UNICEF India Retirees Retreat –– Hyderabad 2020
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The Reunion of UNICEF India pensioners has been happening for the last eight years. This year’s – 2020 – Reunion, 4th to 6th February, sixth in a row was in Hyderabad, a city in South India. Hyderabad was an independent state during British times and was ruled by the Asaf Jahi Dynasty the erstwhile Nizams of Hyderabad. Mir Osman Ali Khan was the last Nizam of Hyderabad State in British India. Regarded as the wealthiest person in the world during his lifetime, his portrait was on the cover of Time magazine in 1937!
This Reunion was organised by DADA (elder brother) Mr. Subhash Dasgupta ably helped by Alfred, Kundu, Uma Murthy and Ruth Sarala Benjamin.
Dada and his organising Team –Uma, Kundu, Dasgupta, Alfred and Sarala
By the evening of 3rd February folks started arriving at the beautiful Mrugavani resort a little on the outskirts of Hyderabad. At dinner excited shrieks were heard, friends meeting after years, colleagues meeting for the first time after retirement, so much chatting, hugging, and greetings and the years seemed to melt away! There was a final list of 74 participants, some unexpected ones finding a place at the last minute!
The morning of the 4th saw a set of twenty eager beavers collecting early to visit a few places ahead of the start of the formal retreat. The first place we drove to and a long drive too, was to the Chowmohalla Palace the seat of the grand Nizams. The four palaces set amidst an area of 12 acres, gave a glimpse into the lives of some of the richest men of the world! The palaces are being restored and are really beautiful. The Durbar Hall where the Nizams welcomed visitors and ambassadors has been restored, with 19 Belgian crystal chandeliers reinstated.
In front of Chowmohalla Palace
Inside Durbar Hall Chowmohalla Palace
Then a quick visit to the Charminar (four Minarets) built by Mohammed Quli Qutb Shah in 1591. A graceful structure it is the most prominent landmark of Hyderabad. Next to it is the Makkah Masjid one of the biggest mosques in India built at the same time as the Minar.
This area is also home to Laad Bazaar, a big shopping area for pearls and bangles of various kinds. We ended the morning visit with a lunch at Soda Bottle Opener Wala a Parsi restaurant. Back at the resort it was already tea time.
That evening was a visit to the Golconda fort for the entire group with a fascinating sound and light show which traced the rise of the Qutb Shahi dynasties and the glory that was Hyderabad much before the Mughals came.
Back at the hotel the evening saw the Reunion being declared open formally with tributes to our departed colleagues led by Sumita Ganguly.
Augustine Veliath.had put together a wonderful homage "Remembering David Haxton". A power point presentation from the excerpts from chapter 11 of his autobiography was presented by Augustine Veliath. Tributes were paid by a number of retirees to the indomitable David Haxton, Regional Director ROSCA, the Nawab of UNICEF in India in the eighties of the Twentieth century. A worthy colleague of Jim Grant, Children were his breath as it were. The evening closed with the hymn Abide with Me.
Day 2
The morning dawned on the second day with Yoga lessons being offered by Bala our colleague. There were early risers taking advantage of these calming lessons. We also had our Group Photo taken that morning.
That morning we drove through the twin cities of Secunderabad-Hyderabad and visited the Salar Jung museum showcasing the amazing collections of one man and housed in a very elegant building. On to the Sailing Club for a continental lunch. Besides the English language, and the railways these clubs are enduring places left behind by the British.
Day 2
The morning dawned on the second day with Yoga lessons being offered by Bala our colleague. There were early risers taking advantage of these calming lessons. We also had our Group Photo taken that morning.
That morning we drove through the twin cities of Secunderabad-Hyderabad and visited the Salar Jung museum showcasing the amazing collections of one man and housed in a very elegant building. On to the Sailing Club for a continental lunch. Besides the English language, and the railways these clubs are enduring places left behind by the British.
Some images from the Salar Jung Museum
View of the serene Sailing Club
Unicefers at the Sailing Club
In our reunions we invariably have a session on Healthy Ageing. It is always led by our very own doctors of the Health section. In the early evening of the second day, Dr. Suresh led a lively, informative discussion on Ageing, the various ailments that generally bother our senior UNICEFers. The session was filled with practical advice and the management of various debilitating conditions like Arthritis, Diabetes, Heart conditions etc.
The evenings of the reunions are always fun. Each state is rich in its cultural varieties and we always have local artists performing. So we had two young artists performing the Kuchipudi style of dancing. These dances are mostly based on the legends and stories of India accompanied by classical music. And it was mesmerising.
Then the floor was open to our own artists performing dances, singing songs. We had two beautiful dances by our own Nilanjana Mukherjee who has turned into a professional dancer! Then a fairly fast dance composed by Rabindranath Tagore by Kuntala and Geeta who is pushing 75 years! Much appreciated by all for the spirit!
Day 3
The last day of the retreat began with a visit to the Qutb Shahi tombs. A huge cluster of tombs spread over a vast area, some of them beautifully carved and many of them had apparently had been covered with beautiful blue and green tiles in their heydays.
Qutb Shahi tombs
From here we went to have a leisurely south Indian vegetarian lunch at the Taj Mahal Hotel. People were groaning after the wondrous meal!!
The evening of the last day is always nostalgic. Firstly, there was an amazing presentation by Nilanjana Mukherjee on her Antarctic Voyage. Meticulously documented by Nilanjana, with great photographs, it was a virtual journey to the Antarctic for all of us!!
Then came the time for receiving our Momentoes which we always do in our reunions! This was followed by a nicely put dance number by Medha Alkari Then the floor was open, a band playing old numbers, everyone shaking a leg and performances by the amazingly talented singers of UNICEF. After all India is the home of Bollywood and we have near professional singers in Geeta and Lakshmi Verma,Vijay Subramaniam, Samanta, Madhu Mathur, just to name a few. Jeroo Master was belting away old English numbers by Nat King Cole, Harry Belafonte and much more in her deep Bass voice!!
The evening ended with the announcement of the venue for the next Reunion which will be in Kolkata!! Calcutta here we come!! Remember the song "The Ladies of Calcutta will steal your heart away!! Au Revoir till we meet again.
Participants at various times
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