It was the year 2007 and I had just landed in Mumbai International Airport after 1 month in Ireland and was quite not sure what to expect, as it was first time in Maharashtra. However, I was glad that the other 2 Colleagues with me were from Pune and hence I had gotten a 1st hand brief-up on the basics- the roads, places for accommodation, transport and most importantly, the clubs & discs. And so began the story of one of the best times I’ve had in my life; All night parties, late night drives, shouting out songs to the deep blue skies were some of most favorite activities. For all the guys reading this post…Pune is a city of beautiful people, for you’d hardly see a girl who’s anything less than stunningly beautiful. For all those people thinking that Bangalore is posh and amazing, you’ll need to re-decide after checking out Pune. Although on the sad part, Pune is rapidly becoming as expensive as the other major metro’s in India.
To start off with, every weekend was celebrated pretty much like a vacation by me and my friends. A couple of Punjabi’s, few southies and some native Maharashtrians- we all combined to form a pretty nice mixed up gang and there was only 1 motive- To freak out and enjoy without boundaries. We’d start off with a few pegs at home by 6 or 7 in the evening, followed by a few more glasses inside the car en-route. The same would continue, all through the evening at the dance floor as well, until the last counter is closed. We then proceed to one of the dhabba’s for some custom music played by myself, for English numbers or by Ashish Dhammi, one of the Punjabi blokes I was referring to, for Hindi numbers. As expected the music is always accompanied by some liquor, dancing, friends and generally the public as well.
Did I mention that Pune does not have individual restaurants or bars? Most of the places you see around town would be a ‘Restaurant & Bar’. People travelling down there; do try out the native specialties: Wada Pav, Misal Pav, Baakarwadi, Shrikhand & Thalipeeth and you’re bound to fall in love with one of these.
For the benefit of all, I’ve jotted some of the places I’ve been to in Pune, from the top of my head. Rest assured there’s lot more places that I can think of but I’m not able to pull out their names as of now.
- Soho’s, Area 51: 2 of my favorite clubs. Stays open beyond 01.00 AM with good music and liquor.
- 1000 Oaks, Pix Toons, Apache, ABC Park, Leather Lounge, Seasons: Pubs/ clubs for all rock and music lovers
- Mini-Punjab, Vir Da Dhabba, Soundrya, Good Chef, Akshat, Rajmudra: Open air dhabba outlets in and around Hinjewadi IT Park, with good liquor and relaxing environment
- MG Road, JM Road, FC Road: For all you shoppers…
- E-Square, Inox, Adlabs, PVR: Movie halls with a bowl of pop-corn and fountain coke…
- Mahabaleshwar, Panchgani, Lonawala, Khandala, Satara Mountains, Ahmed Nager: Interesting weekend hangouts within 200km radius of Pune. Good places to go with a gang of friends or with that special someone…!!!
From what I’ve seen and lived through in Pune, I definitely feel a little jealous thinking about the Puneikars who spend their entire life in such a city. The time I spent there was also a good learning experience for me, for a learnt quite a lot about life, its blessings and its curses.
Given an opportunity I’d love to get back and spend some more of my bachelor life there. Comfortable office, luxurious house, happening weekends, amazing friends, beautiful climate and fun filled life- I’d say that I had it all in Pune…which will always be my ‘City of unforgettable memories’.
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