted to keep wickets as that is what my hero would do. He would stand right up to the stumps even to fast bowlers and that was exciting. We never were allowed net practise as only in class 2 but he would come to our junior school compound and show us the correct way to hold the bat and also help me with my bowling etc.

Within the end of first term my grades improved and my English was good and when Baba came for a week end visit he was and so very surprised with my progress and Mrs William had good things to say about me and my report card showed good marks. This excited my father as I was coming from a Bengali medium school to an upper lip English medium school and one of the best too and I did well. He spoilt me silly in town and I got to take my first photograph with school uniform and cap in Das Studio and Baba got many prints to send back to his family. He was so proud of his children and it showed. In Calcutta Baba was very strict and I feared him but on this visit he was so very different. Kind hearted and full of humour and he remained like that till his untimely death in 1966.

He had gone out of his way to get a good job in the tea garden and as part of the perks Didbhai and me were given education by the organisation and he felt proud to see simple children running around with the rich kids who were giving that much respect back to us….. Baba never understood that in school all were equal.

Soon monsoons came to Darjeeling and for days and weeks it just poured. I never saw so much rain in my life and this weather fascinated me and even today I love rains. Life carried on for us and we even had swimming classes in the rain and it was quite comical to wear our swim suits and on top of it wear our rain coats and then swim….. Come back in rain coats……Don’t ask me why???

I remember North Point School and other schools come and play matches and we would all stand in the side  lines and our cheers leaders would go…1-2-3-4 who are we for…5-6-7-8 who do we appreciate and we would howl and enjoy ourselves in the side lines win or lose. And we had our class matches too and it would be fun.

Weather changed again and it was October and in another month we would be home. Now school sports practise had started and I was entered in various events and my house captain made us practise our events over and over again and we spent hours perfecting our craft. D day came and I remember it was so colourful. The whole area was marked by huge flags and ropes and tracks were coloured in white and whole of Darjeeling came to see our events. My parents were there too and I remember I got 3 prizes in running and spoon and marble race and sack race…..Standing on the podium to get a prize was a great high…..

We would now sing some songs about going home and I can still hum the tunes and forgotten the words but it used to be great singing together and having a blast.

Group class photo and school photo sessions was a new experience for me and my sister and we had a holiday as we changed dresses so many times for various group activities and I really admire Uncle from Das Studio who had come to photograph a bunch of co-ed naughty but fun loving brats…. Some glimpses

The day school closed for us juniors and we went to Darjeeling Station and boarded the toy train to Siliguri and “Boy Oh Boy” was it thrilling or what….. No one could stop us from singing Do Da DO Da Day on the top of our voices and running all over the small compartment and at times even sneaked on to the road when the train was climbing slowly to Ghoom. Batasiya Loop saw us stop our sing and dance as someone told us we were going back to school….Oops!!!!! What a ride we had and I did not want it to end…… We chug chugged into Siliguri and there was Baba and Ma ready to take us into their arms….. Our Ford Prefect car “Jagarnath” was waiting for us and also the Willey’s jeep and we returned back in style as Baba being an engineer and Duar Garage Uncle Dhatt did things to the car and she ran quite well. No filling up water in the radiator every 10 km and soon by evening we were home.

A great first year in a boarding school in new surroundings and I came out better and strong. Thank you Mrs William and my friends for teaching me to live together and share things….. Sonam if you ever read this Thank you brother for being there for me.

Dooars.... Tea Plantations 1957 Baba got a new Job

Baba

Dooars and Tea.....Baba got a new job in a White dominated Tea Plantation.

Baba got a new job in a Tea Estate and there is a huge story around it too. My father did his early education from Etna Gram in Undivided East Bengal near a small town called Jessore... We belonged to a learned family of Boidya Bramins of Sen Sharma responsible to publish the Holy calendar (Yearly Book) called Gupto's Panjika.... This was a calendar of events for the coming year with all calculations of sunrise/sunsets and good days and the bad and it had everything and I believe even sold today in the streets of Kolkata..... My Dadu was Mohini Mohan Sen Sharma (Changed to Sengupto) and my Dida was from the famous Nihar Ranjan/Channkya Sen family of Faridpur also in East Bengal.

My Dadu was a police Officer and posted in Canning in 1940's and Baba did his secondary education from Canning Government School and then went into Jadavpur Engineering College to study mechanical engineering. His batch mate for the first year was Hemanto Kumar Mukherjee who did study for one year before he made his mark in music. Baba and him were the best of friends with Biswajeet the famous movie star.

Post graduation Baba got a job as a Service Engineer with Parry and Company having their office in Chowringhee Road near ICI paints and they were the service agents of Kirloskars engineering products and Baba used to visit Tea gardens to service their Boilers and other equipment. Baba used to tour a lot in various Tea gardens and would stay in Quarters of Bara Babus as that was the ways of gardens handled by the white Bara Sahibs.

Macneill and Barry and Kirburns had the biggest share of tea gardens belonging to Lord Inchcape and Lord S.P. Sinha was then the Chairman of the group. Bob Dockings was the Garden Superintendent of Tarapore Tea Company Ltd which had 9 tea gardens in Cachar District around Kumbheegram airport. Dewan Tea Estate was the main garden where Bob Dockings and the Gora Sahibs lived and Sanjoy Shankar Ray (Younger brother of Siddahartha Shankar Ray) was assistant Manager of Labac T.E.

It seems that Bara Sahib's bunglow was not getting adequate water from the Boiler as one of the water pipes had clogged and jammed and the Gora Engineer and his fitters had badly bent and twisted the pipes to such an extend that the pipe broke but could not be taken out for a new pipe to be replaced. No water for 3 days and Bara Sahib could not have his garam pani bath in the bath tub and Baba was deputed to do something.

Baba landed in Silchar (Khumbheegram Airport in an IAC plane and a lorry (Bedford) was sent to fetch him. Baba was rushed into the bunglow and when he saw the disaster he asked for some old cloth-jute rope and tar...... He wrapped all this around the damaged pipe and put the liquid tar around the cloth and put fire to the stuff. after the pipe turned hot he took a small hammer and put the wrench into the hot pipe and gave it some hits and out came the pipe..... In an hour's time Bara Sahib could have his hot water and hot tub to wash himself. During the whole time he stood beside Baba and was amazed at the simplicity of the operation where common sense was applied and not engineering science.

Baba spent the night with Bara Sahib in his 14 room Bungalow and had the best wine and food and was treated like a lord.Bob Dockings gave Baba a personal letter for Lord Sinha and this time Bara Sahib himself drove Baba to the airport for the return flight and when Baba reached 9 Lord Sinha Road to hand over the sealed letter he met Lord Sinha himself and was told to report to Head office the next day as he was selected to become an Assistant Manager and return back at once to Dooars.

I remember the moment when Baba came home to Regent Park in Tollygunge and broke the news there was joy and anger.... Dadu could not tolerate the fact that Baba was breaking out of the joint family and setting off to some job of a mali in a tea garden and till the time Dadu expired he never knew what Baba did in a garden.... We left that same night and stayed in a hotel and early morning Baba and Ma and Didibhai and me went to Burnpur to my Nana's place.

Baba returned to Kolkata and resigned and joined Macneill & Barry and he left for Dooars by flight landing in Bagdogra and joined DimDima Tea Estate reporting to Uncle Austin (Gora Sahib with an Indian Memsahib). We joined him a month later.

Ma and Didibhai and me were booked into a strange compartment in a train (First class coupe) and I was amazed at all the upholstery and fine woodwork inside the coupe and we had a toilet to ourselves. WoW. I remember I had just recovered from Jaundice and still weak but I was jumping from one berth to another like a monkey as I had never seen such luxury and the journey was memorable too. We passed forests and mountains and I could see snow peaked mountains for the first time (Kanchanjunga) and reached Dalgaon station  around 8 am. A familiar gentleman in a tea shirt and half baggy pants with long socks and a solar hat with Keds welcomed us and I saw my mum jump on the man and hug him I realised that was Baba. He was in the office dress of a tea planter and he took us to a car (Big car--Ford Prefect bottle green purchased from Duar Garage and he drove us for sometime and we entered a big gate and there was a huge lawn and flowers all around and some people (Malis) stood up and bowed while we drove in. We stopped in the arched  porch which had creepers all around the walls and a horde of servants came to fuss over us and take our b and touch my parents feet and wished me and Didibhai.....

We sat in the drawing room which had huge sofas and chairs and what not and I saw that a fire was burning inside the room (fireplace) and Ma... Didbhai and me sat lost...... we were stupidly lost.... We just wanted to go to our home as we thought this was his Boss Bungalow and for about an hour we sat in one sofa huddled together till Baba came back for breakfast and explained that this was indeed our home...... Then the monkey in me took over....I jumped and hopped and skipped all over and ran wind on the lawns and forgot it was winter and soon I just collapsed as the after effect of excitement and jaundice both attacked me and doctor had to come and I was ordered into bed. The bed was so funny as when I moved it bounced with me (Springs) and then I realised I had a room to myself and Didibhai had her own room and Baba and Ma was in some other room by themselves......WoW!!!!WoW!!! and more WoW.... living with Aunts/Uncles and cousins in one rooom and suddenly a room to myself was heaven till nightfall......

We lived very near the game sanctuary and wild life started activating itself and the noises were scary and I ran to Baba's room to see my sister already there and for a week we all lived in the parents bedroom.....

It took me a week to recover and I was pampered and spoilt rotten by our Staff and the Doctor and every morning I used to be put into a cane chair under a tree and covered up in warm quilts with comics and food and fruits and would be there till lunch and my recovery was fast. I had the beautiful mountains in front of me and a river behind me and a big lawn around me. The bungalow had 3 bedrooms and one hall room and a smoking room?? and.... and.... and.....never mind..

Once a week was club day and the four of us went to Dalgaon Planters club where I just saw cars and more cars parked in a big field and a young man came and took out a long bag from our car and hung it around his back and neck.... Baba said that he was our caddie and Baba took out a funny looking stick and walked to a small high raised ground and put a small while ball into a screw like thing  and gave the ball a hit. He and two Aunties and another Uncle walked into the green field and each one stopped and gave their respective balls another hit. I was told this was golf and we children walked obediently behind while others hit balls.

Soon I realised that Baba was actually doing everything but hitting the ball. He had a huge stomach and I don't think he could actually see the ball and all his swings were getting him nowhere and in a nine hole course he had a score of 128. Amen. Auntie Eilene (Uncle Austin's Indian wife) had a score of 92..... In two weeks I was hitting the ball better than Baba and he gave up golf and decided to play Tennis....

Another story and maybe another time and Baba was a great sport and refused to give up and had a huge lady following who loved the way he played tennis... He was all over the court chasing balls and not making contact and yet he never gave up. He could not as it was company policy that one had to play one sport during club days and he decided that chasing balls was better than losing balls (golf).

I loved club nites and there was a grand high Tea where every family contributed to bringing food from home and we all pooled in cakes and pastries and what nots.....I loved the food but could not indulge as was still sick but the atmosphere was great and then we got to see a movie in the hall sitting in big cane chairs and having finger fries etc.

On Holidays we would take our car for drives all over Dooars....Our car was a 1928 Ford Prefect  model and she was old and needed help every 10km....We had to open the bonnet and let the hot air escape and then open the radiator cap somehow and pour water and cool her down.....A big bucket was part of the tool kit. Yet we went all over Dooars and Bhutan and as soon as the car stalled Ma and me would take the bucket out and run to the nearest water hole and rush back with water and thankfully Dooars has many rivers and streams and we never ran out of water.....But trust me it was comical fetching water.

My first Christmas party was in Dalgaon where there was a Santa Claus waiting in the door and I got a Badminton racket and a a football and got to meet a lot of kids and enjoyed dancing to a live band and realised that Ma was the best dancer in that club and I could move well with her automatically...Genes maybe but I still remember that night dancing away with Ma... Gwen Austin 4 years older than me and my best friend too.....

Soon 5th March 1958 arrived and Didibhai and me got ready to drive up to Darjeeling to join school.
That will be in the next blog......