My name’s Roman (Romi) Virdi, born November 1959. I attended St. Columbas from 1966 (Class IID) to 1975 (Class XIC) and completed ISC.
I then moved to Switzerland where I studied Electrical Engineering at SFIT (ETH) in Zurich, completing in 1983.
I worked at Alcatel and UBS initially in computer programming, moving on to management till 2002.
I am self-employed since then and live near Zurich, Switzerland.
I visit India irregularly, last being in 2019 (after 2006).
If you have anecdotes, photos, Columbans or any other school stuff, let me know to have it posted here for everyone’s enjoyment. If you’re looking for someone’s email check out OCA or if you don’t find it there, send me an email (1975 batch only). There’s a lively Whatsapp Chat of the 75 Batch started by Benny and Umesh.
[What does craniometry have to do with St. Columbas? Nothing I can think of :-). This is just a domain I had lying about so I put it to use]
Romi,
Thanks for publishing this. I attended St. Columbas 1963 to 1974,completing my ISC then. I live in the United States now.
What a pleasure to see our pics. in all the three editions you scanned. Brings back a lot of memories.
Best regards-Rajiv Rishi
Hot Damn man…Rajiv Rishi….the wicketkeeper I presume! Dont remember anyone else with that name from 74 batch. Let me know if you get this !!
Hey Bhai
I always remember you for that carbon arc gizmo demo at the Science exhibition that was held in the new building.It was bit of a pro job Romi Virdi complete with Blues Brothers dark sunnies et al. . Now , I moved from India to Sydney, Australia in 2000 and have not been ‘home’ since and I am pretty sure the khabaadhi walaa inherited my Old Coumbans. Looking down that corridor in the pic is such a surreal feeling of both happiness , and unexplainable sadness but , more hapiness. Thank you for the memories. Benny Carvalho
Hi Benny,
Great to hear from you! You were the smooth guy usually being told off for your long hair (I too was at the receiving end of the teachers sometimes too). I took a walk around school when I was in Delhi last in 2006, when I took that pic – and it was somehow surreal even then as it was holidays so the whole place was deserted.
Rock on, Romi
Romi, You’ve done an awesome job. Even though i came to school in 89 and graduated in 03, i really enjoyed going through the golden jubilee edition. Brings back a lot of memories.
I had the best time in school. Thanks again.
Piyush
Romi,
I am an alum of SCS, KG thru ISC (!955-1967).
I have a Facebook page for our class. URL :-http://www.facebook.com/pages/Class-of-1967-St-Columbas-High-School-New-Delhi/275928375762439
I throughly enjoyed your website. Full of memories. Wonder if you have the 1967 issue of Columban you can lay your hands on?
I would like your permission to put up some of your material on my Facebook page. I would of course acknowledge your contribution.
Regards.
Ajit Nagra
Hi Ajit
Great! Sure, you can place links to the material on your FB page.
Once again, if anyone has old Columbans stashed away somewhere, I’d be more than grateful if you could send them my way to be scanned and posted. I’ll take care of all costs. Of course I’d also be happy to post your scans.
Best regards,
Romi
Hi Romi,
I have looking for my class photos for more than 30 years and finally, two weeks ago – Bingo! I found them for 1971, 72 and 73 when I was in Class X (A).
We left for the UK in February 1974 and so although I never actually ‘graduated’, I had spent all of my school days from KG in St Columbas and have very fond memories indeed.
Once again thank you.
Is it true that prior to 1971, not all the class was photographed for the ‘Columban’?
Regards,
Madhav Agate
Class X (A) in 1973
Hi Madhav,
Thanks for your kind feedback. I don’t have an answer to your question whether there were class pics prior to 71..
Best,
Romi
Mr Virdi,
I passed out of Columba’s in 2000. Was just looking for material on SCS and happened to reach your page. I thoroughly enjoyed browsing through the site!
Best regards,
JJ
Mr Virdi,
This is so great of you to publish all this. Glad to see old pictures and magazines of our school.
I am still in school by the way, my last year now.
Sankalp.
Hi Romi
I remember you (tho memories have faded) I was with you till class VIII and then moved to section E in class IX. Its really gr8 seeing these pics. I used to keep old copies of the Columban but I guess I misplaced them…thanks for bring back the memories.
I am based in Mumbai and currently part of a software business that we started 15 years ago.
Cheers
Hi Madhu,
Thanks for writing, great to hear from you! I’ll send you an email.
Best regards,
Romi
Hi Madhu
Was searching your name in facebook a few days back – but I couldn’t get it.
Do get in touch.
Nachi
Hi there. This is nice indeed and more importantly as I figure in both mrs raghs class and miss Clancy’s class. Boy that was eons ago. But I still have a diary and the last issue from school which was 1976. I was there from 1965. Am a banker after finishing st Stephens from school and mgmt at IIM Ahmedabad. In Mumbai now.
I immigrated to the US in 1970, class photo is posted on Facebook under my name. I want to say what a great idea, you have touched so many people with the class photos. I will send my class photo also and yes they were taking class pictures way back in the 60’s.
I wish my sons had the opportunity to have had such a rich experience; my thanks to all the Irish Christian brothers who put up with my mischief, there were so many of them. Thanks Romi, let me know when you are in New Jersey.
William
Hi Romi
Outstanding effort, thank you. I passed our from St Columbas end 1971, did my engineering from IIT Delhi 1972-77 and then my MBA from IIM Calcutta. Have been working with GSK, starting India ever since — lived/travelled around the world and am now in the UK.
Presume this web site will be alive and kicking for a long time and hope more pictures/issues are added.
Anup Chib
Hi Romi,
Thanks for sharing these excellent photographs and memories.
Yesterday evening, a group of 10 of our batchmates met in Delhi. Some of us were meeting after 1975 for the first time. You can imagine the fun we had.
We are starting a yahoo group, so look forward to connecting up regularly on the yahoo group.
Ciby
Hi Ciby,
wow, cool! sounds great, let me know about the group!
Romi
Dear Romi,
We were classmates till I moved out in VIIIth to another school. It is wonderful to catch up with you after so long. I saw Madhusudan Gopinath’s mail and it brought back great memories of St Columba’s. Out of a sudden impulse, I googled your name, and landed here.
Keep in touch, and take care,
N.V.Subramanian
Hi Envy ;),
Great to hear from you, Email sent!
Romi
Hey guys,
Great to see the posts. I was in Columba’s from 1964 thru’ 1975 (ISC) too. I was in B section till IV and then in “E” section till XIth. I do have some guys from our class ( maybe other sections) – Guirish Agni, Jatinder Kalra, Sanjay Kakkar, Ashish Deshmukh etc – remember them. You can see them on my facebook page.
There is a site created by Sanjeev Bikhchandani ( 1981 batch i think) called http://columbanworld.com/ – Check it out guys Nearly all columban issues uploaded ( Except out final year 1975 ).
Nachiketa
Hello,
I enjoyed this website and the memories it brings back. I was in columbas from kg 1965 all the way through 12 in 1978/79. I studied architecture and emigrated to the us in 1986. I noticed some of the anecdotes are signed Norman – Is that Norman Braganza by any chance?
Hi All and thanks Romi!
I’m from the 83 batch and have been enriched with your postings! Based in Amsterdam par phi bhi dil hai Columban:)
Hi Everyone,
Great to see familiar names after decades! I was a Columban in two stints! From 1965 to 1967 (class I-D, 2-D and 3-D) and then from 1971 to 1975 Class 7-E to 11-E). In the interim, I studied in St. Edward’s School, Simla.
I am currently based in Delhi, having worked with Indian Railways for last 3 decades. Recently attended the get together of Columbans of our batch at the Delhi Flying Club.
Cheers!
Sanjiv Garg
Hi everyone
brilliant thing i stumbled upon today..I am still a child among all of you seniors…maybe don’t fit in also..Just felt amazing to discover this collection online…could not resist commenting
I did the entire schooling there graduate of class of 2004..Architecture from School of Planning and Architecture Delhi and Pursuing masters at CEPT Ahmedabad..
Thanks for this effort sir its an honor
I’m still a student here but seriously I would like to salute u guys. I mean I don’t deserve to comment here but still.. its your legacy that we look up too
Hello sir,
I attended SCS from April 2004 (KG) till April 2015 (I left after doing my class X). Thank you sir for this beautiful page. I left SCS because I wanted to take up Social Sciences in class XI and XII. It’s only when you’re a part of the other ‘top schools in Delhi’ that you realize how truly great SCS is. I don’t even know what to say, thank you sir. Just thank you.
Nice page Roman- I was in the class of 1976- Br John Corbett who is retired in Salthill, Galway, Ireland who I’ve had the pleasure of visiting twice since he retired there. I’m generally to be found in the MidWestern US although I travel on and off. I haven’t been back to Delhi since 1979.
Dear Romi:
Thanks for posting the copy of the 1968 Columban. I’m a 1967 alumnus but the 1968 issue has a list of my class, which is very valuable as I am trying to organize a 50th reunion in Delhi in Feb 2018. If you have suggestions on how I might track down my classmates (other than working through the handful I am in touch with) do let me know. School gave me a lot. I was there from LKG to ISC.
I live in Boston (retired from Boston University) and if you should happen to come this way do look me up.
Sushil Vachani
Brilliant! You all have made my day and I”m going around with this grin that nobody understands!
Was in school from ’66 to ’72.
Now live in Israel, Studied to be a fashion designer (Swim and beach ware, eat your hearts out guys!) ended up in computers! Many thanks to Bro. Foley who gave us an intro to Binary and Hexadecimal numbers without having even seen a computer. The Airforce filled in all the rest of my edu.
Hi Romi
I contacted you 5 or 6 years ago and you sent me a group photo of IX D. Some of my classmates from 8C were there. You made my day – I hadn’t seen them since 1973 when family moved Ottawa, Canada . So thanks for setting up this site. I think you are doing us all a great service.
Hi Romi
Benny and Umesh started a Watsapp group last week with the 1975 batch. There must be over a hundred names on it. Please join or I can ask.
I was searching for JP Gupta my namesis and it led me to this webpage. I have no fond memories of the school , I moved away a month after the results of the last ISC exam was declared and never returned. After a checkered career culminating as a faculty at PGI Chandigarh I moved to the US pretty much doing what I trained for, by the way including craniometery. I was back then just called JB
Hi,
It was by pure happenstance that I stumbled on to your website. I attended SCS from Class I onwards till my graduation in 1972. Mrs. Alvarez was my class teacher in Class I and Mr. Thomas my last teacher in Class X1B. Br. Morrow and then Br. Leonard was the principal when I joined SCS and Br. Foley when I left.
Thank you for posting the old issues of the Columban yearbooks. The 1972 year book brought back memories. Many happy memories, as a matter of fact, along with other coming of age memories!
I left India 12 years after leaving SCS and while I have returned to Delhi many times, never could make my way back to school.