When deciding on the articles we wanted to feature in our newsletter (The Poorna Passengers), a recurring idea was to look at how Poorna began, and the changes it has seen over the years. It struck us then that Chandru is one of the members who has been in school and witnessed much of this (for 18 years so far).
Chandru is one of the first people you meet in school just as you enter every morning. Many of the older students have shared fond, funny and adventurous memories with him for nearly a decade!
With Chandru, one never has to worry about initiating conversation or having a specific subject in mind. “He will just come up to you and start talking, and the conversations are always engaging,” says a student. “The first ever class I attended in Poorna was Chandru’s carpentry class. It happened in the current teacher’s room downstairs. He asked me how I liked school, and then we just spoke. I found him very easy to talk to”, says Aahan, an 11th grader.
The fact that he speaks in, and quickly switches in and out of many languages (8 in total, as we found out in our interview) makes it possible to have more personal conversations because we feel instantly comfortable. is often hard to find in school! If you have ever tried looking for him, you would know that he could be anywhere on campus (or away!) doing a variety of tasks ranging from teaching carpentry classes to helping with tech-trouble in the AV room; from DJ-ing at assemblies to taking students out.
When we wanted to find Chandru to interview him for this article, we ran a search-party around school, only to find him in the kitchen cutting apples.
What follows is the interview which has been edited and translated for clarity:
The interviewers:
S: Sandhya, an 11th grader
P: Prerna, a teacher at Poorna
V: Vedika, an 11th grader
S: For how long have you been in Poorna?
Now, it has been 18 years continuously. I joined in 2006. Before that, I was a temporary worker, my salary was Rs.400 per day, I think. Then Indira Madam called me for a week's training. At that time I was the only one doing pickup and drop, and there was just one bus. Many others would come in their own vehicles.
It was only after that that I took up a permanent job here in 2006. Once my job became permanent, we shifted schools and came here.
S: Why did you join Poorna?
There was no specific reason. I was always interested in working in a school around children - I like them very much. And in the first week that I worked here, I noticed there was a lot of freedom. There used to be a garden there at that time, now there isn't one. The kids used to run around in the garden. I saw all that, got interested and came.
S: You have been here for many years and a lot has changed in Poorna. What has that been like? Do you like it?
Now they teach the students a lot of different things. We have labs for each subject, there is a separate art space. Our kids go to DPS and do art as well isn't that a great thing? I really like all that. Change needs to happen, no? According to the world and the changing generations, we must also change, right?
S: Uncle, you do a lot of different kinds of work. What all do you do?
P: And what do you like the most among all the variety of things you do?
There is nothing like that! The way it is, is that I am here now to work, and everybody benefits from the things I do - students, teachers. So I do anything that is needed and do it with interest. Just that I get angry sometimes, adhu minus! Even if I tell the children “hey do this or that”, it is with interest. Now if I had to repair this tap right here also, it would be out of/with enthusiasm. I don’t do anything without that. Also, I need to do it perfectly (pakka va); otherwise I won’t do it at all.
But one thing that I want to say is that Poorna has been my experience as well. I first came as an electrician and driver. After getting together with the kids and teachers here, and also on my own, I was motivated to do different things.
If someone said - “could you do this”, even if I didn’t know how to, they would let me try. That is how I began experimenting.
S: What did you do before joining Poorna?
Actually I am an electrical geyser mechanic. Driving was something I used to do as a jolly thing, and have done more of it only after joining Poorna.
My kids also studied here. My son was here from 5th-10th, and my daughter finished her 12th here as well.
S: How many languages do you know?
Tamil, Kannada, Hindi, Urdu, Telugu, Malayalam. I read and write Malayalam and Kannada also. Tulu as well.
English, I just do hush-push and normally speak (laughs)
S: Uncle, when do you come to and leave school?
I reach school at 6:30AM. There is usually something to buy or bring. In the evenings it can go anywhere between 3:45/4 and 6; there are no timings like that.
S: And do you come on the weekends too?
Yes, there tends to be some work and if there is, I come.
V: When do you wake up, and when do you sleep?
I wake up at 4/4:30 in the morning, and sleep by 10:30/11PM
Credits: Anish
S: Uncle where were you before you came to Bangalore?
I finished my 5th standard and came here directly. Rest of my studies happened here in Bangalore. The way I studied also was that I had friends just like you all do. I looked at the languages they spoke, and trained with them. I also learnt English like that after coming here.
S/P: A lot of the old teachers have left over the years. What made you stay at Poorna?
For me? I really like the culture of our school. There is no divide here, right? I am a teacher, you are a driver, they are a student and all that. We are trying to be the same way from the early days to now. I really like this culture of no separation between teachers, students, drivers, somebody else.
Written by Sandhya and Vedika, 11th graders at Poorna Learning Centre
This article was written for and published in the Poorna Passengers, a student-run publication curated by the students of Poorna Learning Centre, Bengaluru, as part of the Editorial Board Training Program