Ever travelled in a six lane road in bike and haven’t bothered about the lane or traffic or even riding straight?
Ever got a preview show ticket at counter price just an hour before the movie starts?
May be I should reframe the question…
Have you been told by BSNL that we cannot cover the area or give connection to your home, when you are just 15 minutes away from the exchange? or
Ever been the only person in railway station to board the train?
Answer to all of the above questions is a place called GANDHINAGAR!
I had my posting in Gandhinagar and I stayed ahmedabad for one day. My first day in Ahmedabad was exciting, the city was bustling with people.But things changed as it always does, they told me and my friends that gandhinagar was 20km from ahmedabad. We decided to start around 4 pm to gandhinagar, but we got the bus only by 5! travelling for more than an hour and half in a crowded bus, the conductor pointed at me and said something, I could only make out one word “Infocity” the place my office is located. We got down and I was impressed by the six lane road, time was close to 7pm.I thought the bus might have left us in a highway outside city, all I could see was only trees, no light, hardly any vehicles on road and devoid of any human activity! My friend had a house broker number, we called him and he asked us to meet at a place near infocity. We did manage to get to that place and meet him near a tea shop, my HINDI knowledge was much better than my friends, so I spoke clearly and firmly… “Hume GANDHINAGAR mei ghar chahiye!”(we need a house in Gandhinagar) , he looked at me for few minutes and replied slowly “Yeh hai GANDHINAGAR” (This is gandhinagar). My heart broke in pieces, But I did live in that place for more than two and half years of my life! Things weren’t get much simpler for next few days, we were welcomed with words like “Welcome to the JUNGLE” “Welcome to *****Nagar!” “you didn’t get better place?”
Life wasn’t getting any better, working in a 24*7 project in a place which slept promptly by 8pm is very very difficult! Dinners were mostly tandoori roti with paneer or vegetables floating in oil, Lunch were plain roti with dal and we started forgetting breakfast ! But life took different turn, I have to thank my project for that. My project was a mini India, we had Bengali’s, Oriya, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Marathi, Rajasthani…! Another than being INDIANS we had one more thing in common, we hated the place and which brought us much closer! And another important thing was we had no girls in the project in beginning, it was just us guys, bunch of bachelors, for whom most important things were food and girls and least bothered about the work! Luckily the bunch of people I met were all these types so it made life easier!
Time spent at office or I should reframe it as time spent drinking tea became much more enjoyable and memorable. The bunch I met were really up to anything, sometimes I wonder do they really hear what is being said or did they just put up their hand saying ‘I am IN’. Every Friday night we went to movies, not cause the movie was good just cause it was fun to hang out with these bunch! It became such a routine that we were never checked when we entered the theatre, the security just said “pehachan wale ko check nahi karenge sir!” Oh ya forgot, you don’t get bus services in Gandhinagar, so it is always beg, borrow and…no we didn’t steal, to make it to the theatre! And a word of advice, if you are on the back of the truck at mid night, just try not to take photos!
Saturday’s were dedicated to playing carom at office and swimming in evening( yes there is a swimming pool in Gandhinagar). And Sunday’s were rest day 
don’t ask me rest from what! Even the work started becoming fun, we chatted non-sense all day and laughed our heads off and never stopped pulling each others leg! I read somewhere that where there is fun and laughter you will find true friendship there, I didn’t doubt what I read!
It will be unfair if I don’t mention Gujju GIRLS and Friday’s are just AWESOME! 
after all what do you expect bunch of bachelors to talk about!
People have asked me how I feel about Gandhinagar, I could only explain it after moving out of Gandhinagar. Gandhinagar is place where you could freeze time, no I am serious about it, you start to feel 24 hours a day is too long! You get ample time to do what ever you want! Life doesn’t rush at you, there is a serenity about the place which is good for old age
Being in gandhinagar is like being in a totally different world, a place not infected by pollution, traffic and the race to finish first! But if you are still young and ambitious then Gandhinagar might just eat your dreams!
Gandhinagar broke my heart on the first day and it is still broken, not cause I miss the place, cause of the people who made the place look better!
P.S: I’ll be doing injustice to myself if I don’t mention “Long life and Happy Friendship”, a phrase which brought happiness and sanity to our life in Gandhinagar
P.P.S: If it weren’t for Gandhinagar I wouldn’t have start to write blogs
Ever got a preview show ticket at counter price just an hour before the movie starts?
May be I should reframe the question…
Have you been told by BSNL that we cannot cover the area or give connection to your home, when you are just 15 minutes away from the exchange? or
Ever been the only person in railway station to board the train?
Answer to all of the above questions is a place called GANDHINAGAR!
I had my posting in Gandhinagar and I stayed ahmedabad for one day. My first day in Ahmedabad was exciting, the city was bustling with people.But things changed as it always does, they told me and my friends that gandhinagar was 20km from ahmedabad. We decided to start around 4 pm to gandhinagar, but we got the bus only by 5! travelling for more than an hour and half in a crowded bus, the conductor pointed at me and said something, I could only make out one word “Infocity” the place my office is located. We got down and I was impressed by the six lane road, time was close to 7pm.I thought the bus might have left us in a highway outside city, all I could see was only trees, no light, hardly any vehicles on road and devoid of any human activity! My friend had a house broker number, we called him and he asked us to meet at a place near infocity. We did manage to get to that place and meet him near a tea shop, my HINDI knowledge was much better than my friends, so I spoke clearly and firmly… “Hume GANDHINAGAR mei ghar chahiye!”(we need a house in Gandhinagar) , he looked at me for few minutes and replied slowly “Yeh hai GANDHINAGAR” (This is gandhinagar). My heart broke in pieces, But I did live in that place for more than two and half years of my life! Things weren’t get much simpler for next few days, we were welcomed with words like “Welcome to the JUNGLE” “Welcome to *****Nagar!” “you didn’t get better place?”
Life wasn’t getting any better, working in a 24*7 project in a place which slept promptly by 8pm is very very difficult! Dinners were mostly tandoori roti with paneer or vegetables floating in oil, Lunch were plain roti with dal and we started forgetting breakfast ! But life took different turn, I have to thank my project for that. My project was a mini India, we had Bengali’s, Oriya, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Marathi, Rajasthani…! Another than being INDIANS we had one more thing in common, we hated the place and which brought us much closer! And another important thing was we had no girls in the project in beginning, it was just us guys, bunch of bachelors, for whom most important things were food and girls and least bothered about the work! Luckily the bunch of people I met were all these types so it made life easier!
Time spent at office or I should reframe it as time spent drinking tea became much more enjoyable and memorable. The bunch I met were really up to anything, sometimes I wonder do they really hear what is being said or did they just put up their hand saying ‘I am IN’. Every Friday night we went to movies, not cause the movie was good just cause it was fun to hang out with these bunch! It became such a routine that we were never checked when we entered the theatre, the security just said “pehachan wale ko check nahi karenge sir!” Oh ya forgot, you don’t get bus services in Gandhinagar, so it is always beg, borrow and…no we didn’t steal, to make it to the theatre! And a word of advice, if you are on the back of the truck at mid night, just try not to take photos!
Saturday’s were dedicated to playing carom at office and swimming in evening( yes there is a swimming pool in Gandhinagar). And Sunday’s were rest day don’t ask me rest from what! Even the work started becoming fun, we chatted non-sense all day and laughed our heads off and never stopped pulling each others leg! I read somewhere that where there is fun and laughter you will find true friendship there, I didn’t doubt what I read!It will be unfair if I don’t mention Gujju GIRLS
and Friday’s are just AWESOME! after all what do you expect bunch of bachelors to talk about! People have asked me how I feel about Gandhinagar, I could only explain it after moving out of Gandhinagar. Gandhinagar is place where you could freeze time, no I am serious about it, you start to feel 24 hours a day is too long! You get ample time to do what ever you want! Life doesn’t rush at you, there is a serenity about the place which is good for old age
Being in gandhinagar is like being in a totally different world, a place not infected by pollution, traffic and the race to finish first! But if you are still young and ambitious then Gandhinagar might just eat your dreams!Gandhinagar broke my heart on the first day and it is still broken, not cause I miss the place, cause of the people who made the place look better!
P.S: I’ll be doing injustice to myself if I don’t mention “Long life and Happy Friendship”, a phrase which brought happiness and sanity to our life in Gandhinagar
P.P.S: If it weren’t for Gandhinagar I wouldn’t have start to write blogs
9 Comments:
Ya I can see that.. This place did make you a blogger. I guess yu returned too soon. GO back there. Who knows, you might even become a poet ;)
nice one thiru !!!... :)..
@Bharadhwaj & Neha : Thank you guys! :)
Good one... First day, remember each and every min that day... well, definitely we managed our starting days with ur Hindi only :)
thanks naids :)
It's so strange how people around us can influence on our behaviour and the way we think.. especially when u get new friends in a completely new environment they become the most Special ones.. Well done for this post! :)
@Subbu : Thank you :)
that was awesome Thiru!!! the same experience for every one of us...
Thank you sarath!!
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