Thursday, May 10

Rajendra Place

rajendra place (or rajinder palace as the bus conductors would call it)
is in a state of decline
built as a office complex
it could have rivaled bikaji cama and nehru "palaces"

when we shifted to karol bagh
rajendra place was a novelty
because it had one of the few theatres that ran
english movies - Rachna
at that time the whole place was dug up
buildings were being planned
the ground shining with reddish brown mica

when the complex was completed
for some time Vikram Towers
was the tallest building
in the area

i do know whether it was the fire at Gopala Towers
or the frequent traffic jams at Pusa Road
that made people abandon their offices
and shifted to Gurgaon or south Delhi

the entire complex is built
with an interesting plan
with shops on the lower floors
while the offices were spread above

today as one walks around
most of the buildings
are broken down
with vacant parking lots in the middle of nowhere

as you turn into some corners
the place looks
like a abandoned township of the future
with taxi drivers sitting around playing cards
piles of garbage, large metal doors lying on their sides
but there is a mcdonalds arc shining through all this shit

people thought that once the metro station is built
the place would take off again.

the jat boys are waiting for that day
their taxis are gathering dust.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

hmmm...
interesting the place is. I moved in to rajendra nagar when I moved to delhi 6 months ago....having lived in ohtre parts of delhi earlier, it took me a lot of time to get used to this part of the city! And you are right.....the place now is such a mess...and even the buildings are not well maintained for someone to consider...I in fact worked in one of the buildings all for a month..and the elevator was in such shape that I prayed for my life every single day!

But still...there is something nice abt rajendra nagar the locality...and I am quite comfortable there! The metro is conviniently located after all

Anonymous said...

khandar batate hain ki palace kabhi bulund rahi hogi?

Anonymous said...

having cycled many times in the khandar as a kid one wonders whether the next kid gang film can happenout with this place as a handg - remember cabarets with its milky white blue light?

Unknown said...

great idea for a film !!!!

Pankaj said...

i beg to differ.

even if it seems like it has hasn't, the metro has made a real difference to delhi.

find out how much your flat was worth before and after the metro came to your neighborhood, jat boy!