The City, as I see it!
Views — By Ramya Iyer on June 22, 2011 at 3:42 PM
I have lived in Pune all my life. It is quite uncanny to be writing this column today as I have to move to Delhi at the end of this year. It has been a to and fro flow of mixed feelings, happy to be married and almost depressed to depart this city that has been my home for all my life.
Every memory of my life, so far, has been linked to Pune. Be it school, college or work; it has always been here. So it is quite obvious that I should be in love with this city. However, it’s not just that, there is much more that the city offers to every one of its dwellers; new, old or the eternal.
My dad moved here when he was a teenager and I am not exaggerating when I say this, he simply refused to move out of here. He worked for the Central Railways and as you know, it is always expected in his kind of a job that you get transferred all around the country. In fact, all your promotions are always accompanied with transfers. However, he did not budge. He simply was not open to moving-out of here. And I am so glad about that. Also glad that my dad is retired now and is settled here, so Pune will always be my hometown.
Pune was a beautiful city to grow up in; the simply awesome weather – sipping tea on those nippy cold winter mornings on your way to college, those lovely gulmohar trees shedding their leaves during fall, dancing in those breezy rains, the hail storms and basking in the sun in those endurable summer days. It is definitely a lovely city to live in. All this seems to be a dream now with the unending traffic and the unpredictable weather, thanks to global warming.
Pune has been one of the safest cities too. Be it coming back from work late at night or be it partying all night, there was never an iota of trepidation through these years. We could ride back our tiny-tony mopeds after a night long party, at 4 in the morning and yet be rest assured we will reach home safe and sound.
Having lived in this city for two and a half decades, I have witnessed the changing faces of the city and a lot of this for the best. The suburbs of the city have developed very well in the past decade. The city is also getting modernised with shopping malls coming up at every nook and corner.
This city is a sea of opportunities and yet a safe haven to live in. The IT industry almost has a permanent residence here, the BPOs were swift to move in and there is no doubt that the other industries will soon follow suit.
It is not just the family and friends I am upset about leaving behind, it is the roads and flyovers which I have seen being built, the buildings and the parks and a lot more. I love Pune and it will always be my home.
