By Vaishali Chandorkar Chitale
It was that time of the year again- Our reunion. The excitement started building up after the OC (our erstwhile ‘Organising Committee’) announced the dates- September 27th to 29th, 2024. The venue was a big surprise. My excitement knew no bounds when the venue was finalized — Karjat!…. literally in Mumbai’s backyard. For once, I was spared the long travel to Delhi and forward like the last 3 reunions and it felt good to know that the Delhiites will have to traverse half the country this time. Sometimes, Gods do smile down on us—the classmates who have wandered off to the different parts of the country and left the shores of our Alma Mater!
Wilderness Araanaya— a resort owned by our batchmate, Sudhanshu Purohit, was an ideal place for us young hearts to relive our school days. Idyllic, set in the woods, surrounded by green tapestry, open spaces, fresh air and 29 classmates raring to go! What more could one ask for? Nature at its splendid best. And Gods continued to smile down on us …by showering us with rain. Imagine, sitting under a spacious canopy, eating garam garam bhajiyas, sipping masala chai, looking yonder and beyond to softly (and sometimes raucously) falling rain and non-stop revelry. Well, that kind of sums up our two days in the woods.
The OC for this reunion—as fresh as the venue they had selected—had large shoes to fill in and boy! did they do that!! Yesss, not only did they live up to the expectations set by the previous OC but charted some new ones too! They of course, had quite a few aces up their sleeve, which were revealed with tantalizing slowness.
After a meet and greet session and handing out the delectable goody bags —another delight we all have come to expect and demand as our due —they left us to our own devices. Laughter, back-slapping and loud voices rang out from every corner as everyone caught up with each other and joined the missing dots.
The evening promised a visual and musical treat. The OC had organized a Maharashtrian Lavani dance performance and all we had to do was to show up in our traditional best, which we did with an aplomb! As the dusk settled in, the class of 80 got in their groove and danced the night away, with more than a generous help from the 3 sizzling Lavani dancers —and yes, the booze went a long way in letting down the guard! All in all, a great evening, which was rounded off by a finger-licking good Maharashtrian meal. As they say, when in Rome…..!!
The next day saw most of us bright and chirpy to start the day. We were all herded into cars ( helpfully provided by our classmates who lived near karjat ) and dropped off near a beautiful waterfall. All of us trudged happily up the hill for a better view and the morning was spent in trekking, posing, falling, drenching, and peals of laughter.
A sumptuous lunch followed, preceded by mouthwatering starters and bar-smacking drinks! Some of the adventurous ones, took to the pool and mainly struck to the side of the pool to grab all the delicious starters from the waiters scurrying around. Unapologetic, they dared the rest to join them, if they so wanted to eat the fish fritters and the lamb chops.
After a chilled afternoon, time had come for the mandatory group picture. Our goody bag revealed a stunning bottle-green Tshirt, with our school crest, which we were all told to wear with our jeans and sports shoes. Like good school kids that we all were (and still are), we assembled at the allotted time and place to pose for posterity.
Pictures done, it was time to party again. And party we did.
“You can dance, you can jive,
Having the time of your life”
…..these lines from ABBA’s ‘Dancing Queen’ sum up our last evening. An overworked bar, a buffet a die for, music that gets you on your feet…. what more can 29 batchmates celebrating their 44th ask for?
Well, as all good things come to an end, and this one did too. 29th morning saw a slew of farewells. The heavy-footed walk, the reluctant goodbyes, and promises to keep in touch coloured the morning. The OC was thanked again and again for organizing such a great reunion. It was especially commendable as they were new to the game and not only did they do a tremendous job but their gentle behind-the-back touches could be seen and felt throughout the two days we were chilling and partying.
Thank you, Manish, Kirti, Nandita, and Shailendra for making this a memorable walk down our school lane. Take a bow, guys, you deserve all the accolades and more!
The Bash of 80 