I was not born in Pune and nor is it my native place, my arrival in Pune was just a matter of chance but ever since Pune is my home and has been for 17 years. I left Pune in 2007 as a newly married bride to be with my hubby which in turn took me out of India. I would be going to Pune for a holiday to be with my family. The count down has almost begun but I am already in trance dreaming about my dear Pune. The beautiful path down to Pune University through IUCAA and the walking tracks is already enticing me to put on my runners and tread down that path. Pune University has a majestic building with a beautiful garden in front of it. I have walked down that path many years and shared a laugh or two with my dear friends. As we were growing up we used to see romancing couples sitting on various benches and talking to each other and we used to whizz past them on our bikes, giggling and laughing. The walking track near the university entrance has seen as so many times as we used to take rounds around the track and at exact 7 am we used to deposit ourselves to watch the laughing club do their share of laughter. I am just yearning to go back to the beautiful University.
The scenic roads of Range Hills amidst the military quarters is a charm on its own. Its has another getaway to go to Pune University through one of the many roads that leads to the University.That was my route to go to most of the destination, that road saw me growing right from my visits to Preeti (my best friend) home to going for Biology tuitions in 12th grade to going to get my braces fixed and removed and last but not the least for the friday program.The road from Rangehill led to Bhosale Nagar which was considered a very elite and posh locality, it had such a homely touch to it.
FC road another path tread so often, starting with the Gyaneshwar Paduka chowk which was so full of activity in the evening, the bhajans and kirtans filling the air with devotion. The numerous restaurants buzzing with activity among which is a restaurant called Nirankar which had seen us (my mother,brother and myself) so often during our school days. We always had the veg thali there and there was this one waiter who always catered to us, I wonder if he is still around as we saw the restaurant changing a couple of managements. We then found Shabree and I still go there whenever I go to Pune. The authentic Maratha Maharashtrian thali is amazing and mouth watering. Not a single weekend went by without us visiting FC road and walking by the busy street and seeing the numrous teenage kids catching up with their friends. The kutchi Dabeli fellow dishing out delicious cheese and plain dabeli outside of HongKong lane another lane where we all go to buy our jewellery and bags.
Parallel to FC road is Jangli Maharaj road which has the enormous Sambhaji park which we used to fondly call Chimpanzee Park.The park hosts an array of Bhel walas who call out to you as soon as you as you pass by their stalls. All of them are busy dishing out bhels with varied intensity of spice, some of them are sweet and some of them are really hot based on your requirements.There is one particular stall which is always bustling with activity and that used to be our dedicated halt.JM Road also has a chain of Udupi restaurants where they serve an array of traditional dosas. As we were growing we used to always visit Subhadra and order a variety of dishes of which dal fry and jeera rice was a must.My brother and I used to visit different restaurants in JM Road.
Go a little further down and you enter the bustling Laxmi road, filled with shops and people. People shopping for different occasions and people shopping on a regular basis. Its the place for the shopaholics where you can get ethnic wear for all price ranges. Its so lively and filled with colors and smiles, the welcoming atmosphere to shop for your clothes. I remember those festive times when we were taken to Laxmi road to buy clothes. Those were such wonderful days and the trip to Tulsi Bagh during Ganesh Chathurthi to buy flowers and paraphrenalia which has still maintained its old architecture and wadas. There are so many shops and street hawkers that there is just enough space for a person to walk at a time. The flower sellers have their huge baskets of flowers arranged in an order ready to be sold and offered to God. In the centre of Tulsi bagh stands Dagdusheth Ganpati so majestically facing the road and blessing every passer by. No one goes by without bowing quickly to the Lord. During the Ganesh festival the place is filled with activity with various pandals raised and depicting many a mythological tales in a diorama. The beat of drums and cymbals on the day of immersion to different tunes is breath taking. As kids we used to assemble infront of our local pandal and watch the different themes each day.
Last but not the least is dear old MG Road which is more modernised version than Laxmi road. The more elite shopping malls with all their goods and the jewellery shops with all their imitation and cosmetic jewellery. very enticing indeed. The place has mostly Parsis. As kids appa used to bring us to MG Road and we used to go shopping and make a visit to Dorabjee where we were treated to some yummy puff pastry. There was also this street vendor who used to make amazing dhokla chaat with this assortement of red and green chutneys. Trips to MG road was also frequent during college days when we studied in Nowrosjee Wadia college. That was an era of its own which requires a separate blog. Such beautiful days when we were studying and such beautiful memories. We used to go to Westend theatre to watch movies and also the trip ISKCON temple.ISKCON temple also holds many strong memories for me which was very much a part of my growing up mentally and spiritually.
I can feel Pune as I write every line of this blog. The paths I have travelled with my parents and my friends. Every step is so memorable and so much at home. I miss Pune.
