Rajendra and Sheela met at Arts Faculty in Delhi University in 1955. A few eras later, they tell us about their story of romance that developed over ‘chaar anna’ worth coffee, The Northern Ridge, and the general state of comradery between St. Stephen’s and Miranda House.
Saanjh- You’ve been married for sixty years now, before moving to anything else, we must ask you – How did the two of you meet?
Sheela: We both did our graduation from Delhi University. I did my M.A from Miranda House in Economics, and Rajendra did his from Stephen’s. So our M.A classes would happen together at Arts Faculty in North Campus and that was when we met for the first time as well. We took the No. 9 DU Special Bus to Connaught Place.
Rajendra: She used to be surrounded by a battalion of girls all the time, and I found it so difficult to approach her.
(laughter)
Hridika- Where did you both hangout? If you could tell us about an “ideal date” at that time, perhaps?
Sheela: You both are too young to have heard of the Indian Coffee House at Connaught Place, but that used to be where our gang of friends would hang out. So Rajendra and I would also go there at times. We would try and heckle our friends for a few annas so that we could enjoy a cup of coffee. We hardly ever had money to eat anything there though. My husband was part of Stephen’s athletic team and his teammates would get angry at me for keeping him away from his practice.
Rajendra: Yes, I was the Athletics Captain at St. Stephen’s, I also played cricket –
Sheela: Oh all the Miranda House girls would go gaga over him when he played.
Saanjh-Both of you were living in the Delhi University Hostel, so was there any romance that developed there?
Sheela: There was this huge tree at the Miranda House Hostel back gate and he used to wait for me there in the evening. He used to send me messages through my friends to call me outside. We used to go for a walk near the Northern Ridge and also to the Mughal Gardens some times. My girl-friends would be following me throughout. He had to drop me back early because we had to obey the rules of the hostel. Although rumour has it, our hostel warden herself was going around with a student at that time.
Image Credits: Sheela Shekhar
Hridika- Was there some impression you both had regarding each other’s college?
Sheela: Yes, yes. Both colleges had stereotypes regarding the other. But Miranda House had a mixed crowd. We had a few women who were far ahead of us in terms of late-night parties and discos. I never enjoyed all this. On the other hand, my impression of St. Stephen’s College’s boys (the college became co-educational only in 1975) was that they are extremely well-behaved individuals.
Saanjh- Were fests common in your time? Did you both ever go together for some?
Sheela: Oh yes. We had an Intra-DU fest as well. Not as many as you all have today, but there were quite a few.
Rajendra: St. Stephen’s used to have an annual Shakespeare Play enactment as well. Getting a seat for that would be very difficult.
Sheela: Yes, I remember. Miranda House and Stephen’s had an understanding. So whenever the latter needed a girl to be cast for a particular role, because St. Stephen’s was a boys’ college then, they would always ask Mirandians for help. Even Rajendra played the character of Puck in the enactment of ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream.’ College life was too much fun. My advice to every student is that they should at least once in their life experience living in a hostel or away from their homes.
Rajendra: They were memorable days. I am so happy and lucky to have found Sheela at DU. She was the best thing that happened to me.
Image Credits: Sheela Shekhar
This interview is a part of our Love – Aaj Aur Kal at Delhi University project, read our entire series by clicking here.
Featured Image Credits : Sheela Shekhar
Saanjh Shekhar
saanjhs@dubeat.com
Hridika Rao
hridikarao@gmail.com
The post Rajendra and Sheela – Finding Love at North Campus appeared first on DU Beat.