Delhiwale: CP soulful

Reclined along the grass, a loner in white kurta-pajama is lazily looking up at the moon. Steps away, a masked gent is strolling with hands folded on chest. The crowd in the garden also comprises a pair of romantic couples, a bunch of people huddled in a close circle, a woman with a book, a man with a bouquet… plus scores of folks staring raptly at their mobile phone screens.
This evening, the garden above the underground Palika Bazar—sometimes called Palika Bazar terrace, as well as terrace garden— is strewn with discarded chip packets. The unfortunate litter tells a lot about us Delhiwale. That said, the park, newly re-landscaped by the New Delhi Municipal Council, has at last developed the potential to join the ranks of the Capital’s beloved gardens.
The terrace garden is snuggled in the heart of circular Connaught Place. This being 6pm, the smoggy mid-November sky is pitch dark. Not a single star is visible. Doesn’t matter! The CP lights are proving to be a worthy substitute. The overwhelming view is of the Jeevan Bharti complex that flanks the park’s southern side (see photo). Its numerous windows are ablaze with office lights.
To be sure, this park isn’t CP’s crowning glory. The colonial-era shopping district already has the grand Central Park, just across the road from Palika Bazar. That assiduously landscaped garden lies cordoned off from the immediate urban chaos, snugly sanitised in conventional beauty. The terrace garden on the other hand is steeped in a more complicated mood, maybe due to its less secluded setting. The showrooms and offices of the surrounding CP are nearer, their evening lights more invasive. Consequently, the sense of escape that lingers here for a citizen is somewhat fragile.
Whatever, the facelift has erased the park’s roughness to an extent. It is grassier and sleeker. There are rows of potted plants, lots of lamps, the winding paths jazzed up with floor-level lighting. The garden was, in fact, undergoing landscaping work for a long time. It must now regain its former regulars. They came from all segments of city life (including social misfits), and they will be relieved to know that the best thing about the revamped park hasn’t changed. The most memorable experience remains the twilight time, when one lies down on the grass to watch the sky turn black and the CP lights turn on.