Srinivas Typewriting Institute was very famous in Triplicane those days. Lot of good looking girls learnt typewriting in that Institute and hence there were lot of boys who went and joined there. They used to have exclusive girls batch so that the girls from conservative families can join.
I learnt typewriting in “Ceevees Institute” in Triplicane High Road. It was far away from my house but I still joined there because few of my friends joined in that Institute.
As a skill “Typewriting” was useful those days as it would get the person an entry level job in the Government Sector “Clerk cum Typist”. I do not know if the position of a “Typist” exists in any organization as every one needs to do their own typing – whether it is in the form of an email or a letter.
It was difficult to do the typewriting in those machines as one had to press the key very hard to get the impression on the paper. Sometimes several keys will go and get stuck at the centre. The machine will not be serviced properly and it used to be a struggle to get a change of seat. Godrej, Remington and Halda were the most popular brand typewriting machines.
I joined for typewriting classes immediately after my X Standard Exams in 1978. I quite liked the experience of learning typewriting as my father and brothers also had acquired that skill. I passed “Lower” grade and “Higher” grade. I was ready to go for “High Speed” but due to my other commitments I did not appear for the exams. After my XII standard exams when I thought of doing CA to become a Chartered Accountant I was wondering if the typewriting was a waste of an effort. Little did I realise at that time that I will be using the typewriting skills on a daily basis.
With the advent of the computers the typewriting skill has become very useful in the day to day life. Those who do not have the typewriting skills struggle to compose their own emails and letters. The younger generation today has developed the skill of using two or three fingers and still manage a decent speed. Nothing to beat the speed which a person gets with the typewriting skill on the keyboard. The advantage of using the keyboard of a computer is that it is very smooth and no need to depress the keys like we used to do on a normal typewriting machine.
I am very grateful to my parents for having sent me for the typewriting classes in those days. It has proved to be immensely useful and helpful over the years as I am using a computer at work all the time from morning to evening. I was a “Job Typist” for a while and made a decent living out of that using my old “Underwood” Typewriter. After becoming a Chartered Accountant I have always been using a Computer or a Laptop and the typewriting skills have certainly helped all through the life so far.
When we learn certain skills, we tend to feel bad that those skills are not useful anymore due to the technological changes. For instance many of my friends who learnt “short hand” in those days are no longer using the short hand. There is self correspondence and even in case of dictation needs today there are Dictaphones and even voice recognition systems on computers which takes care of the work.
The change in technology and developments over the years however, has been such that the “typewriting” skills are still very useful. Cycling, Car Driving, Swimming, Cooking are some such skills which will always come in handy even with the technological advancements and changes.
There are some websites which teach the typewriting skills and it is indeed very useful as the normal key board is not only seen in Computers, Laptops but they are also now entering the Mobile Phones space.
T.P.Anand
Dubai, U.A.E.
5th August 2010
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