AN INTERVIEW WITH PROF. FARIDA KHANAM

time to study under very good teachers. I was the only student who did all the exercises given by the teachers. Quite naturally, I put my heart and soul in my studies. I passed the exam with flying colours. How did you manage to pursue M.A. in English, then Ph.D. given such a state of affairs? Then came the time to take admission to a college. Delhi College was near our house. Now it is called Zakir Hussain Delhi College. The college was founded in 1828 by Muslims, it was located in a Muslim area, so a lot of Muslim girls studied there. It was at this time that my father interfered and his decision directed the future of my life. I was a voracious reader. I would read day and night. I got exceedingly good marks in Persian when I appeared for the exam in Aligarh Muslim University. I was naturally inclined to pursue a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) degree in Persian. I happily enrolled myself for B.A. in Persian. When I told my father about it, he became quite agitated. He asked what I would do with B.A. in Persian. I was then completely ignorant of the global prominence English language had attained. He did not allow me to gather my breath. He forced me to take the half-hour long walk back to the college to enrol myself in B.A. in English. This was truly a fateful interference. It was such a big step. Had I not been guided on time, I would not have become what I am today. I had no inkling about the international status of English. I did not know then that it would be my good fortune to translate my father’s books in English or that I would be doing dawah in the international arena. It seems to me now that it was a God-ordained interference. I had scarce knowledge of English then. To this day I vividly remember how I did not understand anything in the beginning. I could not understand the lectures as they were being delivered in English. I would just sit on the last bench and stare blankly at my teachers. English came to me slowly. Many months passed before I could fathom bits of my lectures. To cut a rather long story short, I somehow managed to get passing marks in B.A. Though still not securing good grades, I was fortunate to get admission in M.A. English in Delhi University and completed it. I was fired with the zeal to improve my English. Then I met Mr Soz, a professor of English at Jamia. My father knew him quite well. I would visit him sometimes to ask him questions about English. If someone who knew English came to visit my father, I would take my books and consult him about any areas of grammar and usage. We did not have