SOCIETY FOR PROMOTION OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE
Activity Report (2020-21)
As this was the year of the COVID-induced pandemic, all lectures had to be conducted online.
Most of our students hail from economically-disadvantaged backgrounds, and hence it was not possible for them to attend extra-curricular activities online and thus consume mobile data packs. Therefore, the Department faculty members focused on timely completion of syllabi and conducting online teaching using such online tools as Jam boards, or conducting quizzes on Google Forms, to make learning fun.
However, two activities were conducted for the Students:
1. Letter-writing Contest – e Following is the list of winners:
1. Sakshi Wagle (Patkar – Arts)
2. Divya Varunkar (Patkar – Science)
3. Tushani Das and Maitreyi Joshi (Patkar -Arts)
4. Smita Karnakar (B.Ed. – Ratnagiri)
2. Guest Lecture – A lecture on “Business Ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility” was organised for the Students of B.Com. Ms. Gargi Gothe, an alumna of the Department and now in charge, Department of English at Ghanshyamdas Saraf College, Malad was the guest speaker. Students study a component under this topic as a part of their syllabus. Ms. Gothe’s lecture enabled Students to get a perspective beyond the stated scope in the syllabus. The lecture was followed by question and answer session.
Participation in Inter-collegiate Events:
1. 24 students of the Department, along with faculty member Ms. Yashashree Sanap, attended the 4th Annual Talk by Dr. Darius Cooper on ‘Restructuring Identities: Arrivals and Departures’, arranged by the Department of English, R.D National College, Bandra (W) on July 26, 2019.
2. Ms. Anubhuti Anwekar of FYBA presented her paper on “21st Century Approaches to Shakespeare” at TALENTEUX – 2019, An Inter-collegiate Arts Fest organised by Ratnam College of Arts, Science & Commerce, on August 16, 2019. Her paper has also been accepted for peer-review.
Ms. Anwekar also participated in the 20th Inter-collegiate Book Review Competition, organized bt J.M. Patel College, on January 16, 2019.
3. Ms. Kesar Palav won a Consolation Prize in Poster Making Competition, organized by M.D. Shah Mahila College, on December 19, 2019.
4. 14 Students of the Department attended the inter-collegiate workshop on “Projection of Love, Sex and Addiction in Films and Literature: Psychoanalysis of Kabir Singh” at Kirti College on Friday, January 17, 2020. The Workshop was conducted by Dr. Aman Bhosale.
Essay Writing Competition:
In order to encourage the Students to develop original and creative thinking on contemporary issues, an essay writing competition was organised on December 2, 2019. The competition was open for Students of all faculties from Junior and Degree College. 45 Students participated in this competition. The winning entries were selected for publication in the College Magazine.
RESULT OF THE ESSAY COMPETITION
PRIZE |
NAME OF THE STUDENT |
CLASS AND ROLL NO. |
TOPIC |
1st |
Anubhuti Anwekar |
FYBA B – 129 |
Gender-based Violence: A Global Pandemic |
2nd |
Hritika Mohite |
SYBA B – 216 |
Music as a Tool For Social and Political Tool |
3rd |
Tanvi Mestry |
SYBA B – 153 |
Gender-based Violence: A Global Pandemic |
Consolation 1 |
Neha Joshi |
SYBA B – 241 |
Stop Body Shaming: It Hurts |
Consolation 2 |
Sakshi Wagle |
FYBA B – 150 |
Stop Body Shaming: It Hurts |
ISR Activities:
1. Every year, Department of English of Patkar-Varde College and its Alumni Association associates itself with an NGO dedicated to a noble cause. This year the association was with Lakshya Foundation – an NGO (established in 2009) that has taken a small but determined step to bridge the gap between civilians and the armed forces by fostering an emotional connect by organising various events to reach out to the soldiers stationed at different parts of the country. A sum of Rupees Twenty Thousand was collected through voluntary contribution from the Alumni, current Students and Staff members. This amount was handed over by the Head of the Department to Mr. Ashish Godbole, Trustee of the Foundation on Saturday, June 29, 2019. A poster honouring the Soldiers prepared by the Students of the Department, was also handed over to Mr. Godbole.
2. Department of English participated in the donation drive for the flood-affected regions of Kolhapur and Sangli, initiated by our College from August 11 to August 16, 2019. A total of 207 kg. of Rice, 102 kg. of Dal, 43 lt. of Oil, 46 kg. of Salt, 292 packets of Biscuits, 05 kg. of Sugar, 2 kg. of Tea, 21 Sarees, 83 packets of Sanitary Pads, 107 packets of Toothpaste, 165 pieces of Soap, 21 Blankets, 20 Men’s Bermuda and Vests each, were collected along with Essential Medicines (Crocin, Dettol, ORS, Vicks, etc.) and clothes for adults and kids.
The relief material was dispatched to the Collector’s Office, Mumbai region on August 16, 2019. The drive got a good response from the Students, Alumni and Society Members. Students of TYBA and FYBA helped in careful packaging and labelling of all the collected material. The Department specially wants to thank Mr. Vivek Joshi (Alumni) and Mr. Navin Thakur (Society Member) for their generous help and cooperation. Mrs. Deepti Mujumdar, Head of Department of English, led and co-ordinated this project.
Seminars/ Workshops Conducted:
1. An Interactive Workshop titled “Who is In? Who is Out? A Perspective on Inclusion, Social Justice and Exclusion” was organized on Saturday, June 29, 2019. Mr. Mushtaq Shaikh, Research Associate at CEIAR, TISS and an Alumnus of the Department was the Guest Speaker. The session started with an activity conducted to get responses from the participants regarding the meaning of inclusion and exclusion and the various forms that they take in our daily life. Mr. Shaikh emphasized the complex, multidimensional, relational, dynamic and context-dependent nature of inclusion and exclusion. He also highlighted and reflected on few attitudinal changes and approaches required to voice as well as promote right kind of inclusion. The session was followed by a healthy discussion with the Students. The Students expressed their opinions about the topic and gave their written feedback. Mr. Santosh Gangurde, Head, Department of Sociology and Dr. Zarin Sethna, Head, Department of Psychology also attended this programme.
2. A Seminar titled “African-American Poetry – from the Plantations to Centre Stage” was conducted by Ms Yashashree Sanap on December 19, 2019, for FY and SYBA students. It served as an insightful introduction to African-American History, Music and Culture, a thorough understanding of which will enable the students to better appreciate African-American literature. The seminar was informative and entertaining due to the inclusion of audio and video performances. The students were familiarized with musical genres such as Gospel, Blues, Jazz and Hip-Hop and their connection with the poetry and the dialect.
Interactive Sessions and Guest Lectures:
1. June 21 is celebrated as International Yoga Day. On the eve of it, Department of English organised an interactive session titled “Managing Stress in Student Life” for the Students of TYBA. The session was conducted by Dr. Manisha Anwekar (Ph.D., Metaphysics, USA), Founder & CEO, Spiritual Konnect. She started by defining ‘stress’ and went on to differentiate between Good Stress – Eustress and Negative Stress – Distress. She further spoke about the causes of stress among the Youth and symptoms of stress. Dr. Anwekar then explained how one could deal with the stress and manage it. She then patiently answered the queries from the students.
2. A lecture on “How to Write a Newspaper Report”, was arranged for TYBA students on Thursday, July 18, 2019. Mr. Saurabh Deshpande, Co-ordinator, BMM, Deviprasad Goenka Management College of Media Studies, was invited as the guest speaker. TYBA literature students study newspaper report writing as a part of their Paper VI (Grammar and Art of Writing) syllabus. The lecture helped the students gain an insight into the nuances of report writing. Mr. Deshpande gave the students practical examples and asked them to frame a rough report based on the guidelines given. He also spoke about the ethics one needs to follow in the career as a newspaper reporter.
3. A presentation was arranged on the topic “Careers in the Field of Translation Studies” for the Students of all language Departments, on Friday, July 19, 2019. Dr. Jyoti Mundhe, Associate Professor, Department of English, Kirti College, conducted the session.
Dr. Mundhe spoke about the origin of translation and the significance of translation at a global level, stressing upon the multi-lingual nature of the community to which we all belong. She then spoke about the qualities and qualifications of a good translator. Dr. Mundhe also differentiated between literary and non-literary translations and human and machine translations..Further, Dr. Mundhe informed the Students that due to high monetary benefits, rising scope and flexible working hours, translator is one of the most sought after career options in the field of languages. After the presentation, Dr. Mundhe addressed the queries from the Students.
4. A Presentation on “Heroes of Kargil War” was arranged on Tuesday, August 13, 2019, by the Department along with the NCC Boys and Girls Units and IQAC, in association with LAKSHYA FOUNDATION (established in 2009), an NGO that has taken a small but determined step to bridge the gap between civilians and the armed forces by fostering an emotional connect. The Foundation was represented by Mrs. Sonal Shroff and Mr.Ashok Bhave. Principal Dr. Sharmishtha Matkar and Vice-Principal, Mr. Nivrutti Kumbhar were present along with Mrs. Deepti Mujumdar, HoD, Department of English, Major (Dr.) Rahul Wagh and Ms. Yashashree Sanap, Faculty, Department of English. The lecture was delivered by Mrs. Sonal Shroff to a large gathering of NCC cadets and students. Mrs. Shroff spoke passionately about the achievements, bravery and sacrifices of the Kargil Heroes and reminded everyone that we as citizens are indebted to the Indian Army for the freedom we enjoy. The lecture was a heart-felt tribute to the martyrs of the Kargil War and it also created awareness about the contribution of Lakshya Foundation in bettering the lives of soldiers and their families. The Foundation donated books and notebooks to the College Library and inspired and encouraged the Students to be dutiful citizens of this nation
5. The lecture was a heart-felt tribute to the martyrs of the Kargil War and it also created awareness about the contribution of Lakshya Foundation in bettering the lives of soldiers and their families. The Foundation donated books and notebooks to the College Library and inspired and encouraged the Students to be dutiful citizens of this nation.Mr. Tsundue stressed on the importance of writing as a means of articulating the innermost thoughts, as an act of resistance and of creating one’s own identity. In a highly interactive session, Mr. Tsundue had the audience spell-bound with his ‘performance’. He also read a few of his poems from his best-selling collection of poems – Kora, which has now been printed in its 13th edition. The lecture was attended not only by about 90 Students from the Department, Principal Dr. Matkar, Vice Principal Mr. Kumbhar, Head of Department of History, Dr. Vijailakshmi and Head of Department of Sociology, Mr. Gangurde, but also by Staff and Students from Department of English of M.D. Shah Mahila College, Sathaye College and Maharashtra College.
Activities Conducted by Department of English under S.P.E.L.L.
Breaking the Ice:
1. An Orientation of the TY and SY Students was organised by the Department on June 4, 2019. The new batches were acquainted with the Syllabus, methods of teaching-learning and various activities planned for the year by the Department. They were also made aware of the career opportunities that were available to them after their graduation. Mission, Vision and Objectives of the Institution were also introduced to them. Queries from the Students pertaining to time management, approaches and methods to study, referencing and sharing of resources, etc. were also addressed.
2. The Department organised a get-together of FY, SY and TY Students of English Literature on August 8, 2019. It was an occasion for the Students to know each other well and interact. This get-together was also attended by Ms. Shruti Uniyal, Ms. Manasi Toraskar and Mr. Viral Nandu – the Alumni of the Department. They spoke to the current Students, guiding them on how to go about their studies and career options available after graduation. They also interacted with the Students on a one-on-one basis, answering queries from them.
The Department continued its tradition of dividing its Students into four houses, with a House Captain and a Vice Captain, to motivate the Students for scoring points for their respective houses by participating in various intra- and inter-collegiate events. This system also works as a peer-to-peer mentoring, with the TY Students being readily available as mentors for the Sys and FYs. Secretary and Joint Secretary of the Department Association (S.P.E.L.L.) were also announced. This is an effort from the Department to instil soft skills like leadership, self-confidence and ability to work as a team. The entire event was planned and organised by the third year Students, with some help from the SYs.
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