Vibhuti Yadav

Gwalior. Situated right at the center of Madhya Pradesh, better known as the ‘Heart of India’. Baat he kuch aisi hai, bilkul apnepan jaisi hai yahan.

Toh kissa shuru huaa saal 2000 me, when I (yaaniki Vibhuti) was born at my dadi’s house. Dolled up like a little princess, I was welcomed at the house as I was the first child of the generation, toh khandaan ka naam toh mujhe he uncha karna tha na!

Growing up, dadi house was my favourite place to be during my school breaks, as my grandmother would pamper me the most. This used to be the only place where I could get away with not eating those weird vegetables (the legendary Gourd family). She used to make tiny clay stoves for me to play with my friends. This place is like a golden memory of a full-filled childhood.

Apart from this, Gwalior for me is a symbol of royalty! Ab aap poochoge ki aisa kyun? Voh isliye, because of the beautiful forts and palaces that are there in my city. As a person, I love all these ancient things and sites, so going for a morning walk at the Gwalior Fort was our form of desi workouts.

Visiting the most popular and the most crowded markets of the city, the Sarafa and Patankar Bazaar for some local shopping and the yum street chat! I miss those aloo tikkies, samosas and gol gappe (beware if you have a low tolerance to spicy food)

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And at last, the fancy Jai Vilas Palace, don’t think of it as any other palace in the country! It holds the title of housing the World’s Largest Chandelier, around 8 elephants were made to climb onto the roof to test its durability. The palace belongs to the Royal Scindia family, whose family lines are now a part of the BJP.

The list of the pretty things in my hometown does not end here, but sab kuch mujhse he jaan loge? Arey, kuch din toh guzaro Gwalior me. Even though I live in Delhi now, Gwalior lives on in my heart.

Aao “Hindustan ka Dil Dekho”