Bishop Cotton Boys School
Encyclopedia
Bishop Cotton Boys' School, also referred to as the Eton of the East is an all-boys school for boarders
and day scholars
in Bangalore
, Karnataka
, India
.
The school is named after Bishop George Edward Lynch Cotton
the son of an Army Captain, who died a tragic death in 1866. He was a scholar of Westminster School
, and a graduate of Cambridge. In 1836 he was appointed Assistant Master at Rugby by Doctor Thomas Arnold
, one of the founders of the British Public School System. It was the young Mr. Cotton who is spoken of as 'the model young master' in Thomas Hughes
' famous book 'Tom Brown's School Days'.
The school is bordered by Residency Road, St.Mark's Road, Lavelle Road and Vittal Mallya Road, and is spread over 14 acres (56,656 m²) of land in the heart of Bangalore.
School heads in the early days included Rev. George Uglow Pope
, Bishop Herbert Pakenham-Walsh
, Rev. Pettigrew, Canon Elphick, Rev. Lowerth Thomas & Mr. A. T. Balraj. Notable alumni (Old Cottonians) include William Leefe Robinson, Colin Cowdrey
, General K.S. Thimayya, Dr. Raja Ramanna
, Brijesh Patel
, Philip Wollen
, Nandan Nilekani
, Gopal Krishna Pillai, Union Home Secretary, Government of India.
The sister school Bishop Cotton Girls High School is located across the street on St. Mark's Road.
and the Victorian era
. The School had its beginnings in a house on High Grounds. It was started in the year 1865 by Rev. S. T. Pettigrew, the then Chaplain
of St. Mark's Church who had a vision of starting a school for the education of children of European and Anglo-Indian
families. In his own words, he wanted to "establish a day and boarding School for the Children of Christian
residents in the station
and its vicinity." The school was given the name Bishop Cotton School in honour of Bishop Cotton of Calcutta, under whose stewardship a scheme of education was organized for the Anglican Churches in India
.
In the first five years of the School it had three principals. It was only with the arrival of Reverend G. U. Pope
, a distinguished Tamil
Scholar that the present site was acquired. The Boys' school and the Girl's School functioned in the same campus
but under different heads. Under the stewardship of Rev. Pope, the school grew from strength to strength. A collegiate section was started and the School obtained recognition from the University of Madras. He gave the School its motto
- 'Nec Dextrorsum Nec Sinistrorsum'. But when Rev. Pope left India in the year 1892 to take up the post of Reader
at Oxford University, the standard of the School began to decline. By the year 1906, closure of the school was contemplated.
It was Reverend Whitehead, Bishop of Madras, who as the Chairman of the Board of Governors, as a last resort to save the School from closure, invited the members of the Saint Peter
's Brotherhood
to prevent such an eventuality. Rev. Herbert Pakenham-Walsh, of the Brotherhood of St. Peter, later to become Bishop, revived the school. The school still celebrates St. Peter
's day amongst other traditions such as Guy Fawkes
bonfires. In 1911, the Girls' School was moved across the road. Rev. Canon Elphick worked for a quarter of century for the growth of the school.
The last living member of the Brotherhood of St Peter in India, Father David, died a few years back of old age. He lived and worked in the school as the school chaplain
.
was penned by Rev. Herbert Pakenham-Walsh, of the Brotherhood of St. Peter, Warden of the school from 1907 to 1913, later to become Bishop. The words were set to music by N.M. Saunders, Esq..
With its refrain "On, Straight, On", it follows the spirit of the School Motto, "Nec Dextrorsum Nec Sinistrorsum", Latin
for "Neither to the Right Nor to the Left".
is a feature common to Public schools
. The House systems have great advantages of breaking a large community into smaller, more personal units, and thereby building a sense of loyalty and competition.
The formation of Houses in Bishop Cottons may have occurred during 1910 since the Cottonian magazine of that year has reported "Puchi teams! Puchi marks!" . Puchi means flies
. There were 125 students in school then and six teams were formed. The Puchi teams were named - Jerrimangalams, Bloodsuckers, Scorpions, White Ants and Cobras. Each team was led by a captain, and boys were grouped as 'big', 'medium sized' and 'little'. The Puchi teams were in place till 1933.
New houses were formed by combining -
These names were assumed after the three pioneers of the school. Each team had a Head and a Captain of Games. In 1956, a fourth House was added which was named after Canon Elphick who was Warden from 1930 - 1955. Many boys volunteered to join the new House and all new admissions to the school automatically were added to this House. In 1996, a fifth House - Thomas House was formed.
The school, administered along the lines of Junior, Middle and Senior School, works through three school terms, each ending with examinations. Students of Class X appear for the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education
Examination (ICSE) by the beginning of March. Students of Class XII take up the Indian School Certificate
Examination (ISC). The ISC examination is an equivalent to the Pre- University examination conducted by the respective state boards of education. For further details, one can look up the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations
(the body that conducts the ICSE and ISC examinations) using their website, www.cisce.org.
Subjects taught at the ICSE level include English, An Indian or foreign language, History, Civics and Geography, Environmental Education, Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology and a choice between Commercial Applications, Computer Applications and Physical Education. At the ISC level, the school has two main streams, the science stream and the commerce stream. It is mandatory for both streams to take up English and Environmental Education.
For the science stream, the subjects offered are Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics and a choice between Electronics, Biotechnology, Computer Science and Biology. For the commerce stream, the subjects offered are Accountancy, Economics, Commerce and a choice between Business Studies, Mathematics and Biotechnology.
, Rev. Hildesley, Rev. Parker, Rev. Williams, Rev. Watling, Rev. Burton, Rev. Smith, Rev. Barry, Rev. Ainley, Rev. Miller, Rev. Herbert Pakenham-Walsh, Rev. John Drury,
Rev. Dawkin, Rev. Scipio, Rev. Hodges, Rev. Canon Elphick,Rev. I. L. Thomas, Dr. Francis Samuel, Mr. A. T. Balraj, Dr. Abraham Ebenezer, Col. John Ellis. Prof. John Zachariah took over as Principal on May 21, 2010.
The school also hosts the following Inter-school competitions:
St. Peter's Day and Old Cottonians' Day are observed every year on the 29th and 30 June respectively where these old Cottonians visit their alma mater.
Some Notable Alumni are:
Boarding school
A boarding school is a school where some or all pupils study and live during the school year with their fellow students and possibly teachers and/or administrators. The word 'boarding' is used in the sense of "bed and board," i.e., lodging and meals...
and day scholars
Day pupil
Day pupils are students who attend boarding school but who are not boarders and who travel between home and school every day...
in Bangalore
Bangalore
Bengaluru , formerly called Bengaluru is the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka. Bangalore is nicknamed the Garden City and was once called a pensioner's paradise. Located on the Deccan Plateau in the south-eastern part of Karnataka, Bangalore is India's third most populous city and...
, Karnataka
Karnataka
Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
.
The school is named after Bishop George Edward Lynch Cotton
George Edward Lynch Cotton
George Edward Lynch Cotton was an English educator and clergyman, known for his connections with British India and the public school system.-Life in England:...
the son of an Army Captain, who died a tragic death in 1866. He was a scholar of Westminster School
Westminster School
The Royal College of St. Peter in Westminster, almost always known as Westminster School, is one of Britain's leading independent schools, with the highest Oxford and Cambridge acceptance rate of any secondary school or college in Britain...
, and a graduate of Cambridge. In 1836 he was appointed Assistant Master at Rugby by Doctor Thomas Arnold
Thomas Arnold
Dr Thomas Arnold was a British educator and historian. Arnold was an early supporter of the Broad Church Anglican movement...
, one of the founders of the British Public School System. It was the young Mr. Cotton who is spoken of as 'the model young master' in Thomas Hughes
Thomas Hughes
Thomas Hughes was an English lawyer and author. He is most famous for his novel Tom Brown's Schooldays , a semi-autobiographical work set at Rugby School, which Hughes had attended. It had a lesser-known sequel, Tom Brown at Oxford .- Biography :Hughes was the second son of John Hughes, editor of...
' famous book 'Tom Brown's School Days'.
The school is bordered by Residency Road, St.Mark's Road, Lavelle Road and Vittal Mallya Road, and is spread over 14 acres (56,656 m²) of land in the heart of Bangalore.
School heads in the early days included Rev. George Uglow Pope
George Uglow Pope
George Uglow Pope popularly known as Rev. G.U. Pope or G.U. Pope was a Christian missionary who spent many years in Tamil Nadu and translated many Tamil texts into English. His popular translations include Tirukkural and Tiruvachagam. His efforts were recognized by the Royal Asiatic Society in the...
, Bishop Herbert Pakenham-Walsh
Herbert Pakenham-Walsh
Rt. Rev. Herbert Pakenham-Walsh was an Anglican bishop, educator, scholar and lyricist.Pakenham-Walsh was the third son of the Rt Revd William Pakenham-Walsh, Anglican Bishop of Ossory, Ferns and Leighlin in Ireland from 1878 until 1897. He received a doctorate in divinity from Trinity College,...
, Rev. Pettigrew, Canon Elphick, Rev. Lowerth Thomas & Mr. A. T. Balraj. Notable alumni (Old Cottonians) include William Leefe Robinson, Colin Cowdrey
Colin Cowdrey
Michael Colin Cowdrey, Baron Cowdrey of Tonbridge, CBE , better known as Colin Cowdrey, was the Captain of Oxford University, Kent County Cricket Club and the England cricket team in a career that lasted from 1950 to 1976...
, General K.S. Thimayya, Dr. Raja Ramanna
Raja Ramanna
Raja Ramanna , D.Phil., was an Indian nuclear scientist and a prominent physicist, is best known for his leadership directing the research integral for the development of Indian nuclear programme in its early stages. Having started and joined the nuclear programme in 1964, Ramanna worked under...
, Brijesh Patel
Brijesh Patel
Brijesh Patel grew up in Bangalore is an Indian cricketer who played for the Indian national cricket team as a right-handed batsman from 1974 until 1979....
, Philip Wollen
Philip Wollen
Philip Wollen OAM is an Australian philanthropist and winner of the 2007 Australian of the Year award.The following was said about Philip by the National Australia Day Council:...
, Nandan Nilekani
Nandan Nilekani
Nandan Nilekani born is an Indian entrepreneur. He currently serves as the Chairman of the new Unique Identification Authority of India , after a successful career at Infosys Technologies Ltd...
, Gopal Krishna Pillai, Union Home Secretary, Government of India.
The sister school Bishop Cotton Girls High School is located across the street on St. Mark's Road.
Origins
The School's past extends back to the British RajBritish Raj
British Raj was the British rule in the Indian subcontinent between 1858 and 1947; The term can also refer to the period of dominion...
and the Victorian era
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
. The School had its beginnings in a house on High Grounds. It was started in the year 1865 by Rev. S. T. Pettigrew, the then Chaplain
Chaplain
Traditionally, a chaplain is a minister in a specialized setting such as a priest, pastor, rabbi, or imam or lay representative of a religion attached to a secular institution such as a hospital, prison, military unit, police department, university, or private chapel...
of St. Mark's Church who had a vision of starting a school for the education of children of European and Anglo-Indian
Anglo-Indian
Anglo-Indians are people who have mixed Indian and British ancestry, or people of British descent born or living in India, now mainly historical in the latter sense. British residents in India used the term "Eurasians" for people of mixed European and Indian descent...
families. In his own words, he wanted to "establish a day and boarding School for the Children of Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
residents in the station
Cantonment
A cantonment is a temporary or semi-permanent military or police quarters. The word cantonment is derived from the French word canton meaning corner or district, as is the name of the Cantons of Switzerland. In South Asia, the term cantonment also describes permanent military stations...
and its vicinity." The school was given the name Bishop Cotton School in honour of Bishop Cotton of Calcutta, under whose stewardship a scheme of education was organized for the Anglican Churches in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
.
In the first five years of the School it had three principals. It was only with the arrival of Reverend G. U. Pope
George Uglow Pope
George Uglow Pope popularly known as Rev. G.U. Pope or G.U. Pope was a Christian missionary who spent many years in Tamil Nadu and translated many Tamil texts into English. His popular translations include Tirukkural and Tiruvachagam. His efforts were recognized by the Royal Asiatic Society in the...
, a distinguished Tamil
Tamil language
Tamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has official status in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and in the Indian union territory of Pondicherry. Tamil is also an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore...
Scholar that the present site was acquired. The Boys' school and the Girl's School functioned in the same campus
Campus
A campus is traditionally the land on which a college or university and related institutional buildings are situated. Usually a campus includes libraries, lecture halls, residence halls and park-like settings...
but under different heads. Under the stewardship of Rev. Pope, the school grew from strength to strength. A collegiate section was started and the School obtained recognition from the University of Madras. He gave the School its motto
Motto
A motto is a phrase meant to formally summarize the general motivation or intention of a social group or organization. A motto may be in any language, but Latin is the most used. The local language is usual in the mottoes of governments...
- 'Nec Dextrorsum Nec Sinistrorsum'. But when Rev. Pope left India in the year 1892 to take up the post of Reader
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
at Oxford University, the standard of the School began to decline. By the year 1906, closure of the school was contemplated.
It was Reverend Whitehead, Bishop of Madras, who as the Chairman of the Board of Governors, as a last resort to save the School from closure, invited the members of the Saint Peter
Saint Peter
Saint Peter or Simon Peter was an early Christian leader, who is featured prominently in the New Testament Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. The son of John or of Jonah and from the village of Bethsaida in the province of Galilee, his brother Andrew was also an apostle...
's Brotherhood
Fraternities and sororities
Fraternities and sororities are fraternal social organizations for undergraduate students. In Latin, the term refers mainly to such organizations at colleges and universities in the United States, although it is also applied to analogous European groups also known as corporations...
to prevent such an eventuality. Rev. Herbert Pakenham-Walsh, of the Brotherhood of St. Peter, later to become Bishop, revived the school. The school still celebrates St. Peter
Saint Peter
Saint Peter or Simon Peter was an early Christian leader, who is featured prominently in the New Testament Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. The son of John or of Jonah and from the village of Bethsaida in the province of Galilee, his brother Andrew was also an apostle...
's day amongst other traditions such as Guy Fawkes
Guy Fawkes
Guy Fawkes , also known as Guido Fawkes, the name he adopted while fighting for the Spanish in the Low Countries, belonged to a group of provincial English Catholics who planned the failed Gunpowder Plot of 1605.Fawkes was born and educated in York...
bonfires. In 1911, the Girls' School was moved across the road. Rev. Canon Elphick worked for a quarter of century for the growth of the school.
The last living member of the Brotherhood of St Peter in India, Father David, died a few years back of old age. He lived and worked in the school as the school chaplain
Chaplain
Traditionally, a chaplain is a minister in a specialized setting such as a priest, pastor, rabbi, or imam or lay representative of a religion attached to a secular institution such as a hospital, prison, military unit, police department, university, or private chapel...
.
The School Song
The Bishop Cotton school songSchool song
A school song, alma mater, school hymn or school anthem is the patronal song of a school. In England, this tradition is particularly strong in public schools and grammar schools.-Australia:*Melbourne High School - Honour the Work...
was penned by Rev. Herbert Pakenham-Walsh, of the Brotherhood of St. Peter, Warden of the school from 1907 to 1913, later to become Bishop. The words were set to music by N.M. Saunders, Esq..
With its refrain "On, Straight, On", it follows the spirit of the School Motto, "Nec Dextrorsum Nec Sinistrorsum", Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
for "Neither to the Right Nor to the Left".
The Houses
The House systemHouse system
The house system is a traditional feature of British schools, and schools in the Commonwealth. Historically, it was associated with established public schools, where a 'house' refers to a boarding house or dormitory of a boarding school...
is a feature common to Public schools
Public School (UK)
A public school, in common British usage, is a school that is neither administered nor financed by the state or from taxpayer contributions, and is instead funded by a combination of endowments, tuition fees and charitable contributions, usually existing as a non profit-making charitable trust...
. The House systems have great advantages of breaking a large community into smaller, more personal units, and thereby building a sense of loyalty and competition.
The formation of Houses in Bishop Cottons may have occurred during 1910 since the Cottonian magazine of that year has reported "Puchi teams! Puchi marks!" . Puchi means flies
Lord of the Flies
Lord of the Flies is a novel by Nobel Prize-winning author William Golding about a group of British boys stuck on a deserted island who try to govern themselves, with disastrous results...
. There were 125 students in school then and six teams were formed. The Puchi teams were named - Jerrimangalams, Bloodsuckers, Scorpions, White Ants and Cobras. Each team was led by a captain, and boys were grouped as 'big', 'medium sized' and 'little'. The Puchi teams were in place till 1933.
New houses were formed by combining -
- The Scorpions and Cobras as Pettigrew House
- The White Ants and Jerrimangalams as Pope House
- The Bloodsuckers and Mosquitos as Pakenham-Walsh House
These names were assumed after the three pioneers of the school. Each team had a Head and a Captain of Games. In 1956, a fourth House was added which was named after Canon Elphick who was Warden from 1930 - 1955. Many boys volunteered to join the new House and all new admissions to the school automatically were added to this House. In 1996, a fifth House - Thomas House was formed.
- Pettigrew House The house was named after the Rev. S. T. Pettigrew, Chaplain of St. Mark's Church and founder of the school. Pettigrew House was formed in 1933.
- Pakenham-Walsh House The house was named after the Rt. Rev. Herbert Pakenham-Walsh in 1933. The Rev. Pakenham-Walsh left the wardenship of the School in 1913 and became the first Bishop of AssamAssamAssam , also, rarely, Assam Valley and formerly the Assam Province , is a northeastern state of India and is one of the most culturally and geographically distinct regions of the country...
in 1915.
- Elphick House Elphick House was formed in 1956 and was named after Canon Elphick, Warden from 1930 - 1955. Canon Elphick came to the School from Oxford Brotherhood in Calcutta, IndiaIndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
.
- Pope House The house is named after Rev. George Uglow PopeGeorge Uglow PopeGeorge Uglow Pope popularly known as Rev. G.U. Pope or G.U. Pope was a Christian missionary who spent many years in Tamil Nadu and translated many Tamil texts into English. His popular translations include Tirukkural and Tiruvachagam. His efforts were recognized by the Royal Asiatic Society in the...
, the first warden of the School, 1871 - 1882. He came to the School from The NilgirisThe Nilgiris DistrictThe Nilgiris District is in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Nilgiri is also the name given to a range of mountains spread across the states of Tamilnadu as well as Karnataka and Kerala. The Nilgiri Hills are part of a larger mountain chain known as the Western Ghats...
and is remembered beyond the bounds of the School as a great scholar in TamilTamil languageTamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has official status in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and in the Indian union territory of Pondicherry. Tamil is also an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore...
. Rev. Pope gave the School its motto, Nec Dextrorsum Nec Sinistrorsum.
- Thomas House This house is the latest, formed by Dr. Abraham Ebenezer in 1996 - 1997 in the memory of the late Rev. Lowerth Thomas who was the Warden from 1956 to 1970.
Academics
Indian Certificate of Secondary Education
The Indian Certificate of Secondary Education or ICSE examination is an examination conducted by the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations, a private, non-governmental board of school education in India, for class 10, i.e., grade 10...
Examination (ICSE) by the beginning of March. Students of Class XII take up the Indian School Certificate
Indian School Certificate
The Indian School Certificate is an examination conducted by the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations for Grade 11, i.e., year 11, until 1976....
Examination (ISC). The ISC examination is an equivalent to the Pre- University examination conducted by the respective state boards of education. For further details, one can look up the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations
Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations
The Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations is a private, non-governmental board of school education in India. It conducts two examinations in India: the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education and the Indian School Certificate...
(the body that conducts the ICSE and ISC examinations) using their website, www.cisce.org.
Subjects taught at the ICSE level include English, An Indian or foreign language, History, Civics and Geography, Environmental Education, Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology and a choice between Commercial Applications, Computer Applications and Physical Education. At the ISC level, the school has two main streams, the science stream and the commerce stream. It is mandatory for both streams to take up English and Environmental Education.
For the science stream, the subjects offered are Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics and a choice between Electronics, Biotechnology, Computer Science and Biology. For the commerce stream, the subjects offered are Accountancy, Economics, Commerce and a choice between Business Studies, Mathematics and Biotechnology.
Interschool games
Organized games includes the inter-school games competitions.- Cottonian Shield CricketCricketCricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
tournament - Hockey - St Josephs High School
- Football - Baldwin Boys' High School ( Baldwinian Shield )
Heads
Rev. S.T. Pettigrew, Rev. Reynold, Rev. Bamforth, Rev. Dubois, Rev. George Uglow PopeGeorge Uglow Pope
George Uglow Pope popularly known as Rev. G.U. Pope or G.U. Pope was a Christian missionary who spent many years in Tamil Nadu and translated many Tamil texts into English. His popular translations include Tirukkural and Tiruvachagam. His efforts were recognized by the Royal Asiatic Society in the...
, Rev. Hildesley, Rev. Parker, Rev. Williams, Rev. Watling, Rev. Burton, Rev. Smith, Rev. Barry, Rev. Ainley, Rev. Miller, Rev. Herbert Pakenham-Walsh, Rev. John Drury,
Rev. Dawkin, Rev. Scipio, Rev. Hodges, Rev. Canon Elphick,Rev. I. L. Thomas, Dr. Francis Samuel, Mr. A. T. Balraj, Dr. Abraham Ebenezer, Col. John Ellis. Prof. John Zachariah took over as Principal on May 21, 2010.
Competitions
Annual Inter-house competitions include:- Swimming
- Debate
- Elocution
- Theatre
- Music
- Spelling bee
- Exquizite (Quiz)
The school also hosts the following Inter-school competitions:
- Cottonian Courtroom: A mock trial competition that simulates a legal trial, held for the first time at the high school level in India. The first edition of this competition was held in August 2008.
- Exquizite (Quiz): A quiz competition held in August every year for schools all over India. For the past five years, this quiz has been hosted by quizmaster Giri "Pickbrain" Balasubramaniam.
- Cottons' INXS (Music): The annual music competition in western rock and pop music.
- Synchronize: An Information Technology Festival that comprises events and competitions such as a debate with IT professionals (in 2008, this debate had Mr. Pradeep Kar as the speaker), an IT quiz, a programming competition and a gaming competition. The inaugural edition was held in October, 2008 and had participation by over 300 students from 24 schools.
- Resurgence: the Commerce Festival.
Old Cottonians'
There are Old Cottonians' all over the world with associations which are active in India, Australia and the UK.St. Peter's Day and Old Cottonians' Day are observed every year on the 29th and 30 June respectively where these old Cottonians visit their alma mater.
Some Notable Alumni are:
The Armed Forces
- General K. S. Thimayya, DSO, COAS; One of India's most famous Army Chiefs'.
- William Leefe Robinson, Victoria Cross Awardee.
- General Sir Frank SimpsonFrank Simpson (British Army officer)General Sir Frank Ernest Wallace Simpson GBE KCB DSO was a British Army General during the 1940s.-Military career:Educated at Bishop Cotton Boys' School, Frank Simpson was commissioned into the Royal Engineers in 1916...
, KCB, DSO; Former Chief of Army Staff, Great Britain. - Air Marshall Malcolm Wollen, PVSM, VrC.
- Lieutenant General A C IyappaApparanda AiyappaApparanda C. Aiyappa was a World War II hero and the first Indian Signal officer in chief . He was also the first chief of the Bharat Electronics Limited .-Early Years:...
,MBE. - Brigadier Zahir Alim Khan
- Admiral Vijay Singh ShekhawatVijai Singh ShekhawatAdmiral V S Shekhawat is a former Chief of Naval Staff of the Indian Navy. He was 14th Chief of Naval Staff and served as Navy Chief from September-30 1993 to September-30 1996.-External links:...
, PVSM, AVSM, VrC, ADC, CNS; Former Chief of Naval Staff, Indian Navy. - Lieutenant General S. K. Jetley (Dy. COAS) PVSM, AVSM, SM, ADC.
- Colonel Lalit Rai, VrC.
- Lieutenant General Jameel MahmoodJameel MahmoodLt Gen Jameel Mahmood was the General Officer Commander-in-Chief , Eastern Command of the Indian Army. He was killed with his wife in a helicopter crash.-Biography:...
. - Lieutenant General V. K. Kapoor.
- Major General Sultan Mahmood.
- Major General Bhaskar Mahadevan.
- Rear Admiral K. Pestonji.
- Rear Admiral Sanjay Vadgaokar.
- Rear Admiral Prem Kumar Nair.
- Air Vice Marshal A. C. H. Sharpe.
- Air Vice Marshal M. Sadanand.
- Major Roy FarranRoy FarranMajor Roy Alexander Farran DSO, MC & Two Bars was a British-Canadian soldier, politician, farmer, author and journalist...
DSO MC**
Positions of Responsibility
- Dr. Raja Ramanna, Padma Vibhushan, Eminent Scientist and former Chairman, Atomic Energy Commission.
- Gopal Krishna PillaiGopal Krishna PillaiGopal Krishna Pillai or G. K. Pillai is an Indian Administrative Service officer and the former Home Secretary of India. He belongs to the Kerala cadre of the 1972 batch of I.A.S...
- Union Home Secretary, Government of India. - Shrimant Maharaja Shahu II Bhonsle Chhatrapati Maharaj Bahadur, Maharaja of Kolhapur.
- C.V. Ranganathan, Former Ambassador to China and France.
- Akbar Khaleeli, Former Ambassador to Australia, Italy and Iran; High Commissioner to the Solomon Islands and Vanautu.
- Peter Sinai, Ambassador to Austria and the United Nations.
- His Highness Nawab Saiyid Gholam Ali Khan Bahadur, Ruler of Banganapalle.
- Prince Nawabzada Mir Gulam Ali Khan Bahadur, Prince of Banganapalle.
- Norman Majoribanks, Former Governor of Madras.
Entrepreneurs
- Philip WollenPhilip WollenPhilip Wollen OAM is an Australian philanthropist and winner of the 2007 Australian of the Year award.The following was said about Philip by the National Australia Day Council:...
- Nandan NilekaniNandan NilekaniNandan Nilekani born is an Indian entrepreneur. He currently serves as the Chairman of the new Unique Identification Authority of India , after a successful career at Infosys Technologies Ltd...
, Chairman of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI); Co-Chairman, Infosys Technologies Ltd. - Vijay Kirloskar
- Phaneesh Murthy, Formerly Senior Vice President, Infosys; Founder, Primentor Consultancy & Services Ltd.
- Sudi Devanesen
- Ramesh Vangal
- Pratik Kumar - Corporate Vice President, Human Resources, WIPRO.
- Sam Balsara
- Dilip Thakore, Founder Editor of Business India and Business World.
- Mangaldas Shetty, President & CEO, ELIND Computers Pvt Ltd.
- R Dhirendra - CEO, Eduquity Career Technologies.
- Bharat Goenka - Creator, Tally SolutionsTally SolutionsTally Solutions Ltd is a Bangalore-based financial accounting software company that currently sells into more than 100 countries beyond its native India, including the United Kingdom, Bangladesh and the Middle East....
. - Dhirendra Ramachandra, Founder and CEO Eduquity Career Technologies Pvt. Ltd.
- Ram Srinivasan, CEO and President, Fireclick Inc.
- Dr. Nasir Ahmed, Lead Inventor, Discrete Cosine TransformDiscrete cosine transformA discrete cosine transform expresses a sequence of finitely many data points in terms of a sum of cosine functions oscillating at different frequencies. DCTs are important to numerous applications in science and engineering, from lossy compression of audio and images A discrete cosine transform...
(DCT) - Rohan Ajila, Founder CEO, Indiamarkets.com
- Romil Turakhia, Chief Technology Officer and Co Founder, Automated Powerflow Private Limited.
- V.K. Surendra, V.P. Mahendra, V.T. Velu, V.V. Vijayendra, V.P. Thirumurthy, A.T. Nahender, Founders, VST Group of Companies.
Other Notable Alumni
- Lord Colin CowdreyColin CowdreyMichael Colin Cowdrey, Baron Cowdrey of Tonbridge, CBE , better known as Colin Cowdrey, was the Captain of Oxford University, Kent County Cricket Club and the England cricket team in a career that lasted from 1950 to 1976...
. - Harish Bijoor, Entrepreneur, Author and Brand Strategist.
- Shyam Ahuja.
- A.R. Khaleel, Sports Administrator.
- Brijesh PatelBrijesh PatelBrijesh Patel grew up in Bangalore is an Indian cricketer who played for the Indian national cricket team as a right-handed batsman from 1974 until 1979....
. - Makarand ParanjapeMakarand ParanjapeMakarand Paranjape is an Indian poet and professor at the Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi, India.-Early life and education:...
. - Ravi Gupta, Rally Driver.
- Farhad Cariappa, Rally Driver.
- Dinesh Gundu Rao, Former President, Karnataka Youth Congress.
- Abhishek Sudarshan,Junior Skating Champion.
- Waseem Khan, Photographer.
- Dr. Ajit VarkiAjit VarkiAjit Varki is a physician-scientist who is currently distinguished professor of medicine and cellular and molecular medicine, associate dean for physician-scientist training, co-director of the Glycobiology Research and Training Center at the University of California, San Diego , and co-director of...
. - The De Mello brothers- Victor, Paul and Alfredo.
- Kenneth AndersonKenneth Anderson (writer)Kenneth Anderson was an Indian writer and hunter who wrote many books about his adventures in the jungles of South India.- Background :...
.
Artists
- Biddu AppaiahBidduBiddu or Biddu Appaiah is an Indian-British music producer, composer, song-writer and singer who produced and composed many hit records worldwide during a career spanning five decades...
- Feroz KhanFeroz KhanFeroz Khan was an Indian actor, film editor, producer and director in the Hindi film industry...
- Prabhu GanesanPrabhu GanesanPrabhu Ganesan is a Tamil film actor and producer. He is the son of veteran actor Sivaji Ganesan.-Personal life:A native of Tamil Nadu, Prabhu was born to Sivaji and Kamala Ganesan. He has an elder brother Ramkumar Ganesan who is a film producer, and two sisters, Shanthi and Thenmozhi. He did his...
- Lucky AliLucky AliLucky Ali , born as Maqsood Mehmood Ali , is an Indian singer songwriter, composer and actor. Lucky is best known for his soulful but strikingly simple ballad-style singing and melodious voice.-Biography:...
- Singer, Bollywood. - DJ Ivan Nilkon
- Victor Paranjoti.
- Santosh Gnanakan, Radio Indigo
- Nikhil Rabindra, Taal Tadka, Atlanta, GA. USA
- AbhishekAbhishek KumarAbhishek Kumar is a Bollywood actor who is debuting in Indian director Faisal Saif's film titled Paanch Ghantey Mien Paanch Crore, previously titled Murder at Farm House. He originally hails from Punjab but now resides in Mumbai.-Early stage:Abhishek was born into a business family in Punjab...
,Director and Actor in the Bangalore based Amateur filmAmateur filmAmateur Film is the low-budget hobbyist art of film practiced for passion and enjoyment and not for business purposes.-Organizations:The international organization for amateur film makers is UNICA ; in the United States the American Motion Picture Society , in Canada the Society of Canadian Cine...
Industry.
Trivia
- In Mehmood's movie Kunwaara Baap (single father) his son attends Bishop Cotton Boys School.
External links
- Cottonians Connect is a platform to help cottonians - past, present and future connect with their fraternity for the purpose of business and access to the legacy of the School since its inception in 1865. Website developed by the OCA]
- Official website developed by the students and IT Department of the school
- Unofficial website - maintained by a parent since 1998
- General Thimayya Memorial Lecture (Old Cottonian Lecture Series)