Carmichael College reunion-2008
Md. Rahber-E-Alam | Sunday, 1 June 2008
For a few days there was great excitement in our family, as the reunion of former students of Carmichael College was approaching. Although, I did not give any importance to the matter, but the excitement reached a peak and I was told I would be hired, unofficially though, as one of the cameramen for the show.
I was speechless!! How boring the whole thing would be? But I had no choice since both my parents are former students of the college.
We were about to attend the reunion of the former students of the famous Carmichael College in Rangpur. It was obviously a show in which the former students were dying to attend. Suddenly, it seemed that my father, Rakibus Sultan Manik, who studied there during 1979-1989, was back to his college life, which I did not fail to notice. He was laughing, joking around with us and was busy preparing himself for the show.
Finally, we hopped on to our bus and started our journey to Rangpur. In my opinion, the most irritating part of a journey is packing the bags, hurrying to catch the bus in time, and unloading the bags. However, we could not skip this part. Our journey was exhausting. Everyone was sweating, in spite of the fact that it was night. Dust and dirt made the journey uncomfortable.
In the morning of May 1, we reached Rangpur. We put up in my grandfather's house.
Happiness does not last for long time. Soon I was awakened by the call from my best friend. However, I could not afford to waste my weekend on the bed. We also met our mother, Rehena Khatun Lity, who studied there during 1981-1989. She reached Rangpur the previous night. She took a break from her PhD course.
At noon, I went for a round of the college campus with my father. My mother was too tired as she just returned from Rajshahi. I had been in the college campus before but this time the campus, decorated for the celebration, gave a different look. A huge stage was under construction. The senior teachers and offers were supervising the work. My father introduced me to them. We set out to explore the vast area of the college. The rickshaw ride was very comfortable. On the way father narrated the history and rich heritage of the college.
The college inaugurated on November 10, 1916, by Lord Thomas David Baron Carmichael, the then Governor of Bengal.
The college was built with donations and contributions from jamindars. Carmichael College was, and still called said to be the Taj Mahal of the North Bengal. It was nice to hear this. I felt so proud as if I was the owner of Carmichael College. Definitely, it was beautiful and adorable.
On May 2 we found the college campus very lively as thousands of students reached there from all over the world. They were bright students of this college. It was a return to their second home. They were greeting their respected teachers. They were having a great time with their dear college friends as they could meet each other after years. They all felt so happy. No one was thinking of materialistic life. No one was thinking about office, business or earning. They were engrossed with their college. A glance at the college, where they had spent an unforgettable part of their life, made them so happy.
The former students were looking for a huge rally to celebrate the reunion both on the campus and out of it. Decorated carts were lined up, behind which the rally would follow. The rally left the campus to the tunes of band music.
T-shirts and caps were supplied by Rangs Electronics Limited.
I followed my parents wherever they went and I took them to take pictures. I had nothing else to do!
In the evening, the great show began. Every speaker expressed their love for the college and thanked Allah for making them a part of this college. These words came out of their heart.
Ex president Ershad's speech gave people amusement. While staying in the college hostel, he said, despite all his efforts he never could make round breads and had to contend with rectangular, hexagonal breads.
Surprisingly, Rangs Electronics Ltd. was not thanked at all by the committee, for their huge contribution for the function. As my father works for Sony Rangs, I was expecting that the company would be mentioned for its contribution. It is my opinion, and it does not seek to offend anyone. However, at one point my father hopped on to the stage and standing in front of the mike, he announced that the whole stage, the big screen television on its two sides, and other accessories were provided by Rangs Electronics Ltd, for which we are extremely grateful towards them. It drew applause from the audience. The audience response made me proud.
At the cultural function, disrupted by technical problems and load shading, many singers and dancers performed.
The next day a powerful storms devastated the stage, leaving almost nothing except the bamboos, which supported the stage.
To restart the disrupted celebrations the stage had to rebuilt. We toured the massive campus, took the lunch packets and souvenirs and left the campus, as we had to repack our bags and catch the bus for Dhaka at exactly 4p.m. Reluctantly, we had to leave Rangpur. I was to attend my school. We missed the main show, scheduled for the next day, May 3. My parents had to skip the main show for me.
On our way to Dhaka, friends informed us that some outsiders created problems on the college campus at night by resorting to violence. The show ended abruptly for security reasons. That unexpected event raised us a lot.
My parents were not associated in the management of the show. Like many other former students, they just went there for their love of the college.
The writer is a student of class IX, Sunnydale School, and son of a former student of Carmichael College.
I was speechless!! How boring the whole thing would be? But I had no choice since both my parents are former students of the college.
We were about to attend the reunion of the former students of the famous Carmichael College in Rangpur. It was obviously a show in which the former students were dying to attend. Suddenly, it seemed that my father, Rakibus Sultan Manik, who studied there during 1979-1989, was back to his college life, which I did not fail to notice. He was laughing, joking around with us and was busy preparing himself for the show.
Finally, we hopped on to our bus and started our journey to Rangpur. In my opinion, the most irritating part of a journey is packing the bags, hurrying to catch the bus in time, and unloading the bags. However, we could not skip this part. Our journey was exhausting. Everyone was sweating, in spite of the fact that it was night. Dust and dirt made the journey uncomfortable.
In the morning of May 1, we reached Rangpur. We put up in my grandfather's house.
Happiness does not last for long time. Soon I was awakened by the call from my best friend. However, I could not afford to waste my weekend on the bed. We also met our mother, Rehena Khatun Lity, who studied there during 1981-1989. She reached Rangpur the previous night. She took a break from her PhD course.
At noon, I went for a round of the college campus with my father. My mother was too tired as she just returned from Rajshahi. I had been in the college campus before but this time the campus, decorated for the celebration, gave a different look. A huge stage was under construction. The senior teachers and offers were supervising the work. My father introduced me to them. We set out to explore the vast area of the college. The rickshaw ride was very comfortable. On the way father narrated the history and rich heritage of the college.
The college inaugurated on November 10, 1916, by Lord Thomas David Baron Carmichael, the then Governor of Bengal.
The college was built with donations and contributions from jamindars. Carmichael College was, and still called said to be the Taj Mahal of the North Bengal. It was nice to hear this. I felt so proud as if I was the owner of Carmichael College. Definitely, it was beautiful and adorable.
On May 2 we found the college campus very lively as thousands of students reached there from all over the world. They were bright students of this college. It was a return to their second home. They were greeting their respected teachers. They were having a great time with their dear college friends as they could meet each other after years. They all felt so happy. No one was thinking of materialistic life. No one was thinking about office, business or earning. They were engrossed with their college. A glance at the college, where they had spent an unforgettable part of their life, made them so happy.
The former students were looking for a huge rally to celebrate the reunion both on the campus and out of it. Decorated carts were lined up, behind which the rally would follow. The rally left the campus to the tunes of band music.
T-shirts and caps were supplied by Rangs Electronics Limited.
I followed my parents wherever they went and I took them to take pictures. I had nothing else to do!
In the evening, the great show began. Every speaker expressed their love for the college and thanked Allah for making them a part of this college. These words came out of their heart.
Ex president Ershad's speech gave people amusement. While staying in the college hostel, he said, despite all his efforts he never could make round breads and had to contend with rectangular, hexagonal breads.
Surprisingly, Rangs Electronics Ltd. was not thanked at all by the committee, for their huge contribution for the function. As my father works for Sony Rangs, I was expecting that the company would be mentioned for its contribution. It is my opinion, and it does not seek to offend anyone. However, at one point my father hopped on to the stage and standing in front of the mike, he announced that the whole stage, the big screen television on its two sides, and other accessories were provided by Rangs Electronics Ltd, for which we are extremely grateful towards them. It drew applause from the audience. The audience response made me proud.
At the cultural function, disrupted by technical problems and load shading, many singers and dancers performed.
The next day a powerful storms devastated the stage, leaving almost nothing except the bamboos, which supported the stage.
To restart the disrupted celebrations the stage had to rebuilt. We toured the massive campus, took the lunch packets and souvenirs and left the campus, as we had to repack our bags and catch the bus for Dhaka at exactly 4p.m. Reluctantly, we had to leave Rangpur. I was to attend my school. We missed the main show, scheduled for the next day, May 3. My parents had to skip the main show for me.
On our way to Dhaka, friends informed us that some outsiders created problems on the college campus at night by resorting to violence. The show ended abruptly for security reasons. That unexpected event raised us a lot.
My parents were not associated in the management of the show. Like many other former students, they just went there for their love of the college.
The writer is a student of class IX, Sunnydale School, and son of a former student of Carmichael College.