Baroda and Hyderabad two princely cities I reminiscence

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Baroda is the city I owe my life to as the Bank founded in that princely place feeds me even after my retirement more than a decade ago. My passion for cricket added verve to my love of Hyderabad. Nawab of Pataudi played cricket for Hyderabad as also the enigmatic Jaisimha and the last icon being the invincible VVS Laxman.

Rajmahal road was the overlooking view from my hotel balcony when I first landed in Baroda giving me a feeling in that misty February early morning way back in 1979 that I have landed in a pleasant looking city.  Sayajiganj the first locality as one comes out of the station with a traffic circle of a stallion statue added charm as did Alkapuri on the other side of the station as a posh locale with Yellora Park as an icing to the area. 

I wondered as to what made me reflect on these two cities with nostalgia. When memories are pleasant, in the long run they transform into nostalgia more so when one does not visit it or go out of touch with it. Pleasant feelings develop attachment not necessarily with people but also buildings, roads, places associated with them. Even the air, atmosphere and milieu or just the name of a place or city stirs up the feel and that is nostalgia.

Anshuman Gaikwad being from the family of the Maharajas who formed my bank became all the more my favorite, while Kiran More and Irfan Pathan became favorites just because they play cricket from Baroda. In the recent past Saina Newal and Sania Mirza added charm to the very name of Hyderabad by wielding rackets in their respective sports and becoming world no 1.

when the life at a new place is happier than expected that too with the locals in an alien place displaying warmth, receptivity and friendliness that feel, emotion and mood have a lasting effect in the psyche of the individual and is a nice platform to transform into nostalgia when one is forced to be cut off from the place after leaving it.
Both to Baroda and Hyderabad I went as a rank outsider. At Baroda I was a novice with a new job on hand with no clue of the language and culture and was prepared for any amount of hardship. Being my prized job for a gain of a monthly pay of Rs.1000/- after 30 month of unemployment, I was ready to put up with any adversity and agony. But it was ecstasy, delight and elation that I had with caring seniors who coached with concern and ensured my learning and experience without the pain that are normally associated.

I entered Hyderabad with more than a decade of experience but was not expecting a smooth ride both in the job and out of it as I was too conscious of the burden of expectation and my own doubt whether I can match the job role.  But again the people, culture and environs ensured that the city is destined to be nostalgic to me. 

My attachment to Baroda is a reflection of my love for Gujarat especially Surat and South Gujarat to which region I was attached sitting at Baroda. At Hyderabad I developed liking for Andhra (that included Telengana) and after two decades of my leaving when the state was divided I very well appreciated the feelings and emotions of Seemandra and Telengana friends.

Today with Whats-app and Face book not to talk of the handy cell phone life has become easier and feeling of absence from a city or place is well compensated by interactions through voice and video media with the people from such places. Also today no place is unknown or unfamiliar thanks to Google and people go to far off USA, Canada and Australia without feeling away from home and also knowing what is in store. Consequently what they miss is the opportunity of nostalgia that is one of the best sources of reflected happiness one can ever imagine.

Perhaps on a reflection I do feel happy today that I went to Gujarat without any expectation more than three decades ago with no knowledge of the place and have the pleasure of feeling nostalgic since I lived there mentally and physically and hence emotionally.

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