Bollywood spices up Trinity

Updated on: Monday, November 14, 2011

Trinity College Dublin, with a 400-year-old tradition, and the proud custodian of the Book of Kells (the manuscript that contains the four Gospels in Latin), played host to some unusual visitors from India. A mega-budget Bollywood movie completed filming on the historic and picturesque campus last month. Says Climaco Pinto, student of Business, Economics and Social Studies, "Anyone in India now thinking of Ireland will have Trinity on their mind."

Jane Ohlmeyer, vice-provost , Global Relations, Trinity College Dublin, says it was a conversation between director Kabir Khan and a faculty member a few months back that led to the filming on campus. "We are looking forward to the release of the film next year," she says, adding, "we are hopeful that the film will generate interest among Indians to study at Trinity." Currently there are around 33 students from India at the postgraduate level and four at the undergraduate level, however, the university is keen to attract more students from India.

On the strength of the university, Ohlmeyer says, "We offer a broad-based education. Our core mission is to nurture creative minds who can go on to become global citizens." The college focuses on individual attention with small classes and a strong emphasis on pastoral care. Also, with several multinationals having their European headquarters in Dublin, the college invests in strong ties with industry to help students move from academic learning into the workplace.

Ohlmeyer is in India with her senior colleagues to forge ties with Indian institutions such as IIT Delhi and JNU on studentstaff mobility and collaborative research. On the key criterion for student recruitment, she adds, "We are looking for wellrounded individuals, who will be able to think for themselves."

Trinity offers over 400 programmes at the UG and PG level. UG degrees are of four-year duration with the exception of medicine and dentistry, which are of five-year duration.

During the course of three-day of filming, the cast and crew worked on numerous locations around the university using the historic buildings as its backdrop. It was a rare treat for the students , many of whom volunteered during the shooting, to brush shoulders with Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif who play the lead roles in the film.

www.tcd.ie

Times of India

Bollywood spices up Trinity

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