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It was her childhood dream to have a postgraduate degree, a dream that she was able to realize only at the age of 71, half a century after she graduated. Ketty Shroff who was the lone scholar to appear for the MA in Avesta and Pahlavi in April 2014, received her coveted degree at the convocation of the Institute of Distance Open Learning (IDOL) of Bombay University on February 2, 2015. On the occasion of its founder’s day on March 24, 2015, at a function on the Kalina campus of Bombay University IDOL presented her with a certificate of merit, Shroff told Parsiana over the telephone. More kudos came her way when Rustom Baug doyenne Kumi Daroowala’s Winter Relief Fund recognized her achievement at the Frohar Foundation’s exhibition of Zoroastrianism, History and Culture program organized by Ervad Cyrus Dastoor at Allbless Baug on April 17, 2015. Shroff received a certificate, a cash gift of Rs 5,000 and a memento on the occasion, she mentioned to Parsiana.

 

 

 

 

 

Shroff, who was felicitated at the convocation ceremony in February 2015, suffered a heart attack the following day, reported Daily News and Analysis (DNA) on February 7, 2015. During her convalescence she told DNA, "I felt like a celebrity when during the convocation students came to get photographed with me. Maybe, I could not digest this excitement and landed up in hospital the next day.”
Originally from Navsari, Shroff moved to Bombay after graduation and worked at the Central Bank of India for 35 years, retiring as a manager. She recalled, "My financial condition was not that stable. I completed my schooling and graduation with scholarships. I did my graduation in economics from S. B. Garda College in 1964 at the age of 21.” Marriage to Cyrus, now 80, followed and Ketty raised a family while working. Doing her MA was not on the agenda then. It was only after retirement that she decided to study for her post graduate degree in 2011, DNA noted. Getting admission to Bombay University was not easy as she was a graduate from Gujarat, but she managed to get provisional admission for the first year; this was confirmed only in the second year, a day before the MA Part II final exam, she revealed to DNA. During the Part I examination her husband had to undergo surgery. Cyrus informed the newspaper: "I clearly instructed Ketty not to worry and go and attend her exam for which she had worked so hard for a year.”
"I joined the Avesta and Pahlavi classes at the Sir Jamsetjee Jejeebhoy Zarthosti and Mullan Feroze Madressas run by the Bombay Parsi Punchayet. As I grew older, I was taking a deeper interest in our prayers... (and) our own ancient language. I was able to learn many aspects of our religion and can understand our prayers in the Khordeh Avesta,” Shroff informed Jam-e-Jamshed Weekly on August 10, 2014. Grateful to Ervads (Dr) Ramiyar Karanjia and Parvez Bajan, her teachers and guides, she acknowledges: "It is only with their help, support and encouragement and guidance that I have managed to complete my MA in Avesta and Pahlavi.”
Returning to academic studies in her late 60s after a gap of 50 years was a huge challenge which Shroff confronted with grit, determination and dedication. She even studied the Cuneiform script which is Old Persian used in the Behistum rock inscriptions of Darius the Great in Iran. "This is a dying field of knowledge,” Shroff admitted to Parsiana. "A little known fact is that our religion predates written languages. It was preserved by the priesthood by word of mouth. Fragmentary remnants of Avesta were translated into Pahlavi, a largely spoken language, resulting in much confusion as the latter has fewer letters and the translations were often incorrectly interpreted. Later scholars sorted this out. Each generation has to work hard to protect this precious heritage,” Shroff informed Parsiana.