Jaipur Times Food and Nightlife Awards

February 27, 2014: Tuesday February 25 afternoon I took a flight to Jaipur to attend the Times Food and Nightlife Awards 2014 at Marriott.

Initially, when I cancelled my Jaipur trip, I was thinking of sending a regret note to this event but then I decided to go there as Jaipur Times has been very supportive of my activities in Jaipur. I also thought that after the Jaipur Literature Festival it would be a good time to catch up with the Jaipur fraternity and get to see many friends and acquaintances in one evening.

The Awards Ceremony started a little late and I gave away the awards in three categories including awards to the ITC Rajputana and the Kucchal family – Arjun, Rashmi and Kunal and captain Gurinder from Copper Chimney.

Rashmi Kucchal, who is from a family of freedom fighters, is a woman entrepreneur from Jaipur and a social activist who runs her own NGO. She espouses the cause of HIV postive persons and an active member of Vikas Manch and Ficci.

I was expecting the food layout to be much better and pleasing to the palate as it is always so at the Times Food and Nightlife Awards in other cities.

Initially I thought I would come back on the morning of Feb 26 but stayed back to attend the lunch hosted by Bina Kak at the Polo Club.

She is an ex-minister who celebrated her 60th birthday along with her daughter Amrita, son Jawaher and husband Riju.

I again met many known faces in Jaipur including Her Excellency, Smt Magarat Alva, Governor of Rajasthan, members of Rajasthan’s erstwhile Royal Family, Maharani Padmini Devi, Princess Diya Kumari, Maharaj Jai Singh, Maharaj Narendra Singh and others.

In fact, this is the first time I met Princess Diya Kumari after her winning the elections and she informally discussed a few things she had in her mind regarding projercts which we could initiate in Sawai Madhopur. Bina Kak played the perfect host.

I also met Sujata Bhandari.

On the way to the airport I stopped at Tapri which is one of my favourite joints in Jaipur opposite Central Park.

While I was sipping tea with friends, the weather suddenly changed and within moments there was a hailstorm. Unseasonal rains are not uncommon, however, the hails, which were more like the size of small ladoos, could injure people, bikers and did damage several vehicles. It was a rare sight and the hails lashed on for 15 minutes.

I was sure that in this unruly weather would hold my flight to Kolkata. But it cleared up in half an hour and the flight took off on time and the Indigo Jaipur staff were extremely kind and nice to open the system and give me the boarding pass just 20 minutes before take off. But then, I realised, I should have stayed backed for a night as it was a bad bumpy flight.

Today evening I will go to a friend’s house for a meal and look forward to having authentic Bihari vegetarian cuisine.

ess bee