DUB Speak

What does DU mean to outstation students

Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr

As another academic year draws to a close, the outstation students give us a nostalgic account of their journey in DU’s campus so far.

 

The University of Delhi (DU) becomes synonymous with ‘home’ for most students, by the time their three-year tenure is about to end. Even for last years’ fucchas, by now, the university has begun to resemble a place of everlasting comfort. There is a nostalgic value, almost automatically attached to the beloved space where scores of college memories are created. For the outstation students especially, as time for the admission of a new batch draws closer with the end of yet another academic session, there is a lot to say about DU.

“DU is very inclusive, though perhaps not as much as it could be. But there is definitely a lot of freedom to learn, explore and research in this huge arena. One gets to see a diversity of class, caste, regions and social backgrounds. Also, as opposed to private universities,where there is a filtered crowd coming in, here one gets to meet different people. My experience has been very nice, especially in terms of getting to know people who are not necessarily similar to me, as far as my ‘marked identity’ is concerned,” says ToobaTowfiq, a final year student of Miranda House, originally from Kashmir. She also mentions how her college is like a “mini India” and reflects the country’s essence and tensions in entirety.

For some students, DU is all about the experience of living in Delhi after coming from another state. Thus, many of them bond over food-based memories. “Coming from Chandigarh, I never expected to enrol into a college with mostly South Indian faculty members, which also serves delicious South Indian fare in the canteen. I now enjoy the canteen’s stuffed naan as much as its sumptuous masala dosa,” says Srishti Kapil, a second year student of Sri Venkateswara College.

As the year draws to a close, it’s nearly time for the outstation students to head home again for the vacations. The final year students will be seeing the last of DU before graduating. No matter what the future brings, a new set of college memories have already been etched into stone in this last year. They will now adorn DU’s walls forever.

Image credits:The Indian Express

Deepannita Misra
[email protected]

 

 

Comments are closed.