Modern School is a co-educational, private school in

New Delhi New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament Hous ...

, India. It was founded in 1920 by Lala Raghubir Singh, a prominent Delhi-based businessman and philanthropist, who desired an institution that combined the "best of ancient Indian tradition with the needs of the times." It was the first private and coeducational school established in Delhi after the capital of the

British Raj The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was him ...

shifted to the city. The school's first principal, Kamala Bose, was a vigorous advocate of educational reform in India. Her founding vision, coupled with Lala Raghubir Singh's nationalist leanings, gave the school a liberal and indigenous character that stood in contrast to colonially-inspired public schools, which were intended for Indian aristocracy. The school motto is "''Nyaymatma Balheenien Labhya''," which translates to "Self-realization cannot be achieved by the weak". Modern School enrolls about 2,500 pupils, most admitted directly from its junior branch, the Raghubir Singh Junior Modern School. Students write the

Central Board of Secondary Education The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) is a national level board of education in India for public and private schools, controlled and managed by the Government of India. Established in 1929 by a resolution of the government, the Board ...

examinations in the tenth grade, and the

All India Senior School Certificate Examination The All India Senior School Certificate Examination (AISSCE) also called Class 12 Board Exams in common language, is the final examination conducted every year for high school students by the Central Board of Secondary Education on behalf of the ...

(AISSCE) in the twelfth grade. Modern School, Barakhamba Road is consistently ranked well among Indian schools. The primary branch attended by students through Grade 5 – Raghubir Singh Junior Modern School – was established in 1961 on a separate campus on Humayun Road, New Delhi. Although primarily a coeducational

day school A day school — as opposed to a boarding school — is an educational institution where children and adolescents are given instructions during the day, after which the students return to their homes. A day school has full-day programs when compa ...

, the school provides campus housing for boys. Alumni, commonly known as ''Modernites,'' include some of India's most prominent politicians, government officials, and business leaders.

History

Origins

The founder, Lala Sundar Pandit Singh, was born in 1895 and educated by William W. Pearson, a Protestant educator. Lala was an established engineer and philanthropist and astronomer from the community. His father, Sardar Sultan Pandit Singh, an accountant and banker (''khazanchi'') with the Imperial Bank of India, was well-regarded by both the British and the Indian aristocracy. At the time of WW2 the Japanese had made it a military camp, destroyed by British Army. To fulfill his son's dream of establishing a school that would combine Indian tradition with modern educational techniques, Sultan Singh bequeathed his mansion in

Daryaganj Daryaganj (literally "A market near a river") is a neighbourhood of Delhi inside the walled city of Shahjahanabad (Old Delhi). The "darya" (lit. "River") refers to the river Yamuna which was just outside the walled city. Daryaganj is one of the ...

to the school. The first classes started there in 1920. Lala Raghubir Singh went on to partner with Sardar Sobha Singh, the developer charged with the construction of Delhi landmarks including Connaught Place,

National Museum A national museum is a museum maintained and funded by a national government. In many countries it denotes a museum run by the central government, while other museums are run by regional or local governments. In other countries a much greater numb ...

South Block The Secretariat Building or Central Secretariat is where the Cabinet Secretariat is housed, which administers the Government of India. Built in the 1910s, it is home to some of the most important ministries of the Cabinet of India. Situated at ...

and

India Gate The India Gate (formerly known as the All India War Memorial) is a war memorial located near the Rajpath on the eastern edge of the "ceremonial axis" of New Delhi, formerly called duty path. It stands as a memorial to 84,000 soldiers of the B ...

, to develop a new campus. In 1932, the year after the construction of Lutyens' Delhi was completed, the school came to occupy its current campus in the city center. A sister school, Modern School, Vasant Vihar, was established in

South Delhi South Delhi is an administrative district of the National Capital Territory of Delhi in India with its headquarters in Saket. Administratively, the district is divided into three subdivisions, Saket, Hauz Khas, and Mehrauli. It is bounded by t ...

in 1975. Three additional

National Capital Region A capital region, also called a capital district or capital territory, is a region or district surrounding a capital city. It is not always the official term for the region, but may sometimes be used as an informal synonym. Capital regions can exis ...

campuses have since been established in Kundli, Haryana,

Faridabad, Haryana Faridabad is the most populous city in the Indian state of Haryana and a part of Delhi National Capital Region. It is one of the major satellite cities around Delhi and is located 284 kilometres south of the state capital Chandigarh. The r ...

, and

Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh Ghaziabad () is a city in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and a part of Delhi NCR. It is the administrative headquarters of Ghaziabad district and is the largest city in western Uttar Pradesh, with a population of 1,729,000. Ghaziabad Mu ...

Principals

Reflecting its founder's pan-India vision, Kamala Bose, the school's first principal, was recruited from

Calcutta Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, commer ...

(now Kolkata). Bose championed the need for better educational facilities in a country shaking off its colonial yoke, noting, "If the education imparted to the people has been seriously lacking in quantity, it has been still more sadly wanting in quality." Modern School's longest-serving principal, Mr. M. N. Kapur, was a mentor to generations of students. In 1969 he was awarded one of India's highest civilian honors, the

Padma Shri Padma Shri ( IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is conf ...

. Principals: * Kamala Bose, 1920–1947 * M.N. Kapur, 1947–1977 * Mr. Choudhary, 1977–1982 * S.P. Bakshi, 1977–1996 * R.K. Bhatia, 1996–2000 * Lata Vaidyanathan, 2000–2014 * Dr Vijay Datta, 2014–present

The crest

Designed by the artist Sarada Ukil, a teacher at Modern School in the 1920s, the school crest signifies the circle of eternity crossed by the three elements in human development: body, mind and spirit, as the sun shines between the triangle and the circle. Inside the triangle, there is a

banyan A banyan, also spelled "banian", is a fig that develops accessory trunks from adventitious prop roots, allowing the tree to spread outwards indefinitely. This distinguishes banyans from other trees with a strangler habit that begin life as a ...

tree to represent stability and firmness of character, the swan and the lotus represent refinement, culture, and the arts which are fundamental elements of progress in life.

Campus

The school occupies a single campus covering approximately twenty-five acres and is flanked by Maharaja Ranjit Singh Marg and Barakhamba Road in central

. To house the school at its present location, Lala Raghubir Singh made an application with the government for a suitable site on 28 April 1921. In response to the application, the government allocated fifty acres of land in the Delhi Cantonment for the purposes of the school. Due to its location in

Old Delhi Old Delhi or Purani Dilli is an area in the Central Delhi district of Delhi, India. It was founded as a walled city named Shahjahanabad in 1648, when Shah Jahan (the Mughal emperor at the time) decided to shift the Mughal capital from Agra. T ...

, the Cantonment was deemed far from the centre of the new city (at the time being constructed by

Edwin Lutyens Sir Edwin Landseer Lutyens ( ; 29 March 1869 – 1 January 1944) was an English architect known for imaginatively adapting traditional architectural styles to the requirements of his era. He designed many English country houses, war memor ...

and

Herbert Baker Sir Herbert Baker (9 June 1862 – 4 February 1946) was an English architect remembered as the dominant force in South African architecture for two decades, and a major designer of some of New Delhi's most notable government structures. He wa ...

). Thus, after a second round of negotiations a 27-acre site was allotted to provide accommodation for 200 resident boys with staff quarters and ample play-fields. The Main Building was designed by C.G. and F.B. Blomfield, architects on the team designing the imperial capital of New Delhi. The white and red aesthetic of the Edwardian Classical building at Modern School resembles many

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...

structures of the period, such as Convent of Jesus and Mary, St. Columba's School, Sacred Heart Cathedral (designed by Henry Medd), Flagstaff House (now Teen Murti Bhavan), and Lady Irwin School. It is now classified as a heritage structure exemplifying British colonial architecture.

Golden Jubilee Hostel

The school has a student dormitory capable of housing 90 boys.

Houses

In keeping with its nationalist origins, the school's

house system The house system is a traditional feature of schools in the United Kingdom. The practice has since spread to Commonwealth countries and the United States. The school is divided into subunits called "houses" and each student is allocated to on ...

honours significant figures in the history of India, namely

Akbar Abu'l-Fath Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar (25 October 1542 – 27 October 1605), popularly known as Akbar the Great ( fa, ), and also as Akbar I (), was the third Mughal emperor, who reigned from 1556 to 1605. Akbar succeeded his father, Hum ...

Ashoka Ashoka (, ; also ''Asoka''; 304 – 232 BCE), popularly known as Ashoka the Great, was the third emperor of the Maurya Empire of Indian subcontinent during to 232 BCE. His empire covered a large part of the Indian subcontinent, s ...

, Azad,

Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...

Kalam ''ʿIlm al-Kalām'' ( ar, عِلْم الكَلام, literally "science of discourse"), usually foreshortened to ''Kalām'' and sometimes called "Islamic scholastic theology" or "speculative theology", is the philosophical study of Islamic doc ...

, Lajpat, Laxmibai,

Nehru Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (; ; ; 14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat— * * * * and author who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20t ...

Patel The Patel is an Indian surname or title, predominantly found in the state of Gujarat representing the community of land-owning farmers and later (with the British East India Company) businessmen, agriculturalists and merchants. Traditionally th ...

, Pratap,

Ranjit Ranjit can refer to: * Ranjit Singh (disambiguation) **Ranjit Singh (1780–1839), First Maharaja of the Sikh Empire ** Ranjit Singh of Bharatpur (1776–1805), ruler of the Bharatpur princely state in Rajasthan, India ** K. S. Ranjitsinhji (1872� ...

, Shastri,

Shivaji Shivaji Bhonsale I (; 19 February 1630 – 3 April 1680), also referred to as Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, was an Indian ruler and a member of the Bhonsle Maratha clan. Shivaji carved out his own independent kingdom from the declining Adil ...

, Subhas,

Tagore Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resh ...

, and Tilak.

School activities

Sports

Sports are an integral part of the school curriculum. The school has two large playing grounds, the Main Ground and the Cricket Field. Hockey,

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by st ...

, athletics,

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

, and

association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

are played throughout the school year.

Tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball cov ...

table tennis Table tennis, also known as ping-pong and whiff-whaff, is a sport in which two or four players hit a lightweight ball, also known as the ping-pong ball, back and forth across a table using small solid rackets. It takes place on a hard table div ...

badminton Badminton is a racquet sport played using racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are "singles" (with one player per side) and "doubles" (with two players p ...

, squash, and swimming are also available. Sport is dominated by Association Football or Soccer, Cricket, basketball, hockey, in which the schools competes nationally, at the state-level and Inter-school. Inter-house competitions stopped happening without ay explanation. Sports facilities include an

Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece bet ...

-size swimming pool, six

clay Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4). Clays develop plasticity when wet, due to a molecular film of water surrounding the clay pa ...

tennis courts, three squash courts, an indoor and two outdoor basketball courts, facilities for indoor badminton and table tennis, two cricket pitches, two fields for hockey and football (which can be converted to cricket pitches to accommodate seasonal sports), and an athletic track.

Clubs and societies

Extracurricular activities are a compulsory element of school life at Modern. The school magazine, ''Sandesh'', is published each school term in English and Hindi (its sister publications include the ''Vasant Prayag'' at Modern School, Vasant Vihar, and ''Prayas'' at Modern School, Kundli). There are around twenty clubs and societies, including photography, aero-modelling, drama, painting, sculpture, community service, carpentry, Dance, music, senior and junior English debating societies, economics, astronomy, computer science, physics, and robotics. In many societies pupils come together to discuss a particular topic, presided over by a faculty member and often including a guest speaker. The school has often invited prominent figures to give speeches and talks to the students; these have included heads of state, politicians, ornithologists, naturalists, artists, writers, economists, diplomats, and industrialists. The Modern School Leadership lecture series invites prominent alumni to address the school assembly twice every school year. Major clubs include The Lenskraft Photography Club, Model UN Society, Environment Club, Bits 'N' Bytes (The computer club), Debating Society,

Interact Club Rotary International is one of the largest service organizations in the world. Its stated mission is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through hefellowship of business, prof ...

, SPIC MACAY, Mudra Dance Club, SAPTAK and the Commerce Society. Modern School is also a leading member of the

Model United Nations Model United Nations, also known as Model UN or MUN, is an educational simulation in which students can learn about diplomacy, international relations, and the United Nations. At a MUN conference, students work as the representative of a count ...

and its biennial ModMUN conference is one of the biggest in

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...

attracting as many as 900 international students for the 2016 conference. Due to its size, prestige, and popularity, it is considered the largest student organized MUN in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

. Bits 'N' Bytes is one of the oldest school societies dating back to 1988. It organizes ACCESS, an annual tech symposium, in the month of December. In 2013, the society won the TCS IT Wiz and simultaneously celebrated its Silver Jubilee. The Debating Society is very active during the school year, as it hosts the Raghubir Singh Inter-school Debate, the Pratap Singh Inter-school Debate, and usually helps organize the Annual MSOSA Inter-school Debate. Interact Club (affiliate club of Rotary International's service club for students between the age of 12–18) was inaugurated in 1983 by the then vice-president of India,

Muhammad Hidayat Ullah Mohammad Hidayatullah OBE (17 December 1905 – 18 September 1992) was the 11th Chief Justice of India serving from 25 February 1968 to 16 December 1970, and the sixth vice president of India, serving from 31 August 1979 to 30 August 1984. He ...

, and has since grown into a prominent school society. Its activities include donations to orphanages, recycling drives, ant-piracy drives, and an annual blood donation camp. The club has been awarded a certificate in recognition of its services to the community by

Chief Minister of Delhi The chief minister of the National Capital Territory of Delhi is the head of government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. According to the Constitution of India, the lieutenant governor is the National Capital Territory of Delhi's ' ...

Sheila Dikshit Sheila Dikshit () (née Kapoor; 31 March 1938 – 20 July 2019) was an Indian politician. The longest-serving Chief Minister of Delhi, as well as the longest-serving female chief minister of any Indian state, she served for a period of 15 yea ...

. Interact Club nominates some of its students to be selected by Rotary International for its international program to represent

as ambassador of goodwill to neighboring countries such as

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

and

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

. The selected students stay as guests with families who participate in this international youth exchange program. SPIC MACAY, a national society for the promotion of Indian classical music and culture amongst youth, organizes a SPIC MACAY week every school term. Past performers include

Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma Pandit Shivkumar Sharma (13 January 1938 – 10 May 2022) was an Indian classical musician and santoor player who is credited with adapting the santoor for Indian classical music. As a music composer, he collaborated with Indian flautist Har ...

Ustad Bismillah Khan Bismillah Khan (born Amaruddin Khan, 21 March 1916 – 21 August 2006), often referred to by the title ''Ustad'', was an Indian musician credited with popularizing the shehnai, a reeded woodwind instrument. While the shehnai had long held imp ...

Sonal Mansingh Sonal Mansingh (born 30 April 1944) is an Indian classical dancer and Guru Bharatanatyam and Odissi dancing style. She has been nominated by the President of India to become a Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha. She is the youngest recipient of ...

Sitara Devi Sitara Devi (named Dhanlakshm; 8 November 1920 – 25 November 2014) was an Indian dancer of the classical Kathak style of dancing, a singer, and an actress. She was the recipient of several awards and accolades, and performed at several pres ...

, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan,

Hari Prasad Chaurasia Hariprasad Chaurasia (born 1 July 1938) is an Indian music director and classical flautist, who plays the bansuri, in the Hindustani classical tradition. Early life Chaurasia was born in Allahabad (1938) (officially called Prayagraj) in the I ...

, and

Birju Maharaj Pandit Birju Maharaj (born Brijmohan Nath Mishra; 4 February 1938 – 16 January 2022) was an Indian dancer, composer, singer, child molester and exponent of the Lucknow "Kalka-Bindadin" Gharana of Kathak dance in India. He was a descendant o ...

. Other events organized include ''Cyclotron'' (the annual inter-school physics symposium) and ''Unquestionably Modern'' (an annual quiz competition).

Model UN

Modern School revolutionised the concept of Model UN when the Model UN Society hosted its first conference in October 2011. Breaking all conventions, ModMUN 2011 which attracted over 100 international students from the world over, it went on to become not only the biggest MUN in Asia, but also one of great prestige. The following year ModMUN 2012 came back better than ever building on the success of ModMUN 2011, in 2013, ModMUN preceded their expectations achieving almost 900 students from around the globe. Modern School is also a leading member of the

and its annual ModMUN conference is one of the biggest in Asia attracting as many as 1000 international students for the 2016 conference. Due to its size, prestige, and popularity, it is considered the largest student organized MUN in

. Parallel to the successes of the conferences, the society which hosts it has also redefined the arena of Model UN. Since its inception, the Model UN Society of Modern School, Barakhamba road has gone on to make its presence felt in the most prestigious of conferences in the city, the country, and the world.

School magazine

The school takes out three publications, namely Sandesh, a biennial magazine, Red Brick Times, a monthly feature and the Chronicle, a weekly publication which encapsulates the events and achievements of the school and the students.

Theatre, music and dance

The school houses large venues for indoor productions; the Sir Shankar Lal Auditorium, the HLL (Hindustan Lever Limited) Auditorium and the M.N. Kapur Hall (formerly the gymnasium). The Amphitheatre adjoining the historic Banyan tree is used for common musical evenings, etc.

Traditions and lore

Like any established institution, Modern School has its fair share of traditions. For instance, during his tenure, Principal M.N. Kapur insisted all students sit cross legged on

durries Durry may refer to: *Dhurrie, a type of flat-woven rug in India and Pakistan * Ann Marie Doory, an American politician * Durrie Station, a pastoral lease in Queensland, Australia. *Durry, a New Zealand or Australian slang term for cigarette ...

during morning assembly, a tradition that continues to this day. Drawing upon the long relationship between Modern School and St. Stephen's College, the Rudra Prize, established in 1928, honours S.K. Rudra, the first Indian principal of St. Stephen's College and one of the founding members of the school.

Affiliations

Ties with other schools

From its foundation in 1920, Modern School housed classes from Montessori to Grade 12. This ended in 1961 when Raghubir Singh Junior Modern School was established on Humayun Road as the school's primary wing. In 1975, Modern School, Vasant Vihar was founded as the first sister school under the leadership of Mr. Ved Vyas, a well regarded Hindi teacher at Modern School, Barakhamba Road. Similarly, in 2014, another sister school was established in Kundli under the directorship of Mrs. Neelam Puri, a former junior headmistress at Modern School, Barakhamba Road. In its early years the school also shared a close relationship with

St. Stephen's College, Delhi St. Stephen's College is a constituent college of the University of Delhi, widely regarded as one of the oldest and most prestigious colleges for arts and sciences in India. It was established in 1881 by the Cambridge Mission to Delhi. The college ...

. The school has exchange programs with a number of overseas schools. As of September 2012, a small number of Modern School students were attending

Brisbane Grammar School , motto_translation = Nothing Without Labour , established = 1868 , type = Independent, day & boarding , gender = Boys , denomination = Non-denominational , slogan = , key_people = , c ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

;

Malay College The Malay College Kuala Kangsar (abbreviated MCKK; ; ) is a premier residential school in Malaysia. It is an elite all-boys and all- Malay school in the royal town of Kuala Kangsar, Perak. It is sometimes dubbed "the Eton College of the East" ...

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federal constitutional monarchy consists of thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two regions: Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo's East Mal ...

; St. George's Girls' School,

; Clifton School, South Africa; and

Peddie School The Peddie School is a college preparatory school in Hightstown, in Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. It is a non-denominational, coeducational boarding school located on a campus, and serves students in the ninth through twelfth g ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

. Other schools include The Second High School Attached to Beijing Normal University and New Oriental School of Foreign Languages in

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...

, Liebigschule Gießen in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

Philippine Science High School The Philippine Science High School System is a research-oriented and specialized public high school system in the Philippines that operates as an attached agency of the Philippine Department of Science and Technology. The Philippine Science High S ...

The Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, SMA Negari 4 Denser School in

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Gui ...

, Chua Chu Kang Secondary School in

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...

, and

Dominion High School Dominion High School is a public secondary school in Sterling, an unincorporated area in Loudoun County, Virginia, United States. Dominion High School first opened in 2003, receiving students from Potomac Falls High School and Park View High Sc ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth are ...

. Since 2010, Modern has twinned with Chua Chu Kang Secondary School, Singapore under the Twinning Program. It is also a part of ISA, UKIERI, and Australia India Collaboration. Modern also collaborates with The Collegiate School, Richmond,

, in organizing the Community Development and Leadership Summit and the International Emerging Leaders Conference.

Schools with similar names

"Modern" is commonly used in the names of several unrelated Indian schools.

Memberships

The Modern School is a member of the

Indian Public Schools' Conference Indian Public Schools Conference was established in 1939. The Indian Public Schools are an independent and private institutions of secondary education. Top notch boarding and day-cum boarding and the Sainik and Military Schools form part of this sc ...

(IPSC), National Progressive Schools' Conference (NPSC), Round Square Conference and the

(CBSE).

Public image

Modern in Films, Television, and Theatre *In Shekhar Kapur's 1983 film '' Masoom'', Rinky (

Urmila Matondkar Urmila Matondkar (born 4 February 1974) is an Indian actress and politician. Known for her work primarily in Hindi films, in addition to Telugu, Malayalam, Marathi and Tamil films, she has received numerous accolades, including the Filmfa ...

) and Minni (Aradhana Srivastav) are wearing Modern School uniforms in two scenes. *The radio station exteriors in the 2006 Bollywood film ''

Rang De Basanti ''Rang De Basanti'' () is a 2006 Indian drama film written, produced and directed by Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra, and co-written by Rensil D'Silva. The film features an ensemble cast consisting of Aamir Khan, Siddharth, R. Madhavan, Atul Kulkar ...

'' were shot at Modern School, Barakhamba Road. *Rajendra Theatre was used for

Albert Brooks Albert Brooks (born Albert Lawrence Einstein ; July 22, 1947) is an American actor and filmmaker. He received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for 1987's '' Broadcast News'' and was widely praised for his performance as a ...

' stand-up performance sequence in the film ''

Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World ''Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World'' is a 2005 film starring and directed by Albert Brooks. It was shown at the Dubai International Film Festival. Synopsis Albert Brooks, a Jewish-American comedian, is asked by the United States government ...

''. *In '' Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani'', the lead characters Kabir Thapar, played by

Ranbir Kapoor Ranbir Kapoor (; born 28 September 1982) is an Indian actor known for his work in Hindi-language films. He is one of the highest-paid actors of Hindi cinema and has featured in ''Forbes India''s Celebrity 100 list since 2012. Kapoor is the re ...

, and Naina Talwar, played by

Deepika Padukone Deepika Padukone ( or ; born 5 January 1986) is an Indian actress who works in Hindi films. She is one of the highest-paid actresses in India, and her accolades include three Filmfare Awards. She features in listings of the nation's most p ...

, are scripted as Modernites. They talk about their school days at

Modern School, Barakhamba Road Modern School is a co-educational, private school in New Delhi, India. It was founded in 1920 by Lala Raghubir Singh, a prominent Delhi-based businessman and philanthropist, who desired an institution that combined the "best of ancient Indian t ...

during the first half of the film. *In ''

Hindi Medium ''Hindi Medium'' is a 2017 Indian Hindi-language comedy-drama film written and directed by Saket Chaudhary, and produced by Dinesh Vijan and Bhushan Kumar under their respective banners Maddock Films and T-Series. It stars Irrfan Khan, Sa ...

'', the protagonist Raj, played by

Irrfan Khan Irrfan Khan () (born Sahabzade Irfan Ali Khan; 7 January 196729 April 2020), also known simply as Irrfan, was an Indian actor who worked in Indian cinema as well as British and American films. Widely regarded as one of the finest actors in In ...

, is trying to help his child get admitted to the (fictitious) Delhi Grammar school, which is portrayed at Modern School's campus; however, the name is avoided. Several scenes of the film were shot at the school's premises. Modern in Literature *

Khushwant Singh Khushwant Singh (born Khushal Singh, 2 February 1915 – 20 March 2014) was an Indian author, lawyer, diplomat, journalist and politician. His experience in the 1947 Partition of India inspired him to write ''Train to Pakistan'' in 1956 (made ...

recounts his experiences being amongst the first batch of Modernites in his autobiography ''Truth, Love and a Little Malice.'' He also recollects many a school tale in ''Notes on the Great Indian Circus''. *In

Chetan Bhagat Chetan Bhagat (born 22 April 1974) is an Indian author, columnist and YouTuber. He was included in Time magazine's list of World's 100 Most Influential People in 2010. Five of his novels have been adapted into films. Family, education, a ...

's,

Half Girlfriend Half Girlfriend is an Indian English coming of age, young adult romance novel by Indian author Chetan Bhagat. The novel, set in rural Bihar, New Delhi, Patna, and New York, is the story of a Bihari boy in quest of winning over the girl he lo ...

, the female protagonist, Riya Somani, is a Modernite.

Notable people

Alumni

Pupils of Modern School have gone on to achieve prominence in politics, government service, the armed forces of India, commerce, journalism, literature, academia, and the fine and performing arts. They include a prime minister, several Cabinet and Chief Ministers, numerous members of the Indian Parliament and State Legislative Assemblies, high-ranking military officials, of which include two Chiefs of Air Staff, and several ambassadors. The best-known alumnus is

Indira Gandhi Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi (; ''née'' Nehru; 19 November 1917 – 31 October 1984) was an Indian politician and a central figure of the Indian National Congress. She was elected as third prime minister of India in 1966 and was al ...

. In fact, Modern School has educated several members of the Nehru-Gandhi family.

Rahul Gandhi Rahul Gandhi ( ; born 19 June 1970) is an Indian politician and a member of the Indian Parliament, representing the constituency of Wayanad, Kerala in the 17th Lok Sabha. A member of the Indian National Congress, he served as the president o ...

and Priyanka Gandhi, children of former

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is ...

Rajiv Gandhi Rajiv Gandhi (; 20 August 1944 – 21 May 1991) was an Indian politician who served as the sixth prime minister of India from 1984 to 1989. He took office after the 1984 assassination of his mother, then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, to beco ...

and

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British E ...

President

Sonia Gandhi Sonia Gandhi (''née'' Maino; born 9 December 1946) is an Indian politician. She is the longest serving president of the Indian National Congress, a social democratic political party, which has governed India for most of its post-independen ...

, attended Raghubir Singh Junior Modern School before enrolling in St. Columba's School and Convent of Jesus and Mary respectively. Similarly, cousin Varun Gandhi, son of

Sanjay Gandhi Sanjay Gandhi (14 December 1946 23 June 1980) was an Indian politician and the younger son of Indira Gandhi and Feroze Gandhi. He was a member of parliament, Lok Sabha and the Nehru–Gandhi family. During his lifetime, he was widely expected ...

and Maneka Anand Gandhi, completed his primary schooling here. Notable Modern School alumni have held senior positions in Indian politics, bureaucracy, and judiciary, these include

Sanjay Kishan Kaul Sanjay Kishan Kaul is currently the Most senior judge of Supreme Court of India. He is former chief justice of Madras High Court and Punjab and Haryana High Court and former judge of Delhi High Court. He has also served as acting chief justice ...

, former Chief Justice of the

Madras High Court The Madras High Court is a High Court in India. It has appellate jurisdiction over the state of Tamil Nadu and the union territory of Puducherry. It is located in Chennai, and is the third oldest high court of India after the Calcutta High C ...

Madan Lokur Justice Madan Bhimarao Lokur (born 31 December 1953) is an Indian jurist. He is a Judge of Supreme Court of Fiji. He is former Judge of Supreme Court of India. He is also former Chief Justice of Andhra Pradesh High Court and Gauhati High Cou ...

, Supreme Court Judge, Mukul Rohatgi, former

Attorney General of India The Attorney General for India is the Indian government's chief legal advisor, and is its chief advocate in the courts. They are appointed by the President of India at the instance of the Union Cabinet under Article 76(1) of the Constitution ...

Gopal Krishna Gandhi Gopalkrishna Devadas Gandhi (born 22 April 1945) is a former administrator and diplomat who served as the 22nd Governor of West Bengal serving from 2004 to 2009. He is the grandson of Mahatma Gandhi and C. Rajagopalachari (Rajaji). As a former ...

, Governor of West Bengal and Bihar, Kamlesh Sharma, Indian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, and

Amitabh Kant Amitabh Kant (born 1 March 1956) was the second chief executive officer of NITI Aayog, a public policy think tank of the Government of India. He is a retired member of the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), the central civil service of the G ...

, chairman of the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor project. In the defence services, Modern Alumni include S.K. Mehra and P.C. Lal, both former Air Chief Marshals of the

Indian Air Force The Indian Air Force (IAF) is the air force, air arm of the Indian Armed Forces. Its complement of personnel and aircraft assets ranks third amongst the air forces of the world. Its primary mission is to secure Indian airspace and to conduct ...

. In the field of journalism and literature, Modern boasts stalwart

as alumni. Arun Shourie, former Cabinet Minister, Member of Rajya Sabha, editor of ''

The Indian Express ''The Indian Express'' is an English-language Indian daily newspaper founded in 1932. It is published in Mumbai by the Indian Express Group. In 1999, eight years after the group's founder Ramnath Goenka's death in 1991, the group was split be ...

'', and

Barkha Dutt Barkha Dutt is an Indian television journalist and author. She has been a reporter and news anchor at NDTV and Tiranga TV. She currently runs her own digital news channel called 'MoJo Story'. She is also an opinion columnist with '' The Hind ...

, Consulting Editor of

NDTV New Delhi Television Ltd is an Indian news media company focusing on broadcast and digital news publication. The company is considered to be a legacy brand that pioneered independent news broadcasting in India, and is credited for launching t ...

, and Raghav Chadha, the national treasurer and spokesperson of the

Aam Aadmi Party The Aam Aadmi Party (; AAP) is a List of political parties in India, political party in India, as one of the national political parties. The AAP was founded in November 2012 by Arvind Kejriwal and his then-companions following the 2011 Indian ...

, are also Modern alumni. Modern alumni have also made a mark in sports and entertainment. Golfers Daniel Chopra,

Shiv Kapur Shiv Kapur (born 12 February 1982) is an Indian professional golfer. He is recipient of 2002 Arjuna Award. Amateur career Kapur went to Purdue University and played the amateur circuit in the United States. He had a successful amateur career, ...

, and

Gaurav Ghei Gaurav Ghei (born 25 September 1968) is an Indian professional golfer who plays on the Asian Tour. He turned professional in 1991. His wins include three Asian Tour titles: the 1995 Gadgil Western Masters, the 2006 Taiwan Masters, and the 2007 B ...

, cricketers

Kirti Azad Kirtivardhan Bhagwat Jha Azad (; born 2 January 1959) is an Indian politician and former cricketer and who played seven Test matches and 25 One Day International for the India national cricket team between 1980 and 1986. Azad was born in Darb ...

, Unmukt Chand, and

Gautam Gambhir Gautam Gambhir (; born 14 October 1981) is an Indian politician and former cricketer, who has played all formats of the game. He is a current member of the Lok Sabha since 2019. He received the Padma Shri from the Government of India in 2019, ...

, tennis players

Vishal Uppal Vishal Uppal (born 10 November 1976) is a tennis player from India. He participated in the Davis Cup The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is run by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and is contest ...

and Karan Salwan, shooter Samresh Jung, and chess grandmaster Tania Sachdev are all ex-Modernites. In the arena of fine and performing arts Modern alumni include

Yamini Reddy Introduction Yamini Reddy is a Kuchipudi dancer, teacher, choreographer, and the Director of Natya Tarangini, a school dedicated to the teaching of Kuchipudi. She has performed widely in India and abroad. Early life Born to Kuchipudi exponent ...

Kuchipudi Kuchipudi () ( Telugu: ) is one of the eight major Indian classical dances. It originates from a village named Kuchipudi in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Kuchipudi is a dance-drama performance, with its roots in the ancient Hindu Sa ...

dancer, Abhay Sapori, Santoor maestro and music composer, film actress

Amrita Singh Amrita Singh (born 9 February 1958) is an Indian actress. Through her films such as '' Betaab'' and '' Mard'', she gained popularity and became a well-known and popular actress in the 1980s. She took a break from acting in the early 1990s for ...

Amjad Ali Khan Ustad Amjad Ali Khan (born 9 October 1945) is an Indian classical ''sarod'' player, best known for his clear and fast ekhara taans. Khan was born into a classical musical family and has performed internationally since the 1960s. He was awar ...

and his sons Ayaan and

Amaan Ali Khan Amaan Ali Khan (IAST: ) (born 1977) is an Indian classical musician who plays the sarod. Khan is the son of Ustad Amjad Ali Khan and often performs with his younger brother Ayaan Ali Khan, with whom he hosted the music talent show ''Sa Re Ga ...

, Sarod exponents and music composers, Geeta Kapur, art historian, art critic and daughter of former principal, Mr. M.N. Kapur, actors

Sanjana Sanghi Sanjana Sanghi (born 2 September 1996) is an Indian actress and model who mainly works in Hindi films. She made her acting debut as a child artist in the 2011 film '' Rockstar''. She later appeared in cameo roles in ''Hindi Medium'' and ''Fukre ...

Mallika Dua Mallika Dua (born 18 July 1989) is an Indian comedian, actress and writer. The comedian shot to fame with the viral video of ''Shit People Say: Sarojini Nagar Edition'', which was written, styled and enacted by Dua herself. She is the daughter o ...

Priyamvada Kant Priyamvada Kant is an Indian actress, writer and the winner of MTV Splitsvilla Season 12 Early life Priyamvada Kant was born on 1 January 1990 in Kolkata to mother Ratnabali Kant and father Awani Kant who are both renowned Artists. She studied a ...

, Arjit taneja, Karan Soni, and

Alok Nath Alok Nath (born 10 July 1949) is an Indian film character actor known for his work in Hindi cinema and television. He made his film debut with the 1982 English (and Hindi) film '' Gandhi'', directed by Sir Richard Attenborough, which won an O ...

, filmmaker

Shekhar Kapur Shekhar Kulbhushan Kapur (born 6 December 1945) is an Indian filmmaker and actor. Born into the Anand-Sahni family, Kapur is the recipient of several accolades, including a BAFTA Award, a National Film Award, a National Board of Review Award a ...

, beauty pageant winner Ekta Choudhry.

Naresh Trehan Naresh Trehan (born 12 August 1945) is an Indian cardiovascular and cardiothoracic surgeon. After graduating from King George Medical College, Lucknow, India, he went on to practice at New York University Medical Center Manhattan USA from 1971 ...

, surgeon and chairman of Medanta, Noshir Minoo Shroff, eye surgeon,

Aditi Shankardass Aditi Shankardass ( hi, अदिती शंकरदास) is a British neuroscientist. She has appeared in the media to discuss developmental disorders in children, including on CNN, ABC News, the '' Times of India'', and the '' Financi ...

, Neuroscientist, and Arvinder Singh Soin, liver transplant surgeon, represent Modern School alumni in the life and medical sciences. In business,

Rajat Gupta Rajat Kumar Gupta (; born ) is an Indian-American businessman and convicted felon who, as CEO, was the first foreign-born managing director of management consultancy firm McKinsey & Company from 1994 to 2003. In 2012, he was convicted for insider ...

, former managing director of

McKinsey and Company McKinsey & Company is a global management consulting firm founded in 1926 by University of Chicago professor James O. McKinsey, that offers professional services to corporations, governments, and other organizations. McKinsey is the oldest and ...

and founder of the Indian School of Business,

Gurcharan Das Gurcharan Das (born 3 October 1943) is an Indian author, who wrote a trilogy based on the classical Indian goals of the ideal life. ''India Unbound'' was the first volume (2002), on artha, 'material well-being', which narrated the story of I ...

, CEO of

Procter & Gamble The Procter & Gamble Company (P&G) is an American multinational consumer goods corporation headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, founded in 1837 by William Procter and James Gamble. It specializes in a wide range of personal health/consumer he ...

, and Surinder Mehta, founder of Prime Group and a

awardee are Modern School alumni.

Faculty

* Sarada Ukil, artist, actor, and art teacher at Modern School, Barakhamba Road *

Ramkinkar Baij Ramkinkar Baij ( bn, রামকিঙ্কর বেইজ) (25 May 1906 – 2 August 1980) was an Indian sculptor and painter, one of the pioneers of modern Indian sculpture and a key figure of Contextual Modernism. Early life and ...

, widely known as one of the pioneers of modern Indian sculpture taught at the school * Sukumar Bose, noted artist following in the tradition of the Bengal School of Art, taught art at the school through 1947

Modern School Old Students' Association

Modern School Old Students Association (''MSOSA'') brings together alumni. With over 15000 members, MSOSA has engaged in cultural and sporting activities to raise funds for supporting philanthropic activities, contributing to national causes including Kargil war relief in 1999, Gujarat earthquake relief in 2001, and tsunami relief in 2004. The Modernites Trust, MSOSA's philanthropic arm, provides merit scholarships to under-privileged students.

References

External links

* {{Official website, http://www.modernschool.net/
Raghubir Singh Junior Modern School website

Modern School, Vasant Vihar website

Modern School, Education City, National Capital Region (ECNCR)

Modern School Old Students' Association website

The Modernites Trust
Private schools in Delhi Boarding schools in Delhi Educational institutions established in 1920 1920 establishments in India New Delhi

History

Origins

Principals

The crest

Campus

Golden Jubilee Hostel

Houses

School activities

Sports

Clubs and societies

Model UN

School magazine

Theatre, music and dance

Traditions and lore

Affiliations

Ties with other schools

Schools with similar names

Memberships

Public image

Notable people

Alumni

Faculty

Modern School Old Students' Association

See also

References

External links