At 7pm, after finishing his shift at Smokin’ Joes’ Pizza, Neel goes to Abhyas gully, and studies till midnight.
Braving the cold, students use the street lights in a small lane to prepare for their exams. Priya Ramakrishnan reports.
MUMBAI: If you head to Abhyas gully — a lane near the Doordarshan building in Worli — at night, you’ll find 20-year-old Neel Loke preparing for his upcoming Class XII exams. At 7pm, after finishing his shift at Smokin’ Joes’ Pizza, Neel goes to Abhyas gully, and studies till midnight.
“With three siblings preparing for their individual exams, it gets a little tough to study in our 8x10 single room home at Worli. Lately, due to the chilly weather, it’s getting increasingly difficult to stay out in the open,” says Neel, an Arts student from Chetna College. He sits on a bench under the street lights preparing for his English exam.
The lane, which is lit in the evening, serves as a quiet refuge with benches conveniently located under the street lights for students residing in neighbouring chawls. “I have been studying here since I was I Class VIII,” says Nilesh Nilekar, 25, an MCom student. “I am now working as an assistant at the Reserve Bank of India.” But the lane still remains Nilesh’s favourite place to study as it is far removed from the bustle of city life.
Hundreds like Nilesh and Neel have made the lane their study room. According to Kadir Shaikh, a third year BCom student, the tradition started when the children of mill workers discovered this street.
The lane, which only SSC and HSC students frequent now sees engineering, medical and MBA students. “There is barely room for two people at my home, so I would come here during exam time. Later even my friends from Vashi and Borivli started coming here. We have group studies and discussions too,” says Umakant Pandya, third year medical student from KG Mittal College, Charni Road.
The lane also has a famous alumni. Shiv Sena corporator Jagdish Sawant studied for his law degree here. Now an advocate at the Bombay High Court, Sawant has donated benches and lights for the students. “I used to stay at BDD chawl and now own a flat in Worli. All thanks to the lane which is considered lucky for poor people,” says Sawant.
And a historic lane like Abhyas gully comes with its fair share of superstition and lore. Even the most diligent of students don’t stay beyond midnight, as they believe that the lane is haunted. “A student at the Podar Hostel committed suicide years ago. Many of my friends are scared to study here after 11.30pm,” says Loke.
r_priya@dnaindia.net
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