Groomed at Gulistan

Any amount of academic qualification does not prepare a woman to manage a home which requires special training for better economical and healthier living, observed the visionary Mehroo Homi Sookhia (née Boyce) who at the age of 34 welcomed the first batch of students to the Gulistan Institute of Home Science. In its 50 years of operations the Institute has been offering one-year government certificate courses in home science, Institute’s certificate and diploma courses in home science, and additionally part-time courses in dress making and interior decoration as also short courses in personal grooming, candle making, cooking, soft toys and other crafts.

While the premises for this Institute were offered to her by industrialist and philanthropist Ambalal Patel at Walkesh-war, the money for this cause had to be raised by approaching different individuals, associations, trusts, societies and companies, and of course dipping into her own resources, at one time selling off her jewelry. By continuing her work as a teacher at Princess High School and doing other odd jobs she saved as much as possible to pursue her dream, while husband Homi lent support and succor at every step. What started as the Gulistan Finishing School, evolved over the years into the Gulistan Domestic Institute and subsequently as the Gulistan Institute of Home Science, notes an introduction to the Institute and its founder. In 1970 her dream of a polytechnic got a boost from Sister Mary Braganza which led to the establishment of Basantkumar Somani Polytechnic (Sophia Polytechnic).

Sookhia (above) and students being trained at the Gulistan Institute

To celebrate the golden jubilee of the Institute a cultural program was held at the Patkar Hall on October 1, 2005 when items were presented by the students of the Institute and the tiny tots of Cuddles, a pre-school affiliated to Gulistan. The trustees of the Institute at the time of the celebrations were Silloo Kavarana, Homai Mehta, Bomi Boyce, Narendra Mehta, Dinyaar Karani. After the demise of Sookhia in 1977 Navaz Karani took over as principal until her death 20 years later when she was succeeded by the present principal Kalpana Jariwala whose association with the Institute dates back to 1968 when she had enrolled as a student. As Jariwala recalled in the golden jubilee souvenir, the mere lift of Sookhia’s eyebrows "sent a shiver down many a spine. I learnt from her what it meant to be strict and run the school like a captain in command of his ship…Gulistan, the garden of flowers has been the mainstay in my life for the last three decades…I have learnt and am still learning what it means to have the support of a devoted staff, the faith of the trustees and above all the love of all the past and present students.”