The Great Delhi Picnic (a.k.a the Hutch Delhi Marathon 2006)

I can’t believe it. It’s 9am on a Sunday morning and there are hundreds of people on the street. Not only are they on the street, they’re awake and ready to go… without a single cup of tea or a plate of parantha in sight! It’s a miracle! The Hutch Delhi Marathon has managed to achieve the impossible. It has got the Dilli-wallahs to come together as one. The last time Delhi had one united agenda was possibly Mahabharat on Doordarshan.

Believe it or not, Delhi is on the streets on a warm Sunday morning to (hold your breath)… run… yes, you heard right… to run! October 15th 2006 is going to be a day that will be remembered for a long time to come.

And yet, as unlike Delhi as a run on a Sunday morning is, the Great Delhi Run was exactly that.. it was the ‘Great Delhi’ running.. it was the quintessential Delhi in its unique, inimitable glory displayed on the streets.

There were aunties in salwar kameez, hats, sun glasses & sport shoes ‘walking’ in groups, discussing recipes for the day and where to host the next kitty, only taking a breather to wonder how come they’ve only covered 1km in the last half hour…

There were our dhik-chik-dhik-chick car music blasters, only this time without the car. But with Radio Mirchi blasting Dus Bahane (among others) through the entire route, they felt right at home, singing & dancing on the streets of Delhi, with no one to question them.

Groups with a cause or charity to support were plenty too, from fighting Dengue (which is apparently a cause) to fighting AIDS, saving water, energy… even saying no to crackers (which, by the way, seems to have worked this Diwali), typically led by an enthusiastic leader asking them to ‘buck up’ every 2 minutes, a phrase that I shockingly thought was something else the 1st few times he said it.

There were by-standers, who had come out of their homes to wave at us, who wanted to be a part of the action but hadn’t felt like running.

There were cars & scooters forced to drive slowly as we passed by, cursing us for delaying them.
There were employees running for their companies in the spirit of solidarity (and because their boss had thought it was a good idea), stopping by for a smoke, a snack & a drink at the paan-snack shops just opening up.

There were little street urchins collecting empty plastic Kingfisher mineral water bottles (my mind wondering where they will end up) and begging us to give them the caps that we were wearing… coins are passé.

There were couples choosing between running & holding hands, wondering whether they will be seen on TV by dad

There were girls in short skirts and guys with long hair… dudes showing off their new found biceps and men covering their really old bellies… guys checking out girls & girls checking out their hair… costumes to make a point and points for the best costumes… people running officially, with the right serial number and people who managed ‘jugaad’ to run without the serial number… people shouting slogans & people singing along with their plugged-in I-Pods… people with perfumes you can smell from a mile & people with BO that makes you run for a mile… banners and road litter… music and cheering… running and walking… huffing and panting… wiping the forehead & scratching the groin… gold jewellery & digging for gold… realization of fitness levels & resolutions to improve it… Sheila Dixit & Kapil Dev (waving, not running)…

Being a part of this major Delhi event & seeing what it feels like to be a part of a common Delhi got me wondering if this really is running for Delhi. Is this really the Great Delhi Run?

And I realized that no matter what, you cannot… just cannot get Delhi out on a Sunday morning to Run…

But, calling them out for a ‘Picnic’ is a whole other thing…

Next time, let’s just keep the parantha’s ready too…