On Valentine's Day, Educationist opens city's first 'love school'; psychologists and sexologists to conduct the three-month course
On Valentine's Day, Educationist opens city's first 'love school'; psychologists and sexologists to conduct the three-month course
SRI Ram Sene founder Pamod Mutalik was not the only man looking to teach people a few lessons and possibly gain some publicity out of it on Valentine's Day.
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With the launch of a course in love at his institute yesterday, an educationist may have had the same idea, albeit with a crucial difference the course encourages the basic human emotion of love rather than asking, as Mutalik does, for its suppression.
G B Raju's Institute of Political Excellence, an educational establishment that claims to create political leaders, ventured into a more delicate side of human social life with the city's first ever 'love school'.
The novel venture promptly invited criticism from experts, who said it was an attempt at gaining publicity.
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G B Raju with Sushma Gangadhar, the first student of his 'love school' |
Faculty of loveRaju plans to conduct the course with the help of psychologists and sexologists every Sunday for three months. The course fee is Rs 100.
Raju claimed the course would be instrumental in shaping a person's character by teaching him or her how to gain peace and joy through the art of love, romantic or otherwise.
Some experts termed it a publicity gimmick undertaken by Raju on Valentine's Day.
"This is a mere publicity stunt," said Suresh Shastri, a public relations and media publicity consultant. "Doing things like this on a day like Valentine's Day fetches fair publicity, and the new school is no different."
20 studentsThe love school claims to have already enrolled 20 students for the first batch of the three-month programme.
The syllabus includes topics such as 'love, joint family, relationships, personality development, teen love, love marriage, family management and love without expectation'.
"This is a first-of-its-kind school in Bangalore," said Raju. "We mainly aim to teach that loving each other with no expectations will shape one's character by bringing peace and joy in one's life."
The teaching fraternity in the city was quick to criticise the teaching of love lessons.
Cultural Objection
"This is not our culture and imparting love lessons is ridiculous," said Professor Doraiswamy, well known educationist and chairman of the PES group of institutions. "Such schools only spoil rather than shaping students."
Most of those who enrolled for the course are said to be students from other courses taken by Raju, who also teaches business management in private colleges.
This has added ammunition to the argument of others that his move is just a publicity stunt.
"Yes, I'm his student," said Sushma Gangadhar. "I have know him for a year, as he taught business management. That is why I have joined the school."
'School for change'Raju denied he had opened the love school to gain from the publicity. "I don't intend to gain publicity out of the school," said Raju.
"It stands for change. If people start believing in love irrespective of age, then alone a change is possible. It is true that I chose Valentine's Day to draw young people, but the more the youth, the faster the change."
