Hostel Life-2

Our campus was beautiful. Everything was well maintained and tidy. The food was also good. The college and hostel were run by Carmel Convent sisters.

Soon it was Freshers Day. We were asked to rummage up some kind of cultural programme to entertain the staff and seniors. Some of the girls were friends becos they had done their PUC in the same college, and there were the rest of us who had come from other places. Anyway, the occasion demanded that all of us get together. We made up a humorous skit- Evolution of the Zoology student along the 3 years of graduation -. it was well appreciated, and we enjoyed playing it.

Next was the programme conducted by our seniors. They imitated the various staff members, their mannerisms, speech which was appreciated by those who were familiar with them, but was lost on us freshers. The staff too took it very sportively, happily joining in the ensuing laughter.
Finally came a game for us freshers. We now knew-THIS WAS IT! It was actually a ragging session in the guise of a game. Later, I realized that it was quite a harmless, mild version of ragging when compared to the horrors that take place in professional colleges, but at that point of time, I did not know that and was not in a frame of mind to appreciate the fact. Each of us were given a number, and later any number would be called out at random, and the student holding the particular number had to perform a particular task! Quite a common place thing. Many numbers were called out, and the tasks were also quite easy, the usual, sing, dance, imaginary chair kind of routine. My nerves were relaxing, I was mentally rehearsing a few songs, dance steps perhaps, perhaps I wud even succeed in impressing them.

And I heard my number being called out. My heart started pounding, I was already having a head ache, which aggravated with tension. I stepped fwd, with what I thought was a smile on my face, ( but later I was informed I looked more like a sheep being led to be slaughtered). My task- I was asked to impersonate a hen laying an egg, and the cocks reaction!! Obviously, I did not oblige, gave them the lame excuse that I never witnessed a hen in action! Needless to say, I was made fun of, loud comments were passed and I felt my cheeks flush with embarrassment, anger and sorrow. Tears dangerously lurked within my eyes but I stubbornly refused to let them fall. My friends later told me that they were perhaps irked that I back answered them, if I had been meeker, perhaps Id have been spared. And to think that, until that day, I had always considered being meek was my cross.

And from then on, as I walked down the campus lanes, the corridors, I cud hear the endearment- Dubai Kozhi- ( the hen from Dubai) echo behind me. The pet name stuck till the third year students remained in campus. Few months into the year tho, I made friends with my seniors.