An homage to my mother & grandfather

by | Thursday, February 09, 2017

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Ravenshaw University, Cuttack India

I gave a talk today at Ravenshaw University (formerly Ravenshaw College) in Cuttack, Odisha on the topic of Rethinking Learning in the 21st Century: Creativity, Technology & Systems Change. I have given many talks over the past few years but this one was special. It was special because by grandfather, Dr. K. B. Tripathy was a highly respected professor of philology there for many years. My mother also studied there, completing her bachelors and masters’ degrees there. She was a prolific writer – especially after coming back to Odisha after my father retired. These two individuals, more than anybody else, were instrumental in my becoming an academic, and who I am today. I dedicated my talk to the both of them.

Below are some photos and links to the event and to information about my mother and grandfather

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Banner advertising my talk

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All the students and faculty gathered for my talk

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My grandfather, Dr. K. B. Tripathy, received his PhD from the School of African & Oriental Studies, University of London in 1953.

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He later converted his thesis into a book, “Evolution of the Oriya Language & Script,” published 1963 [PDF available here]

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My cousin, Shweta, is an amazing illustrator and has been creating these lovely
nostalgic images of her memories of Cuttack and my grandparents home
(in Professor Para) and imagining my grandfather & grandmother
when they were younger.  You can see her illustration work and more images
from what she has called the “Professor Para Series” here. Image above © Shweta Mohapatra

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My mother, Kanan Mishra (née Tripathy) aged 5 & then at her graduation from Ravenshaw College

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Partial list of books written by my mother (mostly in Odiya) My mother’s last book: “Rekha Kunja,” a biography of her father (my grandfather). She wrote this, even as she battled cancer, knowing that she did not have much time left. She died 2 years ago.

Topics related to this post: Housekeeping | Identity | India | Learning | Personal | Philosophy | Stories | Travel

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2 Comments

  1. Gaurav Bhatnagar

    Is her dad’s biography in English? You must find a translator for all her works.

    Reply
    • Punya Mishra

      The biography is not in English, sadly. One of my ambitions in life is to translate her writing into English. I can speak Odiya so learning the script should not be that hard. Just a question of taking this on and finding time for it. She has written everything from short stories, to auto-biographical pieces; from regular poetry to nonsense verse for children and everything in between. Lots of good stuff there that would be great to share with the wider world.

      Reply

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