In Conversation with Dr. Ramachandra Guha

The COVID-19 Pandemic made connecting online a necessity. During the period, Google Meet transformed from a technology aimed primarily at the managerial/corporate world for hosting ‘business’ meetings to creating virtual classrooms. It thus made it possible to connect with Professors and Intellectuals who would otherwise be impossible to communicate with. For a small-town History teacher (I was then an Assistant Professor of History at Salesian College, Siliguri Campus) to connect and interact with one of the most illustrious names in Indian History pedagogy and writing, Dr Ramachandra Guha, was a dream come true. So much so that when I announced the possibilities of ‘conversing’ with Dr Guha, many within the College management and fellow faculty members did not believe. But Dr Guha accepted my request without hesitation and even suggested that we converse instead of him delivering a lecture. He felt conversations engaged everyone and made it more interesting and dialectic. Such a craze for being part of the ‘conversation’ ensured that we had to go live on YouTube and Facebook while engaging in the conversation on Google Meet. I am indebted to Dr Ramachandra Guha, who accepted my request to interact with my students and later included many students, teachers, and laypeople across disciplines and regions. He has inspired me since my childhood and continues to do so, not just to be a good teacher and a researcher, but above all to be a good human being – to give without asking anything in return, and to be curious because it is the lifeblood of our existence!

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