Friday, November 24, 2000. 07:00 p.m. onwards at Alfa Gardens

Shakespeare wrote that ' the show must go on'. Indeed the show did go on with a great deal of fanfare at the Alpha-Gardens on the 24th November. Amidst the undulating lush green lawns, the sprawling open landscape and the crystal cascades of the waterfall, the Bhavanites had gathered for their Annual Alumni meet. The gathering seemed to be an oasis amidst the din and noise of the Delhi roads, still audible but thankfully no longer visible.

The evening started with the registrations being made at a counter. The guests, who were of course members of the alumni were given small name tags complete with their name and batch year (for identification purposes) which they could attach to their coat lapels. The registration desk, as usual was manned by the four musketeers - Gurudutt, Rakesh, Sudhir and Gaurav.

Wow! the sight for sore eyes indeed after a harrowing drive through the streets of Delhi - a huge hall sumptuously decorated with brightly lit dancing floor and a very musically agile DJ. The dance floor wasn't empty for long as the little ones followed by the teenagers and then the, might I add staid but sporting Bhavanites themselves thronged to shake a leg.

The dance, music and pizzazz of the evening was interspersed with an activity of the cerebral yet emotional kind. The sprightly Yogesh Negi had a lot of questions relating to the nostalgia of school life for the guests. The answers led to pleasant reminiscences and the trip down memory lane won the members T-shirts, with the Bhavan's crest emblazoned on the chest, as prizes for correct answers.

The hospitality department was under the gastronomical baton of Harish Bhasin and indeed the cuisine was to be eaten to be believed. The dashing waiters ferrying tikkas of various hues and flavours made an apt job of gladdening the alumni's heart through the cavity of the stomach. The evening neared its bitter sweet yet inevitable end with the announcement of the prizes for the raffles. The lucky ones were presented with gift hampers and other great prizes.

Nostalgia was like a fine shroud overlying the fun and humour of the evening where everything ended on a grand note with the promise of a meeting again sometime soon in the future. It was not goodbye which encapsulated the spirit of the night but the anticipation of an " au revoir ".

Sunday, November 21, 1999. 12:30 p.m.

We had thought that our much sought after event - Annual Dinner, was very popular. We had also received feedback that Delhi in November is very cold and by the time the function ended it used to become pretty late causing difficulty to quite a few of them to return back. Keeping all this in view, we changed the timing and decided to have Lunch instead of dinner. The thought of lazing around on a warm Sunday afternoon would be quite appealing; that is what we thought and how wrong this assessment turned out to be!

This year Mr. S V Venkatachalam was the chief guest and had come all the way from Madras to grace the occasion.

The venue was the school ground, with the decor having an ambience of sophistication and the seating arrangement was compact with chairs & tables placed all around for guests to circulate and feel comfortable while conversing with old friends, teachers and other distinguished guests.

The noon started with the recitation of the School Prayer ‘OM Purnamadah’ and presentation of shawl to Mr. Venkatachalam. Our President, Dr. Subodh Jindal (1967) gave the welcome address and also read the Annual Report in the absence of the Secretary, Dr. S Ramji (1973).

In line with our commitment to honour teachers who had completed 25 years of dedicated service with the Bhavan’s Mehta Vidyalaya, this year four teachers - Mrs. Krishna Datta (Sanskrit), Mrs. Swadesh Kumar (Primary), Mrs. Lata Kankan (Primary) and Mrs. Manjula Gupta (Primary) were felicitated. They were presented with a bronze statue of Goddess Saraswati as memento by Mrs. Venkatachalam.

What followed next was the speech by Shri Venkatachalam, in his unique style & tenor, that touched everyone present deeply. A new facet of Mr. Venkatachalam was revealed, when on the request of the teachers present, he sang a perfect Punjabi Song with immaculate pronunciation and élan.

Finally after the vote of thanks, there was a call to join in for hot lunch which was a pot pourri of Aloo Tikki, Pav Bhaji, Noodles, Sarson Da Saag, Naan, Kulcha, Bedmi Subzi and Makki Di Roti etc. and lot more. For the sweet toothed there was ice cream and hot gulab jamuns.

The mood was upbeat and a general sense of camaraderie and bonhomie was all-pervasive throughout the evening. It was home coming for the Bhavanites and even the teachers felt a sense of ‘belonging’. For those who could not make it, don’t get disheartened as there is always a next time. But do keep in touch and roll up in greater numbers for the next meet.

Remember, the school does not belong to us; we belong to the school.

Friday, October 15, 1999

The excitement of last year's Basketball match was still fresh in our minds when we began preparations for this years' "Sports Event". A lot of support came from youngsters from 97' batch and practices became a routine in the evenings. The 'D' Day arrived and a strong Bhavanite team entered the arena lead by Gaurav Rao. The School team looked well prepared since it is presently being coached by an NIS coach who was also referee of the match.

The school grounds were abuzz with activity with classes VI & VII supporting us and VIII & IX supporting the hosts. The match began with Bhavanites taking an early 8 - 2 lead. The School team helped by their coach (also the referee)!!! fought back not only to equalise but take a slender lead during half time. The IInd half saw some very competitive tussle but the school team was able to stick to their lead and won 27 - 21. The two teams congratulated each other for their performances and wished good luck for next year.

Next on the line was a Volley Ball match with the school faculty. Bhavanites had in their team veterans from 1976, 1983, 1984 batches whereas the School team was led by the principal Mr. G.S. Negi. Bhavanites won the first set comfortably but the teachers fought back to level the score. The final set was keenly fought but Bhavanites ended the day on a winning note to redeem a lot of prestige. The final scorecard of one match all was satisfying to both groups with lots of promises in the future.