Atishay Jain
Because its my life
Monday 30 May 2016
Saturday 21 March 2015
Dehradun - A Charm That Never Fades Away...
Hovering in
the crib made by the Himalayan foothills to the north and the Shivalik range to
the south, Dehradun is that a small valley where you can tell the period by
looking at the flora in the your backyard.
this valley
is what i call my hometown. For me it is a valley of dreams, a place
which you can only dream of while living in metro cities. A place that is so
deeply entrenched in me that I can walk its streets blindfolded.
With the
weight of responsibility, stress and heaviness that comes with these protective
'adult costumes' that we have to wear it is sometimes sooo refreshing to take a
trip to the past and hang out with our perhaps 8 year old selves enjoying
winter, watching clouds and mountains, walking on the grass early morning and
feeling the morning dew.
As i have
grown older my memories of growing up in Dehradun have taken a fairy tale
dimension. Every nook and cranny has memories be it the Malsi Deer Park, the
amazing jhande ka mela or for that matter the ONGC hospital (I actually thought
it was the only hospital in dehradun :P). Countless places,
countless memories. My journey back to the past has been nostalgic, emotional
and sad.
As a child I remember walking
on winding roads lined with trees. On many mornings I would wake up to the
incessant pitter patter of rain drops on the roof of my cosy house. While
talking about the rains in Dehradun, it is impossible for me not to mention my
countless failed attempts to sail a paper boat in the streams of water here and
there.
Everyday I would be driven by
dad to school all the while absorbing the lush greenery around, a gift brought
by the monsoons. Everyday I would see mountains from my house and feel that
they were just miles away. Every other hour I would see a helicopter
flying past and wish that some day they would land in my garden and I would be
able to travel in them. Playing with wooden logs and eating peanuts on the
terrace was a part of my daily routine .The feeling of the warm rays of
the sun in chilly winter afternoons will always be a distant dream for the
children living in metro cities.
The best of all was the small
garden that we had. I felt that our greenhouse had almost all the vegetables to
feed our entire family for months without at a time. I still have fond memories
of how my grandmother would listen to me and my sister reciting
number tables when my mom went to work on Saturdays which I believe laid
the foundation of my strong mental maths.
I recall the day the
Janshatabdi Express was flagged off (thanks to the Indian Railways) and I
believe we were the first passengers onboard. Waking up at 4 and going to
railway station was nothing less than an adventure for me that too in chilly
winters mornings enveloped by fog all around. Now living in an urban city I
miss the small cinema halls in which I have the earliest memory of watching the
hit Bollywood flick "Ajnabee"
I have these tiny snapshot
memories from when I was young & life was way simpler.
The place has become the capital
of Uttrakahnd and has been caught in the net of dirty politics. When I go to
Dehradun nowadays, I realize that that the people, the places, the
surroundings and the environment have been
completely revolutionized but the basic essence of my hometown still
remains the same .
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