Festivals are celebrated like weddings: Parthiv Patel

The city is very close to my heart. Having born and brought up here, it has given me a lot. The city has grown immensely in the past 15 years. Now we have the old and new city areas. I am fortunate enough to have seen lives in two different parts of the city.

I have spent 17 years in the old city and there are many fond memories. The one that immediately strikes me is Pol as one family. All the festivals are celebrated like a wedding, on a grand scale. Everyone is involved. As a youngster, for a game of cricket you don’t need big grounds. A lane (with very few vehicles) and a bicycle (which acts as stumps) are enough to start the matches. I learnt the basics in that part of the city.

When we shifted on this side of the river, we needed some time to come to terms. It is completely opposite. We have our own space, people don’t ‘interfere’ in each other’s life and above all the area is quite. But I make sure, my Uttarayans are noisy. I strongly believe kite festival belongs to the old city and has to be celebrated there only. It also helps me make my daughter understand our culture and heritage which is still preserved there. And of course, she needs to know my origin and upbringing.

As I said the city has grown thick and fast and we have lost a lot of greenery. I can say there is a need to plant more ‘oxygen’ for the future generations. If I am not mistaken, Ahmedabad was nearing the danger zone among the polluted cities of the country. Moreover, expansion of the city reflects the increase in population and vehicles on the road. I want people to show a lot more respect to traffic rules. And civic bodies working in tandem with various organisations build toilets to keep the city clean. We can make this an ideal city with whatever resources are available.

—As told to Nikhilesh Pathak