Penal welcomes Dr Chandra Jangbahaboor

On entering the Jangbahaboor household, one can sense an aura of spirituality. The members of the family speak softly and there is the beautiful sound of bhajans in the background. The home is filled with the images of the Hindu Gods with lighted deyas and burning incense. Fresh flowers adorn the murtis (images) giving a heavenly look to the home.

Among those who greet you are two simple looking women. Sisters Chandra and Shakuntala have no air about them. Yet they are both highly educated individuals. The elder sister Dr Chandra Jangbahaboor, 41, smiled softly when she asked me to take a seat in the cosy looking room at her parents’ home in Penal. One can never tell that the girl who is looking at you with a simple cotton outfit is Dr Chandra Jangbahadoor, one of the most sought after lecturers in the UK. In History, Chandra holds a BA Degree as well as her Masters and she went further to get her PhD in Philosophy. She is at present lecturing at the Lester University and teaching Race Relations at many of the schools in London where she now resides. Having accomplished so much, Chandra attracted many of her long-time friends on her recent visit to Penal. Scores of people gathered at her parents’ home to see the young woman who is now one of the highly educated individuals in the UK.

Recalling the days when she was just a child attending the Penal Rock Road Presbyterian School, Chandra said: “I believe that my parents love and devotion propelled us — my brothers and sister and I — to achieve so much academically. I had a love for history and the related subjects. Therefore, the first opportunity I got to pursue this subject I plunged in right away,” she said. This beautiful woman with long wavy hair, could have passed as a model. But unlike the girls who pursue that field she has excelled in her academics and now lectures daily. Chandra told People that having graduated from Iere High School, Siparia with her ‘A’ Levels, she wanted to get into the field of nursing. “This was the thing in the 70s and 80s in Trinidad and Tobago. There were many advertisements for young women who will be interested in Nursing. I took the opportunity to go to London 15 years ago. It was not long after I decided to expand my horizons and I took up a job as a manager of a store. This job gave me enough money to pursue my education. I quickly enrolled in Lester University and started the journey of obtaining my first degree,” she explained. This young lady had the determination of steel. Here she was in a foreign country alone and she did it on her own. She was able to work and study hard to pass her exams with honours. To top it off, based on her high passes, she received a scholarship to go after her Masters Degree at Oxford University. Chandra admits that she could not afford to go after her Masters and like a true blessing from the Goddess of learning, Mother Sarawatie, she was given the opportunity.

Though it was difficult for her, Chandra proved to her professor that she could attain the highest pass at Oxford, Then it came, another scholarship to go after her PhD in Philosophy. “I was praying and studying. I had a plan to become a learned person. I wanted to achieve this so that I would be able to express my views on matters that have troubled me all my life. Matters in History and Philosophy, and I am now able to do this,” she said. Today she is involved in preparing exams for students who are pursuing various degrees. Chandra said that while in the UK she missed the sound of the jhanti (the religious bells heard when arti — ‘waving of the deya’ is done. She misses the food and the love and laughter of her brothers and sister. Although she is now married to a British gentleman, and has dual citizenship, she is true Trinidadian, wherever she goes. “This is something I am extremely proud of. I am happy when my co-professors refer to me as a Trinidadian. It is like I came from a small country and I have made it big. I feel good about this,” she said. Although she came on vacation to visit her father and mother, Dinanath and Popatie Jangbadoor, Dr Chandra took the opportunity to address a religious audience at the Hindu Prachaar Kendra (HPK) in Chaguanas. She spoke on the role of women through the years of indenturship in TT. Her lecture was well received by the people of the HPK. Many refer to her as a good example for the young people to follow. “The journey gets better with each passing day and the goal seems closer when you are halfway up the ladder,” she said.