Sam: patient teacher, honorary relative

Tuesday, 07 September 2010 04:02 Salai Han Thar San

New Delhi (Mizzima) – We first met Sayar (teacher) Sam Kalayanee in Kolkata in July last year as he was our teacher during a Mizzima TV training programme.

He was tall, good looking and had a fair complexion. He used to wear a bright smile when he spoke and treated us with a great deal of respect. During his training, we benefitted greatly his vast experience.

He had infinite patience for his students and our endless questions failed to annoy him. He used to check our tryouts patiently and give us constructive comments. If our work was great, he would praise us, but if our work was bad, he would never scold us. He just advised us on how to improve.

A week after the training had started, he divided us into five-student groups to do practical assignments. Our group decided to make a video about “going home”. We captured one member of our group turning a door knob, and he then climbed up a ladder to enter the house. We captured the scenes from his vantage point.

Sayar Sam praised us: “These scenes are very good. Who created these? If he tries more, he will be a special cameraman.” We felt very happy.

We understood him as a good teacher who used to seek out his students’ strengths to build on them. After the 10-day training programme had finished, we felt a deep attachment to him, like he was part of our family. Although there was a language barrier between us, we could feel his loving kindness. We had a warm relationship.

He was a great teacher who treated the exile Burmese students in Thai-Burma border with great kindness, who had crossed the mountains to teach the students from the All Burma Students’ Democratic Front. He understood the feelings of the revolutionary students. He understood their lives of sacrifice to rebuild their backward country, and recorded those lives on video in many documentaries.

Although he looked serene, he was also humorous. When we watched Indian television we heard many songs and saw a lot of dancing. So, he used to say “every singing and every dancing”. We still remember his words. He was only joking and did not intend to criticise the Indian shows.

He was always very hard-working and used to prepare for his next documentary whenever he had free time. When the training programme ended, he returned to Thailand and I went back to New Delhi. But we missed him a lot.

We met him again at a television journalist training programme in New Delhi last December. We exchanged friendly greetings. I felt that he was not only my teacher but also a close relative who was often away. He admonished us to consider very carefully before we married. He did not want us to experience regret.

I didn’t realise at the time that it would be the last time I would see him.

Last Friday, I heard that he had to go to hospital because of lung cancer and that there was little hope for his recovery. The news came as a great shock and was a big worry for me. I had not known that he was suffering from the disease. We prayed fervently for his health but our prayers were unanswered. He passed away as the sun was going down. Every time I see his picture, I feel that his death was a great loss.

Although he has passed away, his friendly and positive attitudes tug at our heart strings. He solicitously helped these foreigners, these unlucky Burmese people, so he must be in heaven and he will be always in our hearts. And this time he is gone, we believe we won’t have to wait a long time to see him again as he is always with us.