Remembering master Balachandra

This morning, as I was packing lunches for DD(dear daughter) and DH (dear husband), my thoughts randomly landed on one of my high school teachers, Master Balachandra - that's how we addressed him. He was very different from teachers I was used to until then - strict, mean, unforgiving and unfriendly. M.BC was always smiling, friendly, had a nice sense of humor. He was cheerful, he didn't have the typical frown and tight face that most teachers wear to remind themselves or others of their seriousness of purpose. He was like the art teacher character - Ram Shankar Nikumbh- played by Aamir Khan in Taare Zameen Par. In that story, the teacher comes as a breath of fresh air amidst other over-strict, uptight teachers, makes the children feel relaxed and express themselves without inhibitions.
He was extremely good at the subjects he taught. His disposition and friendliness did not mean he was too lenient and would let boisterous students walk all over him. Once he started teaching, he commanded respect. Of course, he expected attentiveness and discipline like every other teacher. He entered the class with a smile, spent the first 3-5 minutes sharing a joke or an interesting thing that had happened that day in another class or on the street. And then we would get on to learning and serious stuff. Even through the lesson, he maintained an amiable front that made it easy for students to stop him and ask questions without fear of an angry reaction. He taught maths, he was excellent and even for a math-phobic person like me, he made it seem easy and doable.
In my midterm maths exam paper, when I totalled up the marks on the corrected answer sheet, I had received 1 mark more than the total. I checked twice and found the same result. Even though I hadn't scored great marks, I went up to the desk and told him he'd given me an extra mark by mistake. He was so happy with me for doing that, he wrote in his neat, legible handwriting on the top of my answer sheet - plus 1 mark for honesty! It's still so fresh in my mind!
When I was in ninth grade, the school was looking for a kannada language teacher. And M.BC became our kannada teacher until we found one. As the year progressed many of us sincerely prayed the school wouldn't find one that would replace M.BC.
For a teacher like M.BC, language class was the most conducive environment for his creativity, spontaneity and humor to coalesce. Very few language teachers can actually instill in you the appreciation for nuances of the language and grammar. In every class, we interacted freely and expressed opinions. He brought out common pronunciation and grammatical mistakes in the most fun filled ways.
Hakashadalli akkigalu aaruthive!- he once said interchanging 'ha' and 'aa' sounds, a common language faux pas.
He did mimicry and could do several accents and dialects. He also sang a song for us one day which was a spoof of a popular devotional song - it totally cracked us up.

http://some-ramblings-and-reflections.blogspot.com/2009/10/vaara-banthamma-spoof-of-devotional.html

He also played the harmonium and sang for a dance drama at one of the cultural events. He liked my kannada handwriting a lot. Once when I stopped by the staff room with a couple of classmates, he told me many times, over and over how beautiful and impeccable my writing was. I smiled and thanked him, but was a little embarrassed. He was profuse in his praise and kept saying how my handwriting looked like printed letters and how well I had written even in a timed examination.
After we finished school I have no recollection of meeting or talking to him. I heard a few months back from a friend that he had died of cancer. It stung me to hear that. He must've only been in his late forties. I will always remember him with fondness for all the relief moments he provided, the laughter and smiles he evoked, for all his interesting anecdotes and especially for providing a de-stressting atmosphere in which learning can come more easily and leaves one with lasting impressions! I wish there would be more teachers like him. I salute you Sir! May God Bless you, wherever you are!