The American basks in history, blossoms in modernity

The American College and the Lady Doak College of Madurai are
sister institutions that stand as sentinels of modern education in South
India in pursuit of production and dissemination of knowledge that
began during the classical age of Sangham.

“Founded in 1881, by the visionary first principal, Rev. G.T.
Washburn, the American College began with only four Christian
young men. Now the institution has grown to nurture 9,000 students
in its graduate, post graduate and doctoral research streams”, Principal
Dr. Paul Jayakar told me while on a visit to the 48-ac sylvan campus.
The American is known for its red-brick buildings in Indo
Saracenic style, the main James Hall and the Washburn Hall blending
with the natural surroundings constructed by British architect Henry
Irwin.. It was Irvin who designed the sprawling royal palace for King
Krishnaraja Wodayar IV of Mysore.

The college has been ranked 54th among colleges in India by NIRF-
National Institutional Ranking Framework in 2024. Dr. Jayakar is the
18th principal. He is the son of the college’s 13th principal Dr. Peter
Jayapandian who earned his PhD in Physics from Ohio State
University. Jayakar’s wife Dr. Magdalene Virgini is teaching Home
Science at Fatima College run by the St Joseph’s Society of the
Roman Catholic Church.

With a doctorate on a comparative study of Indian and Canadian
literatures, Jayakar has made academic visits to universities in Ohio,
Melbourne, Hong Kong and Slovakia. The college has entered into
collaboration with Ohio’s Oberlin College and an Oberlin Shansi
fellowship programme is flourishing. Tie up is also on with
Hildesheim University in Germany, Constatine the Philosopher
University in Nitra, Slovakia, Handong Global University in South
Korea and Asia Pacific and Mahasa Universities in Malaysia.

The college has been running a satellite campus at Chatrappati, 15 km
away from the city on the Madurai-Natham Highway.
I saw a photo of Dr K.E. Nainan(1948-50) among its past principals
adorning the college walls. Its history would not be complete without
Keralite Professors of English R. Padmanabhan Nair from Harippad
and Dr. S. Chandramohan Nair from Kollam, Mathew John of
Chemistry and Srikumar of Botany.

Prof. RP Nair did his Masters in the University College,
Thiruvananthapuram under poet critic Dr. K. Ayyappa Paniker, who
later became a member of the Managing Committee of SCILET-Study
Centre for Indian Literature in English and Translation promoted by
the American’s Department of English. Nair joined the college as a
Tutor in in 1961 at the age of 24 and retired as Dean after 34 years of
stellar service.
As a student he had contributed to the Illustrated Weekly of India and
rose to become a regular for the Malayalam weekly Kaumudi edited
by K. Balakrishanan, a former chairman of the students’ union of the
American. He won the Oberlin Shansi Fellowship for 1967-68 to
study the Black Liberation movement. He was behind the
establishment of Pegasus, a literary festival of the Department of
English and SCILET. He also edited its poetry journal Kavya Bharati.
For three and half decades, the American has been organising
Creative Writing Workshop for students in Kodaikanal as an offshoot
of SCILET. Professors Paul Linder Love, R.P Nair and Premila Paul
played stellar roles behind it. After the demise of the first two, Dr.
Premila took over as Director.

To honour his memory the American has instituted the R.
Padmanabhan Nair Memorial Lecture. Musician and activist TM
Krishana made the inaugural address in 2023 on The Spirit of Dissent.
Former Foreign Secretary Dr. Nirupama Rao did it in 2024 on Many
Worlds, a Diplomatic Journey and author Manu S. Pillai in 2026 on
The Canvas as History: Tracing the Past Through Art.
Dr. Chandra Mohan Nair earned his PhD on a study of the novels of
the Varanasi-born writer in English Arun Joshi. Dr. Premila Paul was

his guide. He joined the American at 23 to end up as professor and
head of the pg dep of English and retire after 36 years of service. He
visited the US on a UBCHEA (United Board for Christian Higher
Education in Asia) Fellowship to teach Indian Culture in Waynesburg
University, Pennsylvania. He has had close relationship with writers
like Jayant Mahapatra, K. Sachithnandan, Kamaladas, K. Ayyappa
Paniker, Nizim Ezekiel and Keki N. Daruwala. He lives with wife
Prof. Radhalakshmi at Pallikeezhu, a suburb of Kollam.

I was delighted to have the company of Dr. Thomas K. Varghese of
the English department who took me around the campus. “I have been
in Tamil Nadu for 50 years, did my BA and MA in English in the
American and my PhD in Gandhigram Rural Institute, a Deemed
University in the adjacent Dindigal district,” he said.
I found him a committed Gandhian involved in rural development
focusing on the upliftment of tens of thousands of palm tree workers
of Tamil Nadu coastal belt. He is also involved in the Association for
Integrated Rural Development based in Ramanathapuram.
His wife Dr. Galina Elcita Davis teaches English at Lady Doak. Her
maternal uncle Walter Davaram, former Director General of Police,
famous for his involvement in the capture of forest brigand
Veerappan, attended their wedding in 2003. Another surprise was that
the leading lady of South Indian cinema Nayanthara aka Diana Kurian
is related to D. Thomas through his paternal tharavadu, Kodiyat of
Tiruvalla.
I told him of George Mampara my BA classmate in Kottayam’s 215-
year old CMS College taught English in the American before
migrating to the US in 1973. He has retired to Silver Spring in
Maryland, close to Washington DC. Recently I met George again in a
conference of India Press Club North America at New Jersey’s Hotel
Sheraton at Edison.

Speaking to me from Thiruvananthapuram, Prof. Chandra Mohan
Nair told me of his meeting with George while he was in the US. He
travelled from Waynesburg, Pennsylvania by train to arrive in New
York City’s Penn Station to be received by George’s son Amrit and

driven to Teaneck, New Jersey where they lived. Nair stayed
overnight with George and wife Helen and has fond memory of
enjoying their rice, sambar and pappadam after a long time from
home.

Images

1.American College’s iconic red brick edifice and Principal Dr. Paul
Jayakar
2.Jayakar with wife Dr. Magdaline; father Dr. Peter Jayapandian
3.Literati behind Lit in English-Paul Linder Love, Jayant Mahapatra,
R.P. Nair, Premila Paul
4. Thomas K. Varghese, Stephen Imbanathan, his PhD scholar Joselin
Akila; principal Dr. K.E. Nainan (1948-50}
5.Doak’s English Prof. Dr. Galina Elcita Davis; Doak’s first principal
Dr. Marian Oommen
6.Tamil Nadu DGP Walter Davaram at the 2003 wedding of his niece
Galina with Thomas
7. Oberlin Shansi Fellows Donnie and Caris (left of back row) with
student leaders at the American
8. Maryland’s Mampara who taught at the American; his pal S.
Chandramohan Nair with K. Sachithanadan & wife Dr. Radhalakshmi
9. Thomas Varghese with his PhD guide Dr. G. Baskaran at
Gandhigram Institute’s graduation
10. American College delegates in Nitra, Slovakia