He needs no introduction. A beloved teacher, a guide, and one of the brightest minds of the country, Prof. Shamsad Mortuza, Acting Vice-Chancellor, University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB) is interviewed by MUSE sub-editors, Md. Sahedul Islam Hira and Fairuz Maliha Surma:
You are one of the most favorite faculties of students and a successful acting-VC as well. What is your secret behind maintaining a balance between your teaching and administrative responsibilities?
-I think like an admin when I teach; I think like a teacher when I engage in administrative works. On a serious note, I love my work and the people at my workplace. I genuinely feel, as Coleridge once said, “we receive what we give.” To have positive returns in your academic and professional life, you need to invest positivity.
You have been in the teaching profession for a long time. However, when the pandemic happened everything shifted to a virtual platform. How did you handle it as a teacher, and do you miss taking the physical classes?
-This is one calamity that nobody expected. We were not at all prepared – but then again we showed our resolution to learn the tricks of e-learning at the fastest possible time. Thanks to all our stakeholders, they too realized the need to up their game and indulge in education. But the e-motion gave us motion without emotion. Classrooms are now black mirrors where students and teachers are missing the fun of learning in a physical space where creative energies are shared. We are trying to customize. I’d be lying if I say it’s as good as the real thing though. Can’t wait to return to the new-normal.
According to you, what are the most important attributes of a good teacher?
-There are many. I shall just focus on just two. One: Curiosity—a teacher needs to be a lifelong student with a desire to remain updated with current ideas; two: Empathy—a teacher must care for her students and understand her role in the academia where she is supposed to share knowledge.
We got to learn that you had changed your Ph.D. topic at the last moment. Would you like to share the story with us?
-Long story short, I wanted to work on Ted Hughes’ shamanism. But my would-be supervisor did not think high of Hughes as a poet. He made me change the authors, retaining my main ideas. I needed to get admitted in that particular university in London for a number of reasons. The most important one was to find the balance between my family life and my academic life. Hence I had to make a compromise. If you are attempting a long jump, sometimes you have to take a few steps back before the launch.
Have you ever had work rejected? If yes, how has it affected you and your writing?
-Many times. I used those experiences as excuses to eat more ice cream and binge-watch TVs before picking myself up for the next bout!
You have been writing poetry and doing translation successfully for quite a long time. Which one do you enjoy the most, and what piece of advice would you give to the students who want to try their hand in poetry and translation?
-I don’t consider myself a poet or a translator. Sometimes when I see things I feel like responding to them in words; or sometimes when I see words in my native tongues, I feel like expressing them in English. There has to be an inner itch. For those who want to do it professionally- I’d say, find your passion. And make sure that you have the linguistic capital to express yourself!
ULAB’s DEH is considered one of the best English departments in Bangladesh. Since you are the Pro-VC and acting VC at ULAB, would you mind sharing with us your vision and plans on sustaining its position and making it international?
-To maintain the best faculty resources that the country has to offer. To identify key areas in which we develop expertise and train students for the job market. To increase our local and international networks. To involve our alumni in brand positioning ULAB. To expand the number of academic programs and enhance our student mobility.
If you could slightly share some of your childhood memories from your school life? Which subjects you enjoyed reading or which subjects were you afraid of?
-I loved biology and industrial technical drawing. I really wanted to be either an architect or a doctor. I hated elective maths but somehow ended up getting letter marks in it.
I used to dissect frogs for fun. Looking back, I feel like Dexter the serial killer. Well, I became a frog killer in the name of science.
If you wouldn’t choose the subject English to study, what would have been your second choice for your graduation?
-Architecture for sure.
Many students see you as their idol. Who is your idol and why?
-Prof Zillur Rahman Siddiqui – for his depth of knowledge and enviable personality.
What would be the one message you would like to give to all of your ULAB students?
-“Try and leave this world a little better than you found it.” (Baden Powell )
If you were to name your autobiography, what would it be?
–I was here!