Since the last ten years (maybe a couple more), we have a tradition at Elephant. It is an annual event & it is exclusively an all girls’ event at that. A day before our Diwali break, we dress in our traditional finery & I take all the girls out for lunch. I think the idea first popped from Jayashree or Vandana and we were about 8-10 of us then. Over the years it has become a day we all really look forward to. Guys at the office have expressed mild to severe protests & demanded a Boys’ evening out, but I don’t know why this has not materialized yet.
Firstly, I love the fact that we all take special efforts in dressing up in sarees. For a bunch that is most comfortable in a pair of jeans & t-shirts or kurtis, it is no mean task to figure the whole ensemble, wear it to perfection, commute in our respective vehicles to work & make the saree last elegantly through the day! The second thing I really appreciate is that Jayashree plans the entire menu & pre-orders it at a restaurant just across our office. So we only need to cross the road to begin our Diwali celebratory lunch.
By default, we land up talking very girlie topics, giggle a lot & share some amazing stories from our lives. This is the part I really cherish the most. Today was one such day & we heard no less than half a dozen stories of love in the times of kandepohe & internet.
My Diwali truly begins here... Seeing the light in your eye girls :-)