All Old Cottonians [wives and girlfriends of OCs too] are cordially invited to attend the OCA INDIA NORTHERN CHAPTER Annual Luncheon:
Sunday, the 8th December 2019, at the Defence Services Officers Institute, Sector 36C, Chandigarh, 12 noon onwards.
We are delighted to have Mr Simon Weale, The BCS Headmaster, and Senior BCS Staff Members join in as well.
It would be appreciated that OCs make the time and effort to attend in strength (in particular from the tri-city).
The lunch, as usual, is contributory:
Single ₹2000/- Couples ₹ 2500/-
DRESS CODE – Blazer or Combination or Suit; with Tie [either a OC/School/House/or any School awarded Tie]
Appreciate please do circulate this and inform all other OCs in your contact lists.
Gentlemen, we need to plan the catering to the best of our ability, so please do confirm your attendance, at the earliest , to any of the contact persons listed below. Thank you!
The Executive committee, OCA INDIA NORTHERN CHAPTER:
Lt. Col. Upinder [Upi] Gill – 9417801. President.
Dr. RaviSher Toor – 9888890788. Vice President
Jatinder Hayer – 7009177173. Secretary.
Sunil Tiwari – 9855525506. Jt. Secretary.
Amarinder Sidhu – 9876404728. Treasurer.
Executive Members:
Bobby Buwal – 8427377099
Ravi Inder Singh – 9897007192
Thanks and we look forward to seeing you on the 8th!
Monthly Archives: November 2019
He is a fantastic & successful Cottonian with the greatest of humility
Taljinder Singh [Curzon 1987]
Quoted from https://www.todaystraveller.net/
Tireless Crusader: An Interview with Taljinder Singh, Area Director, Mumbai Hotels & General Manager, The Taj Mahal Palace
“Taljinder Singh, Area Director – Mumbai Hotels & General Manager, The Taj Mahal Palace, walks us through what it takes for the The Taj Mahal Palace Mumbai, to remain at the forefront of the hospitality world, hosting celebrities and dignitaries the world over, even 115 years after it first opened its doors What’s the first name that comes to your mind, when someone pops the question, “Which is the best luxury hotel in India?” The answer conjures up in your mind in the form of an image…. a large brick red Florentine dome, a black-and-yellow facade, and a huge line-up of windows that catches your attention – The Taj Mahal Palace, Mumbai. Today’s Traveller recently caught up with Taljinder Singh, Area Director – Mumbai Hotels & General Manager, The Taj Mahal Palace, who shared his thoughts on the iconic hotel, what the hotel has witnessed and how it has contributed to India’s history and shaped its hospitality culture since 1903….” [read the full article here]
[Photo © www.todaystraveller.net]
A christmas letter to Mrs King sent from a prisoners war camp in Marienburg (Poland today)
Webmaster OCA
I am sending you a treasured letter from my friend Mike King whose Father Charles King (Ibbetson House, School Capt 1928) a Rector was taken in as POW in Nazi Germany during WWII.
((A very close and wonderful friend of mine based in Baumberg Germany translated the first page. I can also understand my friend’s emotions as she was not born during those days; she is truly a remarkable person Regine Ullrich Zollmarsch who walked the Camino Francis with me on the path to Santiago de Compostela in Spain)).
Many Thanks for your efforts in keeping our website in its finest…
Warmest Regards,
Vivek
[Vivek Bhasin – Lefroy 1961-1970]
Prisoner of War Post
To : Mrs Katherine King stamped: 4.12.44 (1944) after checking
Destination: Ideford Rectory
Community: Newton Abbot
Place: S. Devon
England
Checked with Camp Stamp: M-Stammlager
XX8 (5888) Passed P.142
From: Rev. (Capt. ) C.J.W. KING C.F.
Prisoner no: 1088
H. Stammlager XXB
Ld Prisoner of war camp
In Marienburg (Poland today), Danzig
My Dear Kate,
I was so pleased to hear from Vera that you and (dated 30.11.44) young Bill had gone to stay at the Rectory. I feel an awful responsibility towards you two now I’m the second head of the family, and wondered how I was going to fulfill my obligations. I don’t know how long you mean to stay with us but I feel that both sides would benefit if you made your home with us. We shall always have houses which will be too big for our needs, and you the problem of company for yourself and Bill while the lad is growing up. But you and Vera must decide that. Things happen Kate, to people big enough to carry them. That is the conclusion I have reached here, where I have had so much time in which to think. The loads are never more than one can bear, however heavy they may seem. Strangely enough too, the load becomes lighter with carrying and one becomes stronger. And don’t my dear, make young Bill into old Bill. You’ll never be able to make anything more than a good copy, and the child will be far more worth to you as just himself. Winter our greatest all round enemy comes and goes. To kill my disappointment I have dug myself into work and am trying hard to improve my own, and other people’s knowledge of French, German and English. I make some progress in each. My headaches fortunately have been very infrequent so far. They have in past captivity winters been my greatest curse. I did hope to be home this year! But I’ll see to it that the extra time is put to good use. Doing an hour’s Physical Training each day. At the moment I feel I am coming apart, but am, nevertheless. Much better for the exercise.
My love to you both, Charles.
The original letter:
[click to see a larger view]
They obviously opened, read and approved it before sending.
Invite for the inaugural dinner of OCA Amritsar
OCA Amritsar solicit your gracious presence for its Inaugural Dinner on the 14th of December 2019, along with your spouses, details as follows:
- Venue: Green Acres Haveli, No. 1 B, Green Acres, Airport Road, Amritsar. (Farm house of Dr. Santokh Singh, one of the organisers, who has very kindly allowed us the use of his place)
- Date: Saturday, 14th December, 2019
- Time: 7:00 pm onwards
- Dress Code: Formal (preferably school winter attire)
Kindly RSVP your attendance and number of people attending so that suitable arrangements can be made by us. Also kindly pass on this message to any OC’s you might know and not yet added in the group and inform us if they wish to attend.
For RSVP and any other operational details/arrangements relating to the above, kindly contact any of the following members from OCA Amritsar:
- Rajdeep Uppal +91-9814088371
- Sumit Jain +91-9915554300
- Kumar Amit +91-9216805555
- Amaninder Singh Walia +91-9888050822
- Suvansh Seth +91-9988635676
Looking forward to seeing u all in great numbers…
Thanks and Regards,
OCA Amritsar
Class of 1969 Reunion
The class of ’69s reunion story actually started two years earlier in 2017 when, sitting in my office one morning and looking at our class of ’69 VIth form group photograph, it struck me that out of a class of 29, 10 of our classmates had already gone to the happier hunting grounds….
…Classmates with whom we’d spent our childhood growing up, studying (at times), playing, raiding plum and apple trees and then together maturing into our teens and then aging. In the ensuing years, tied up with work and earning a living I realized that I personally had lost touch with most of the guys. And so began the exercise of combing through the net which, one step at a time, like putting together a jigsaw puzzle, helped the class to re-establish contact. Which led to me suggesting that we should all meet before our numbers diminished further. And what better place to meet than our very own ‘Patina school’.
Dinesh Sud, with Robin Nakai as has been and continues to be his wont sticking his finger in, worked his charm with the Heady who was most forthcoming. That led to 15 of us making our way up to Simla and the school in early September of that year. The 15 were joined by P.S.Nat’s Dad and younger brother, and Satish Singha representing Sunil.
2017 turned out to be almost like a dry run for our actual golden year reunion in September this year when 14 of us 65+ year olds, along with our respective spouses met up in Chandigarh from where we drove up to Manali for two days of partying courtesy Dinesh Sud. DM went the extra mile pulling out all stops and hosting us at his resort – The AnantMaya. Then on to Simla and Bishop Cotton School where the Headmaster, the school Staff, the Boys and Support Staff went out of the way to give us three days of sheer pleasure.
There was a special Chapel Service which had most of us with a lump in the throat and holding back our tears, followed by a ‘cricket’ (in a manner of speaking) match between the staff and a bunch of lumbering and out of condition OCs making feeble attempts to run and bend down to retrieve the ball (a tennis ball I may add). The cherry on the pie the next day was the tennis match between a ’69s pair and two school boys which, most surprisingly, was won by Jasbir Sadhana and Himmat Kahlon. A lunch spread in the dining hall, the like of which I’d never seen in my 11 years at school, followed by 2 dinners over two evenings, one hosted by Mr Robinson in the HMs lodge and the other by the class of ’69 at Cecil, ensured that not only were we well fed, but were also nicely pickled.
I would be remiss if I did not add my personal two bits which left me mentally thanking my parents for seeing me through 11 years in BCS to end up as a ‘Cottonian’ in the true sense of the word. That feeling for me was defined and reiterated by the very poignant chapel service, when sitting in the rear pew in the chapel, I watched the choir walking out singing the recessional hymn. I for one am not ashamed to say that I had tears streaming down my face looking at young 10-16 year olds, wearing cassocks, holding up their hymn books with their heads held up proudly. What hit me between the eyes was that about 20% of those kids also had on blue turbans. To me, THAT one moment is what defines the ‘Cottonian’. A young boy entering the portals of Bishop Cotton, maturing into becoming a good human being all the while developing a bond ‘as close as ivy grows’ and finally stepping out into the world totally unaffected by any ‘narrow domestic walls’ and far removed from bigotry of any sort.
Could one say it any better that what George Lynch Cotton left us with – “Overcome Evil With Good“
⁃ Gurrinder [Indi] Khanna [on behalf of the Batch of 1969]