The first principal of Christ College was Rev Father Mani Giles. He was really generous
with his admissions since many young boys in those days could just walk into Christ College and he used to welcome each and every one of them. Those days, we were a very good football team. A young college like Christ had one of the best teams in Bangalore although we lost to government arts and sciences college later on.
Back then, Father Mani Giles would go out of his way to arrange accommodation for some of the students in St.John’s Medical College hostel. Thirty of us used to stay in D block SJMCH. At seven in the evening everyday, Father Mani Giles used to come and meet each and everyone of us in our rooms to see what we were up to. He used to check on our health, studies and everything.
When Christ College started, there was only one block over there. Gradually, two blocks came up and before we knew it, there were four blocks. Later, we had a beautiful courtyard in the middle of the entire campus. It was
altogether a new experience. We had a very good staff and each staff would give us personal attention in terms of our studies and wellbeing. Finally, during our graduation, the second years gave us a wonderful send off with music, concerts and a lot of other activities. I really cherish those memories!
Another sweet memory of mine was when a film by the name ‘Bunniyad’ was shot on our campus in the early 1970s. The shot was taken during a basketball game conducted in our basketball courts.
Back then, coming to Christ College was a tedious process as there were hardly any buses that came by the route since Christ College was located in a remote area. Even through all these limitations, I had a wonderful time at Christ College and I’m grateful to God for the opportunity.
Hormese Tharakan
Class of 1971
Bachelor of Commerce