“I drove all the way from my home in Juhu to be here today,” Vishal Kanakia said. Kanakia, a wine merchant, had reserved seats at the Shamiana for his wife and two children.
“I drove all the way from my home in Juhu to be here today,” Vishal Kanakia said.
Kanakia, a wine merchant, had reserved seats at the Shamiana for his wife and two children. The white roses on each table and some candles added a sombre note to the festive atmosphere but employees said they wanted to move on.
“I am so happy to get back to work. We had stopped counting days or even remembering the days of the week,” an employee said. “It feels like a regular working day. And this means a lot to us in the Taj group.”
Another employee said, “I was here on November 26 when I saw the terrorists and shut the door of the Shamiana. This culmination of events has been very emotional for me.”
More than 150 of the 268 rooms have been booked. All the restaurants —- Zodiac Grill, Shamiana, Souk, La Patisserie, and Starboard Bar —- were packed to the hilt.
The Taj staff performed aarti on every guest. Several celebrities, including actor Ayesha Dharkar and Suhel Seth, booked rooms on Sunday.
After 7:30pm, the Taj was open to public. Anyone could walk in and see the lobby where there’s a memorial stone with names of all the 31 victims in the Taj siege, and the Tree of Life. Originally placed on the fifth floor of the Grand Staircase area near the dome of the Taj, the sculpture made of brass, bronze and alloy casting survived the attack. Another fixture in the Taj lobby, pianist Moreno Alphonso was seen playing romantic numbers on request. “I am happy to be here. It’s all God’s grace,” he said.
Alphonso has been working at the Taj for eight years now.
“People say Taj is not safe, but for me Taj is safest,” Yusra Dawood said. The 28-year-old from Yemen-Aden is on a tour of the city and will check into the hotel by Monday.
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