Hyderabad...the city in Southern India which stands out for its Indianness!

Hyderabad (Hyd) !

My incessant quest for greater avenues took me to the City of Pearls last month. And the diabolical nature of my plans off-late resulted in me spending quite a few days there, including the all important one - 15th August - our 71st Independence Day. Been to Golconda fort where-from KCR, the newly crowned chief minister of an otherwise abject Telangana, had left minutes before after hoisting the national flag ????

The stay, in one word, was "exceptional". Met long standing friends, made new ones, was fortunate enough to taste authentic biryani feasts in the most unexpected of corners and rode bikes like crazy till 2 in the night with one special friend.

Experimented with a couple of pubs too, 10 Downing Street and Vapour brewery, in spite of the fact that am never gonna touch alcohol in life. Yes, amazed as you may be am not into drinking even after almost a decade of living in cities with modern outlook. Am not into alcohol strictly but heyy, weren't the mocktails introduced in these outlets for abnormal species like me at the first place? ;)

Tried Uber moto and the usual ride which may have costed somewhere around ?90 on a regular Uber trip, costed me just ?27 ??, besides the obvious time-saving.

Visited ISB, one of "the" best B-schools in Asia, to further my Public Speaking ambitions, to add wings to my increasingly monotonous-becoming life. Had been to XLRI too, back in July, for the very purpose. Though I happen to be an IIM grad, life never ceases to surprise you with the struggle on offer for the paltriest of activities, paltry yes but may be unconventional and hence the resistance.

Went to the biggest Microsoft campus in the country, in fact supposedly the biggest in the "world" after Redmond headquarters of this revolutionary tech giant.

The friends I met ranged from long lost school ones to the most recent mba ones, with an awesome engineering friend sandwiched in between. They happen to be the real treasure of my 28 year journey yet!

Hyderabadis, as a whole, are compassionate people. Genuinely keen to help whenever needed, from requiring guidance for unknown routes to eateries or even in cases of adventure - for exploring the unexplored. ??

The city comprises a great mix of Hindu-Muslim inhabitants, plus a few other religions too, each with varied ethnicities. For once, muslims do not have that sickening feeling of being a minority here, thereby liberating them all subconsciously to realize their true potential. Urdu being their mother tongue helps in overcoming the ever-present language barrier, the effect of which is pronounced in most Indian cities today - Chennai, for example!

Pardon me for being judgemental but to be dead honest, after each of my three visits to the old-Madras State, I found Tamilians force-thrusting their language and culture upon us (me & my friends), as if we weren't Indians but Tamil Naduittes first and foremost. This lack of "Indianness" is felt by me most in Southern India. However Hyd turned out to be an exception to my absolute delight. ??

You feel welcome here, you feel one of their own, you feel immune to communal hatred. Above all you feel like an Indian!

India is a great great nation, incredibly great in literal terms and not just for the sake of it. So many ethnicities, communities, religions, and castes within those religions, etc have survived spectacularly to hint at the larger resilience that our countrymen possess, implicitly, and historically.

I met a fantastic family too, thanks to my little-over-a-month fb interactions with the head of the family. Upon learning about my Hyd visit, he was kind enough to extend an invitation for dinner at his home, notwithstanding the small issue of we having never met up until then. Mr. Ayub additionally made sure that I bring my friends along and buoy, weren't both of my dear friends overwhelmed. You bet!

There were few unpleasant experiences as well but nonetheless too few to deserve any further mention.

Lastly, as if the God hadn't been kind enough, he (she) made me bump into a sweet telugu girl, Su, by allocating her seat right next to mine on the return flight to Bangalore. I believe we will forever remain in touch now :-)

All in all, it was a trip to remember. 

Here's hoping many more visits in future and further more enlightening experiences.

Adios Hyderabad! ...that city in Southern India which stands out for its Indianness!

Note: This article was first published on my "Straight from the Heart" blog on September 8th, 2017. Copyrighted.