The Delhi Post

During my recent trip I did a lot at Delhi than what I went there for though half the time I was practically idle. I had more experiences than I had bargained for considering the fact that it was an official trip. I was not just asked to go but to go by plane as if there was no other means of reaching Delhi. Anyway, some of the experiences include ignoring a famous young actor standing behind me in the queue at the airport, pandal hopping, and traveling by the Metro apart from gawking at Khan Market where I bought something that I already possess.

Almost every time that I had flown by plane (which is not very frequent) I had the experience of meeting celebrities especially film stars. On my first ever flight back in the eighties the entire Indian cricket team accompanied me. On a recent occasion the comedian Brahmanandam was my fellow passenger. This time it was another younger actor. Since I was booked on an early morning flight I was at the airport at six in the morning. I stood waiting in line for the security check when Allu Arjun walked in and stood behind me. He was restless, glancing away at his mobile and looking around to see if anyone had recognized him. Not many seemed to know the actor but in the end a young attendant took him aside and got him a special check. I was glad he wasn’t traveling on the same plane.

The day I reached Delhi, Thursday, turned out to be a holiday for the whole city since it happened to be the last day of the Commonwealth Games. Everything was shut and the roads were deserted. There were gun toting soldiers and cops everywhere. Delhi appeared like a virtual fortress. Since all offices were closed I stayed at home watching television and reading old issues of HT Brunch.

I was staying at CR Park with my brother. In the evening I went out with my two nephews and sister-in-law ( who is a Bengali) to check out the puja pandals. It was quite an experience for me to watch how the Bengalis celebrate Durga Puja with everyone doing their bit. We went around five pandals in CR Park and at every pandal there were dozens of cops armed to their teeth. Roads were cordoned off and entry to cars was restricted to those belonging to the residents only. Everyone stood patiently in line to go through the metal detectors at the entrance. No one seemed to be in a hurry to go anywhere unlike we Hyderabadis who would have been swarming all over the place. That was Thursday’s experience but the experience on Friday too was something that was a first in my life.

I was totally unprepared for the swank Delhi Metro. On all my trips to Delhi I have never failed to visit Connaught Place whatever the weather be. On most occasions it was cold and in April this year on my way to Shimla it was hot as hell in Delhi. But this time it was very pleasant and sunny. On Friday after completing my official business I was all set to go to Connaught Place. My brother told me to go by the Metro. The nearest Metro station was at Nehru Place. I took a bus to Nehru Place and found my way to Kalkaji Temple station where some construction was still in progress.

Once inside the station, my Hyderabadi jaw dropped when I looked around. It was unlike anything that I had seen. It was clean, modern with all steel and glass. I had to buy a token which looked like the sort they give out at malls etc where you keep your bags. The blue plastic token was an electronic one which opened the gates to let me into the station. I was wondering aloud how to get to CP when a young, quiet looking Sardar told me to follow him. He was so tall I could only see his turban above the heads of the crowd. When I saw the train stream in my Hyderabadi jaw dropped further. The doors opened and I stepped in. There were scrolling screens which showed the name of the next station. There were announcements too about the next station and which side the doors would open. I got down at Central Secretariat to catch another train to Rajiv Chowk. The stations were marvels of modernity with silent escalators, sign posts, smartly dressed crew and silent crowds. There was virtually no jostling though there were some who pushed their way in even before those inside got down. Of course, that was the Indian touch.

After going around the virtually deserted and almost unrecognizable CP I caught the Metro train back to Nehru Place. CP had a new look with barricades, newly painted surfaces, and a lot of nice changes. However, I did not find anything worth buying or looking at and simply wandered around gawking. I had been to Bahrisons at Khan Market earlier in the day when I had to visit an office which happened to be at Khan Market. Work done, I spent an hour gawking. I visited the only bookstore at Khan Market- Bahrisons where I found the owner ticking off an employee for disappointing a customer. He had apparently asked for a book and the guy wasn’t able to get it in time. At the store I picked up a second copy of a book that I already possess. It isn’t unusual of me to buy second copies of books I love but this happened to be a brand new book. This was a book worth every rupee of its price. In the next post titled ‘The Delhi Haul’ that I will put up on Friday I will write about this book.