Sophia Polytechnic, Mumbai, India

rscj on the Staff of Sophia Polytechnic, 2005-06: Joanna Alphonso, Ramina Coutinho, Fleurette D'Souza

photos: Lolin Menendez rscj

Sophia Polytechnic was started in response to the Kothari Education Commission (1968) which stressed the importance of providing vocational education. Prior to that, every student who finished secondary school automatically went in for a degree course, irrespective of his/her gifts and talents. Our Society responded to this recommendation by starting the first women's polytechnic institute in Bombay.  However, from the beginning we also admitted young men to the Hotel Administration department

One of the departments of Sophia Polytechnic is the Social Communications Media. Over the past fifteen years, the students of this Department have been making synchronized slide-sound presentations of approximately 15 – 20 minutes duration, on issues of social concern.

Most of the students are exposed to social realities on a continuing basis for the first time in their lives through a course on Social Communications Media and its focus is on the social responsibility of the media.  This course brings about a deep change of attitude in most of them. For example, one of the students of the class of 2004, who went to the slums surrounding her building in an affluent area in order to do a photography assignment, was very moved by the poverty of one of the street urchins and started taking a class for those youngsters in her flat in the high-rise building. She also won the support of her family and the classes continued right through the year.

The entire course and not just the production of the videos is an example of transformative education. The change of attitude and outlook in the students has its ripple effect on society in general through the professions that they opt for, and the dissemination of the videos that they produce. Again, at the time of the Mumbai floods in July last year, it was our alumni on most of the TV channels for whom they were working, who were in the fray with those who were caught in the floods, standing in waist or neck-deep water with them and relating their plight to the public.  Several of our ex-students have won international journalism awards for their research on/ portrayal of social issues, the latest one being Dionne Bunsha (class of 94) who was given the International Federation of Journalism Award 2004 for her outstanding coverage of the Gujerat carnage.

Some of the topics that past audio-visuals have focused on are: health issues such as Women and HIV, Children and HIV, Thalassaemia, Gutka and Oral Cancer, Eye Donation, Anti-Smoking, and Tuberculosis; gender issues such as Problems of the Female Child, The Health of Women in Slums, Domestic Violence and Dowry; environment issues such as Water, Industrial Pollution, Waste Management, Vehicular Pollution,  Mangroves and Hospital Waste Management; social issues such as Child Labour, Consumer Resistance, Street Children, Senior Citizens, Employment for the Visually Impaired, Children of Sex Workers  and the Problems of Construction Workers.

These audio-visuals have been used extensively. They have been screened for school and college students, women’s groups, people from lower-income groups, at literacy classes, and at Rotary and Lion’s Club gatherings. Many have been duplicated and used as audio-visual reference material in audio-visual libraries throughout the country.  These presentations have also either been acquired or borrowed for screening by several organizations, among them, the Rotary Club of India, USIS, Max Mueller Bhavan,  Glaxo India Ltd, National Association for the Blind and others. The Bombay Municipal Corporation has also used the audio-visuals on ‘Water’ and ‘Solid Waste Management’ to raise awareness among the citizens of Mumbai.

This year, the students working in groups, have made four video documentaries :

Anchorage - Rooted In Hope

The Anchorage, a workshop for the mentally challenged, was set up in 1989 by a group of four concerned parents who were determined to sustain a sense of hope and dignity amongst their mentally challenged children, after they graduate from their special schools, by providing them with gainful employment. ‘Rooted In Hope’ aims to showcase the workshop as a model that can be replicated by parents of other mentally challenged children and to make them aware of the options available for their children today.

As students of Social Communications Media department of Sophia Polytechnic, making this documentary has been the most learning experience. We developed warm personal relationships with the adults and were made aware of their capabilities and affection. We hope, through this documentary to share these experiences with others and continue to uphold that sense of hope

‘Lifting The Green Curtain’

Post 9/11, madrasas have become the cynosure of all eyes. Long considered centres of learning and religious upbringing for the Muslims, mostly belonging to low economic backgrounds, its relevance is being questioned by a number of organizations whose intentions are more than dubious. During the making of ‘Lifting The Green Curtain’ we researched madrasas across the city of Mumbai and were confronted by our own biases and ignorance. Through the students of the madrasas whose innocence caught our eyes, we realized that they were like any other children with a different aim i.e. to become an Islamic scholar. ‘Lifting The Green Curtain’ simply tries to unravel the mystiques of these centres of learning, through a journey into the corridors of the madrassas.

Unheard Voices

In India, to be a woman as well as gay, translates into double marginalization. It leads to voluntary or involuntary invibilisation of individuals and of a community dwelling perpetually in a closet and having to live with several facades day after day. This is mainly due to widespread prejudice rampant in a dominantly heterosexist society where the homosexual community is categorized into stereotypes based on myths and appearances. Through 'Unheard Voices', we aim to make visible the lesbian community in isolation, as there have never been more than hushed whispers about an issue which deals with a large number of people who fear the ridicule and stigma attached to them, owing to their identity. We believe that people often fear the unknown which is the reason that our society is homophobic and largely, also homo-ignorant. Only when the lesbian community gets a portal will people realize that there are more similarities than differences between gay and straight people.

Rain Water Harvesting

In spite of an annual rainfall of 2100 mm, Mumbai faces a water crisis.  One of the reasons for this is the large-scale concretization in the city that doesn’t allow rain to touch the soil.  In order to recharge our groundwater resources, we need to practice rainwater harvesting.  ‘Yere Yere Pausa’ aims at motivating housing societies to take up rainwater harvesting as a method of water conservation.  Some housing societies have overcome their water shortage with this method of harvesting rain.  Rainwater harvesting has been practiced for ages and we hope that this age-old technique will help Mumbai avoid a water crisis from occurring in the near future.

Each year the institution chooses a theme around which all the co-curricular activities are centered, and for the year 2005-06, it was 'Care of the Environment in all its Dimensions.' It was in this context, that the 4th year students of Applied Art were given the assignment of designing cards on the MDGs. The aim was to promote awareness of the social issues involved and to stimulate them to think of ways to use their artistic skills for the betterment of society. See the Cards here.

The students took up the assignment with enthusiasm and each of the 29 designed a card. These were sent to some of our ministers at the Central and State levels and a set to Cecile Meijer rscj so that she could use them at the NGO/DPI meeting held in Sept 2005.

http://www.sophiacampus.com/