Ramdas Padhye: The Master Puppeteer Ramdas Padhye the Indian ventriloquist, puppeteer, and puppet-maker is unquestionably the King of Ventriloquism in India. For over forty years, he has singularly dominated this profession. Ramdas received his formal training in the art of ventriloquism and puppetry from his late father Prof. Y.K. Padhye. At the age of 23, Ramdas performed before the Prime Minister of India, Mrs. Indira Gandhi in New Delhi and true...

The School Band It was a prestigious thing to be a part of the School Band. I auditioned for it twice before I got selected to be part of it. Our school was big and at any point of time there were at least 3000 students studying in it. The Band was huge, and comprised of a group of musicians one pianist, two drummers, 10 guitarists, 15 violinists, 20 flutists, and...

Joining Boarding School I had earned a reputation for being notorious. One day, when I was in the fifth grade, Dad decided that he had given me enough chances and told Mom that he was sending me to Boarding school. Reading all those Malory Tower books had made me yearn to go to boarding school. Rockfeller Boarding school was in Panchgani, an overnight journey from where my parents lived. I had...

Being Elected Head-Girl of School The head-girl was chosen from Grade X. I was one of the candidates and the anticipation was killing me as the professors counted the votes. I had dreamed about being head-girl for most of high school. I knew as early as third grade that I was born to lead. I had been class monitor each year and though I had not designed it that way I...

My History Class Mrs. Mehta taught us History in Class VIII. She wore thick glasses that rested precariously on her nose and whenever she scolded anyone they slid further down her nose and made her look funny. Mrs. Mehta was popular for two reasons. She was very humorous and always shared at least one joke in every class. The other reason was the way she taught us History. She made history...

First Day at High School Dressed in my navy blue pinafore, white blouse and navy blue sweater, I looked at myself in the mirror. It was my first day at high school. I wanted to make an impression. I looked at my new navy blue book bag. It looked trendy and smart. I slipped my feet into my white Nike’s and I was set to go. I was looking forward to...

Taking The Bus to School For ten years I traveled by bus to school. The half hour travel from home to school and back was the best part of my day. It was the only time in the day when we were not supervised by elders. It was the time we threw ink at each other, poured water down someone’s shirt or stuck bubblegum on someone’s hair. It was the time...

Stay At Home Mothers There must be a reason why nature intended for the woman to give birth to the baby. It is the woman who becomes pregnant, the woman who lactates. To care and nurture are inherent qualities of a woman and the reason why they are better equipped between the two sexes to raise children. From a feminist point of view a woman should be able to choose what...