'We do matter to the prime minister of India'

"He is teaching us that every single person, no matter how small, can serve the country. Even us students."

"It's good that he brought up the fact that teachers are not being appreciated. He didn't lecture anyone and he encouraged the students to approach him and he tried his best to change their perspective."

Students in Mumbai react to Narendra Modi's initiative of speaking to them on Teacher's Day. Paloma Sharma/Rediff.com listens in.

Until Monday, September 1, the students of class X in Mumbai's Gopi Birla Memorial School were waiting for the much-anticipated holiday that was usually announced for Teacher's Day.

This year, however, they discovered they would be expected to attend school from 2.30 pm onwards, until the end of the speech Prime Minister Narendra Modi would deliver on September 5. It wasn't until 4.45 pm on the same day -- when the speech was over -- that they found out being called back to school wasn't such a bad thing, after all.

"In the end, it was worth the while," says 15-year-old Satyaki Mandal. "When I heard about it, I thought it would be boring because there would be only one person talking and the rest of us would have to listen to an one hour and forty five minute long speech. But it turned out to be quite interactive and interesting."

Satyaki wears a badge over his uniform's pocket that says 'School Captain', which, one can safely assume is equivalent to head boy. A similar badge is worn by another student, Parina Muchhala.

A classmate of theirs, Prerak Gandhi, confesses that when he heard about the prime minister's plans for the nation's children, he too was "quite upset". Despite his initial scepticism, he seems to have been won over by Modi as well. "This is the first time that a prime minister has addressed the students of the country," he stresses.

"I love the fact that we finally have a government that is approachable. I mean, there's never been something for the children on Teacher's Day," beams Parina. "Students have always done something for the teachers as a formality. But Mr Modi has wiped the slate clean and started a new trend. He has shown us that we really do matter to the Prime Minister of India."

Parina admits she is an admirer of the prime minister. "PS: I'm Gujarati," she laughs, "So I've always been a big fan of Narendra Modi."

Satyaki feels that it is the duty of the prime minister of the country to be concerned about, and give respect to, every single citizen of India (students included) but he has only seen this under the Modi sarkar. He believes Modi is doing what any prime minister should ideally do and was especially impressed by the fact that students from all over India were invited to interact with the prime minister, "There were even students from places like Port Blair," he exclaims.

The trio unanimously agree that speaking to the students of the nation is a smart move on the part of the prime minister, since they are the ones who will take the country forward.

"When I heard his speech, I was extremely surprised," says the soft-spoken Prerak, looking down at his intertwined fingers. "Not only is he trying to develop our country, he is also trying to learn from other countries to take us forward at a faster rate. He is teaching us that every single person, no matter how small, can serve the country. Even us students. As far as I know, I have never seen a prime minister like this in our country."

When asked if they felt that, on the occasion of Teacher's Day, Modi should have spoken to the teachers instead of the students, Satyaki says, "I think this is a really good initiative. As he said in the speech earlier, we must put ourselves in the shoes of a teacher to know what it is really like. Talking to teachers on Teacher's Day wouldn't really make a student understand how important a teacher is for him. Students don't exactly respect teachers these days."

Prerak, too, thinks the speech was a good exercise. "I liked that the prime minister spoke to the students instead of speaking to the teachers because a teacher can only exist when there are students. The students need to realise that they need to respect the teachers."

Parina elaborates, "What's the point of having a Teacher's Day if no one really appreciates the teachers? This was a better option than telling teachers what to do or how good a job they're doing because, honestly, every teacher is doing their best to help the students and bring out the best in them. So it's good that he brought up the fact that the teachers are not being appreciated. He didn't lecture anyone and he encouraged the students to approach him and he tried his best to change their perspective."

Both the school captains agree with the prime minister on the uniqueness of the student-teacher bond. According to Satyaki, "There are things we can't tell our parents but we can talk to our teachers about them and they will not refuse to listen because that is their job."
"I have noticed that the stricter the teacher is, the more approachable she is," shares Parina. "There is a generation gap, of course, but that is why you look up to them and seek their advice."

The students were particularly astounded by the leader of the nation reaching out to speak to school children in an interactive session, in a country where most politicians do not pay attention to anyone who is below the age of 18 and hence not a votebank.

When asked which, of all the questions posed to Modi, was their favourite, each student had a different answer.

Prerak: My favourite question was when the little boy asked him what he discovered when he was in Japan. I liked his answer too, when he said that in Japan, after school is over, the students and the teachers work together to clean the classroom.

Parina: I liked it when one particular student asked him about how naughty he and what pranks he played as a child. It was different from some of the heavier questions and the answer he gave was great too.

Satyaki: I thought the best question was when a student asked him if he had ever thought he would become the prime minister of the nation and he burst out laughing.

We then asked them what they would have liked to ask the prime minister, if they could.

Prerak: What would you do to make sure that students pay attention to their education instead of getting distracted by all the new technology?

Parina: There is this opinion that Bharatiya Janata Party is a very pro-Hindu party, so what would you do to show that you is working for all the people of India?

Satyaki: Instead of going to other countries and seeing their education system, can't we revamp our own education system in our own way?

Photograph and videos: Paloma Sharma/Rediff.com

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