On the occasion of the Ahmedabad Mirror completing 1000 days, a special report was published on October 2, 2010. I had penned some thoughts on life in Ahmedabad. So here goes…
Bold and Beautiful Ahmedabad
A city with a unique spirit that straddles the modern and the traditional, the high-tech and the simple, the high-rises and the pols, the fast and the slow, the future and the past – this is Ahmedabad! Let me explain.
It is a bright morning in June 2009, and I am just about to set foot on the city where I am to spend nearly two years. The railway station is reassuring in a way that only Indian railway stations can be – dirty, congested, but full of life. Tucked into the car that would take me to the IIMA campus, I notice that driving on the roads would take sheer audacity, for it is a complete free-for-all. But the first sight of the campus is satisfying – the red-brick architecture looks better than what the photographs promised!
Soon the days passed, and the restaurants of Ahmedabad became familiar haunts. Be it midnight buffets at Pride, birthday celebrations at E-scoops, treats at Mirch Masala, or pani-puris at a roadside stall, Ahmedabad eateries quickly earned their rightful places in our lives. In fact, Gujju delicacies such as fafda jalebi and bakharwadi immediately come to mind when I am asked about food in Ahmedabad.
As for the people of Ahmedabad, their bold business spirit still continues to amaze me. In fact, this business-driven mentality of the typical Amdavadi is perhaps the reason why India’s first business school came to be founded right here. And yet, children here are the same innocent, frolicking ones, as I found out while volunteering with Prayaas, an IIMA initiative that helps less privileged children!
Travelling around the city, one cannot help but notice the contrasts. On one side of the Sabarmati are the malls and modern buildings, and on the other, the traditional settlements, with their bird-feeders and narrow lanes. While well-known business brands originate and establish base in Ahmedabad, the city is also seeped in history. Indeed, visiting the Gandhi Ashram was an awe-inspiring experience by itself. All the history lessons that once seemed a burden to learn resonated again with a nostalgia that no other place could have triggered.
Having travelled and stayed in different cities in North and South India, I can confidently say that Ahmedabad is one city that gives space for both modernity and historical tradition in its own unique manner. Where else will you find an extremely well-oiled BRTS system peacefully co-existing with camels ambling down the road?
(This article is available at the following link:
Marketing, Real and Ideal 