23 Nov 2015

From City I hate to live To City I hate to leave!



It’s been almost a year, and when I look back now, it feels kinda weird, as how a person’s likes and dislikes changes. I still remember my interview, I was asked the final question, is Kolhapur okay for you? And I was like, its fine for me, but Pune would be a better option. And the answer came, “No we only have Kolhapur.” As I was tired of waiting for good company for placement, so I decided, let’s get into this. It will be fun experience. After all, lot has been heard about Kolhapur. Tambda Pandhara, Rankala Lake, Museum, Kolhapur Talims etc.
After one month of rigorous training, finally the day came, where we were given our offer letter, and it was written in bold letters, ‘Location-Kolhapur’. Basically being Mh-12, and the person who has never left home, it was bit emotional moment for me. So here in Kolhapur one Bhk, me and my friend this was my world, which was pretty much shaken by the traffic and roads of this city, the language of this city which either starts with @ Randichya, or @ Marda…, and the weird names of places, like Kavala Naka, Redyachi Takkar, Baicha Putala, Papachi Tikati. But I was mesmerized at the same time by the unique houses and their constructions present here, vehicles and their unique number plates, all the brand outlets. It’s like a big metro city being compressed and placed in six and half kilometer radius place.
Homecoming used to be a different experience; it used to start on Saturday evening and used to end on Monday morning back in Kolhapur. Saturdays were reserved for friends, and of course Sunday afternoon. Naturally, mom used to get angry on me, as to, ‘if you want to meet your friends then why are you coming home, just stay with them and go back to Kolhapur’. After becoming Kolhapurkar I become used to the habit of honking the horn so much that when I used to drive in my home city, people used to look at me, as if I am from another planet. Indeed I was from another planet, it is Planet Kolhapur . 
It is said that ‘When you are in Rome behave like Romans’, the phrase that I followed when I entered in Kolhapur and what it’s worth, Kolhapur become the ‘city I hate to live to city I hate to leave’.
Now when I look back is to how it happened, my thoughts ends up at one particular logic. ‘What makes family a good family or not so good is the people in the family itself.’ Same is the logic applied with the city. What makes a city, a good city and not so good city is, the people in the city itself. As per the saying goes, every city has its perks and benefits, and Kolhapur is not an exception for it. It’s been more than a year for me in Kolhapur and this is how I feel about Kolhapur. Basically being Puneiet, where city is up till 12 in night, and you can easily get paneer tikka masala at 12 in night to Kolhapur where grocery shop gets close 10 in the night, and you need to eat what is available in the hotel, what I missed and what I enjoyed the most is bit difficult to tell. But you know as it says every city has its perks and benefits, and talking about benefits. You won’t get tambda-pandhara as tasty as compare to Kolhapur. You will get pan tapries in your city but you won’t get pan shops as big as grocery shops, which makes customer visit again and again.
I love the hospitality in Kolhapur right from the perfume shop in Rajarampuri to Bank of Shastrinagar, the scrap dealer near Shahu mill to gas refiller near the Padma talkies. People here are bit different they are loud, but soft hearted and helpful.  Once you get used to it you fall in love with this loudness and life becomes more fun.

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