KOCHI: Some of the people whom Sindhu P Nair met in her capacity as assistant regional head of Indira Gandhi National Open University in Kochi, changed her approach to life. Her inspiration? The elderly. The grandmothers, grandfathers and even those who have welcomed their fourth generation fascinated her with their zeal for learning, especially high learning (degree and post graduation)!
This fascination led her to take a trip across the length and breadth of Kerala in search of elderly men and women who have found a companion in books and education.
During one such journey she met an 86-year-old man who was doing his masters in psychology. “This man hails from Thrissur. When I met him two years ago, he told me that he was happy to have finally got an opportunity to study the subject he loved. It was his life-long ambition. He was unable to complete his studies due to family liabilities,” says Sindhu.
Her happiness knew no bounds when she met Saramma, a 74-year-old grandmother from Kottayam. “Her quest to study was very infectious. Everyday after she finished her household chores, Saramma would take out her BA textbooks and sit with her grandchildren to study with them. She said she felt young again. Like a college girl,” says Sindhu.
Madan Mohan too found pleasure in studying. Madan Mohan, who is not yet 70, is a regular student of IGNOU’s distant learning. During the past 22 years, he has taken various courses from the university including BA, MA Philosophy, BPT and others such as IT programmes, disaster management diplomas.
“He told me that youngsters are driven to study because they are told that they will get a job. They view learning only as a tool for employment. He urged me to open the eyes of the students. Tell them to learn, to keep themselves informed and knowledgeable. Employment opportunities will open up automatically,” adds Sindhu.
Sindhu has documented the interviews of these people, using a camcorder, for her project ‘Making dreams come true’. “This was never a big-budget project. I decided to make a small documentary on these people, because I loved what they were doing. I just wanted to inspire the younger generation,” says Sindhu.
Sindhu is pursuing a paper on ‘Lifelong learning’ as part of which she will continue her quest to document more people engaged in learning even at an old age.
“When you grow old, the best way to keep yourself occupied and happy is to engage your brain all the time. All these people whom I had met were very happy and positive. They had converted their old age liability into their strength. It is in direct contrast to others who have approached old age differently,” she adds.
In ‘Making dreams come true’, Sindhu has also focused on people who are differently-abled and how they overcame challenges to study.