Teachers and students pay tribute as Sophia College for Women turns 75

In 1940, the Society of the Sacred Heart, a Roman Catholic order, bought a large plot of land at Bhulabhai Desai Road comprising Somerset House (named after Sir Henry Somerset, one of the commanders-in-chief of the then Bombay Presidency) from the Maharaja of Bhavnagar. A year later, on June 20, Sophia College for Women was born and this Monday, the college will celebrate its platinum jubilee.
There is some bias while writing this story, since I spent three years teaching BMM students at the college. Before that, both my mother and sister were teaching for many years in the same college. I’ve spent time in the college’s staff room as a child trying to mind my own business, while my mother would go and teach her students.

‘We’re not looking at top-class!’

When I caught up with some of the teachers, they all had one thing to say: Sophia’s is not an institute that produces geniuses. “Having said that, we make it a point to have independent, free-thinking women by the time they graduate,” said Rashna Poncha from the Department of History.

Poncha, who has been teaching at Sophia’s for the past 20 years says that watching the students grow is quite the experience. “In the first year, they are afraid to ask questions, but slowly gather the confidence and by the second year, we are able to have healthy discussions in the classroom. By the time they are in the final year, they really blossom,” she says with pride.
Dr. Anagha Tendulkar from the Department of Sociology agrees with Poncha and adds that with the easy access to information today than when she began teaching, the students are more confident now.

Seeing the college grow

A senior teacher, who does not wish to be named and has taught at Sophia’s for over five decades, says that when she began her career, it was a period of innocence. “It was the 60s and while the West was influenced by The Beatles and Rock ‘n’ Roll, it was still an innocent period in India. Today, while the students are more self-confident, I wish they have a better attention span,” she said.

Impact on students

Aman Parhar, who studied in the college in 2013, says that Sophia College taught her how to be a strong woman in this world. “The growth in terms of educational learning as well as life learning has been immense. I would love to one day go back and teach,” she added.

Another student, Aiman Khan attributes her success to the teachers at Sophia College. "Sophia really does have, the best set of professors. I feel privileged because at every step, I was guided by professors on both levels; academically and otherwise. I am still in touch with most of them, and the bond is such that I can reach out to them whenever I want.
Khan goes on to add that the other reason she loves Sophia is that for someone who spent a life in a co ed school, Sophia changed that perspective entirely. "The college taught me the need and importance to have a girls college and how a space like that, can empower women. It was an eye opener, and at every step I acknowleged my privilege- which I had never addressed before."

Here’s to the next 25!

All the teachers I spoke to said that while they won’t be teaching when Sophia’s turns 100 years old, they are confident that it will remain the same. Dr. (Sr) Ananda Amritmahal, Principal of Sophia College, said that she was hopeful that the students who graduate in the years to come, are still self-confident women, who know that their voice matters.