055: S1E19: 26 MISSED CALLS: THE FIRST DAY AT WORK

Roopali wants to study further but she doesn't have support from mother and grandmother. They are totally against her going to another city. Grandpa seems to be supporting her but not strongly. Her brother shows no promise, but mother expects him to earn so that two of his sisters can be married off.  Her mother takes Roopali back home. Mother suggests that Roopali shall teach in a nearby private school and do a private BA, meaning study the books at home and appear only for the examinations. She accepts this as her fate and agrees. She joins a private school as a nursery teacher. 

Today is her first day in school. A house is converted into a school building. There are colourful outdoor toys for kids: slides, swings, merry-go-round and seesaw. The walls have many cartoon characters painted. There are not many kids in the school. Most of the kids go to government primary school. People who are relatively better, send their children to private primary school. Boys and girls have the same uniform -  green pants, white shirt, green sweater, blue blazer and a blue necktie

Beaming with happiness, Roopali is dressed in a yellow kurta and white churidar. She is introduced to students by another teacher who will be with her in class for a few months. Her first chapter is from mathematics. There are objects printed in different numbers in the book. One bird, two birds, three birds and so on… There are small colourful ring stacks and an abacus in the classroom. Kids are having difficulty counting the objects. She is trying to make use of toys, but kids are attracted by colours more than the reckoning.

Bell rings, it is the period for lunch. Kids have brought their tiffin from home. They are so small that teachers are helping them open the tiffin. All kids have brought home food packed by their mothers. Some kids eat and some don't. Another teacher tells Roopali that this is the most difficult period for them. If kids take too much leftover food home, their parents complain in open house - a parent teacher meeting.

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Bell rings again and she shall now move on to environmental studies. She is teaching different types of occupations - doctor, nurse, plummer, fisherman, postman, singer, fireman, chef, astronaut, dancer, artist and a few more. She is writing these words on a blackboard in capital letters, then reading it loud and asking kids to repeat. She tries to draw their pictures on the blackboard, but the drawing is not so good. She is showing the picture in the book and asking students to recognise it. Once recognized, all kids are repeating it in a loud voice. She is asking each kid to tell them their preferred occupation. Some kids are answering, and some are keeping quiet. Whoever is not telling the preference, Roopali is suggesting them to become one of the professions mentioned in the book.

Kids are playful. Their zestful activities have engrossed Roopali to such an extent that she has forgotten about her own ambitions.