95. Teaching the women to read and write

Thousand Full Moon: Shrimati Shanta Ram Gokhale

Contributed By: Nandu

Shrimati Shanta Gokhale (81+) hails from Pune. Eldest of the four siblings and a Daddy’s girl, she has four daughters who are all well settled with their respective families. She lives in Pune and keeps busy with reading and writing about the ancient Indian scriptures. Some of her works have been published in the well-known Marathi magazine, Prasad. She was married to the late Shri. Ram Gokhale, a decorated officer of the Indian Army. Since she married very early, she had to put her education on hold, however, she pursued it again after her daughters started going to school. She also earned a sangeet visharad degree in Hindustani Classical music in her early sixties after her husband passed away.

Military postings took her to many different places in India and abroad. She recollected that she was recognized as a distinguished ballroom dancer couple in a celebrity party while she was in England with her husband. As I spoke to her in the presence of her daughters, I could see the joy that transpired there, as they all were collectively enjoying and reminiscing about the good old days. Shanta Gokhale’s daughters were pleasantly surprised to learn that doll making was one of her hobbies when the girls were very young and that she was quite skilled at it.

Shanta Gokhale had embraced the military culture fully, and frequently found herself in a leadership role that she fulfilled to the best of her abilities. The following incident was narrated by her with enthusiasm and fondness.

Once during war time,  she was sitting at a gathering of  military wives. The talk of men on the border and the best ways to support them was the topic of conversation. She put forth her thoughts saying that in the letters written to the men, the women should not write about their worries and troubles but instead should only write about positive, uplifting things. When she looked around for response from the ladies, she was surprised to find some of them very sad and tearful. Upon asking what the matter was, she was informed that most of the women did not know how to read or write. Shanta Gokhale stepped up to the plate and started conducting reading and writing classes for these women on a regular basis. The informal school continued for a year but she had to stop when her husband got transferred to a different station. She considers this one of her accomplishments and is very proud of it. Later, when she visited them on her way to another base, she was pleased to find that many of the ladies had improved on their reading writing abilities and were thankful for her initiative.