Rati Framroz Cooper Memorial Bust Unveiling Ceremony
August 15, 2022
Programme Highlights
15th of August 2022 was a red letter day for India as it was celebrating the 75th independence day. This also happened to be a red letter day for RkC and old RkCians as we unveiled a bust of Ms. Cooper at the Rati F. Cooper Kala Bhavan, to commemorate and celebrate a life beautifully lived. The program was attended by Thakore Saheb Rajkot, Thakore Saheb Lathi, Mr. Ayaazkhan, Ms. Kirtida Ayaazkhan, Yogendrasinh Jadeja (past ORA President), Yogesh Wadhwana (ORA President), and more than 150 old boys and girls.
The day started with a sumptuous RkC breakfast in the Drangdhra dining hall, followed by the assembly in the Bhavsinhji Hall in memory of Ms. Cooper. Several boys paid rich tributes to Madam, Mr. Ayaazkhan and Kiran Patel reminded us that the best tribute we could give Madam was to live the life that she lived, to live by her example. Several old boys who could not make it to the event had sent in their tributes for Madam to Yogesh Wadhvana, and most of them were read out during the assembly. We sang the national anthem as is our custom, and proceeded to unveil Madam's bust.
Madam's bust was unveiled by Thakore Saheb Rajkot, Thakore Saheb Lathi, Yogendrasinh Jadeja, and Mr. Ayaazkhan. Mrs. Kirtida Ayaazkhan, who was very close to Ms. Cooper, read out the words engraved on the pedestal. These words were chosen by Ms. Perin, Ms. Cooper's sister who lives in Lahore. Mrs. Ayaazkhan read out the words eloquently and it had everybody present there listening in pin drop silence. The Rati F. Cooper Kala Bhawan lobby and the staircase was full of boys and girls gathered to pay respects to Ms. Cooper on this beautiful day. This strength in participation showed Madam holds a dear place in each of our hearts.
In September of 2019 the Executive Committee of the Old RkCians Association (ORA) after consulting the RkC Council of Trustees, passed a resolution to commission a bust in memory of Ms. Cooper. A committee was constituted to carry out the task; members included Yogendrasinh Jadeja, Punjabapu Wala, Tarik Currimbouy, Yogesh Wadhwana, Ashok Patel, Bharat Avlani and Amit Shukla. Punjabapu recommended the task be awarded to a noted Ahmedabad based sculptor in Ratibhai Kansodaria. After several rounds of visits, innumerable phone calls, evaluation of pictures, and discussions, with Tarik, Ms. Perin, and Mr. Ayaazkhan, Ratibhai designed, and cast a beautiful bronze bust in the likeness of Madam. We are thankful to this sub-committee for their diligence and hard work, the fruit of their labor is indeed sweet.
In memory of Ma'am, and to commemorate the life long impact that she has had on RkCians over the years, Yogesh Wadhwana, announced the formation of the Ms. Cooper Scholarship Prize by the ORA. This prize will be awarded to four meritorious students, one each from 7th to 10th standards, where the ORA will cover 25% of their academic tuition fees for the year. Yogesh also appraised the assembly about other activities planned for the ORA over the next few months.
A special shout out to a few RkCians who helped organise this memorable event at RkC:
- RkC management, Minu Pala, Vijay Jadeja, and Mahendra Chauhan for their cooperation and help.
- Vinesh Patel, Hitesh Vadher and team in Rajkot for organising this event.
- Kishore Patel and Karan Patel, father and son, both old boys and practicing architects in Rajkot. They took on the task of erecting the pedestal, and installing Madam's bust during the holiday season to ensure it was ready for this unveiling ceremony on time.
- Nirmal Masurekar and team for a marvelous job in video and photography to document the event.
- Amit Shukla for comparing the event.
Click the collage below to view the event photo gallery.
