FROM THE EDITORIAL DIRECTOR
PAYING HOMAGE TO MY TEACHER
Prof. Farida Khanam Reminisces about Her Teacher PROFESSOR MAJIDA ASAD was born in 1939 in Chandpur town in Bijnor district. Her father had an M.A. in philosophy from Aligarh Muslim University. He was editor of an Urdu newspaper, Madinah, and taught in Government College. Despite this, there were many obstacles to the education of Muslim girls. However, on seeing her great interest in education, her father sent her to a local Hindi medium school, Vedik Kanya Pathshala. She studied in this school till class VIII. After the eighth class, she took private exam for HSC from Gokuldas School in Moradabad. She vividly remembers the day when she went there to get admission. Every girl from the school came out, curious to see a Muslim girl wearing a burqa. There was not a single Muslim girl student in the school. That was a strange sight indeed for those girls. Facing all odds she managed to pass her HSC exam with flying colours. With the support from one of her father’s friends, she got admission to Aligarh Muslim University. She was very good at her studies. She passed mathematics with distinction. Her excellent results provided her a chance to move ahead in the field of education.
In 1960 she completed her M.A. in Hindi from Delhi University. In 1961 she got a dictionary job in the Urdu department of Delhi University. She completed her Ph.D. in Hindi in 1964.
By now she had developed expertise in many aspects of her profession. She was an adept translator and writer. She wrote in fluent Hindi characterized by both simplicity and force—essential features of a good style. The then-President of India, Dr Zakir Hussain had translated Plato’s Republic into Urdu. She translated it into Hindi. Dr Zakir Hussain’s daughter had penned her father’s biography. This was also rendered from Urdu into Hindi by Prof. Majida Asad.
She then started teaching at Rani Lakshmi Bai College in 1966. Later she was appointed as an executive member of the Hindi Academy. She has authored 10 books, two of which have been published by the Publications Division. One book is on Festivals of the Indian Muslims (Bhartiya Muslim Teuhaar aur Riti Riwaj) and the other is on Dr Zakir Hussain. These books are very popular, and are available in the US as well.
To tackle any situation of disagreement and confrontation, she advises one to speak in a soft tone, present one’s arguments with complete conviction. It is truthfulness in your personality that would subjugate your opponent is what she believes in.
In spite of the complete incompatibility of the environment she found herself in, she managed to overcome seemingly immovable obstacles to her journey towards academic excellence. She has been widely recognized for her academic output on both national and international fronts, by State as well as National governments of India. She has participated in many feature programmes on All India Radio, Doordarshan and other channels. She has contributed more than 300 articles, stories, memoirs, travelogues, etc. to leading Hindi newspapers and magazines
She has been appointed as secretary and member of various academic institutions such as Delhi Hindi Sansthan and Delhi Hindi Academy. She was a member of the Delhi Advisory Committee of the Delhi Administration. She was also a member of the Advisory Committee of the Ministry of External Affairs. She is mentioned in the book Jawahar-eBijnor (Gems of Bijnor), select biography of notable people from Bijnor. She now lives in the United States. She has a house in New Delhi. Once in a year or two, she visits New Delhi. She has not forgotten her long and arduous journey. She knows the importance of the support that members of society can offer to the needy and the underprivileged people. She welcomes her guests and visitors with open arms. As a host, she appears like a family to her visitors.
Prof. Farida Khanam
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