An extended holiday for common man

An extended holiday for common man
The Times of India

Bangalore: Wednesday may be bandh for grave political concerns. But for the common man, it’s simply another holiday. And coupled with the festive season, it’s a day to spend with the family. The only catch is that they’re restricted to home-bound activities — at least till 6 pm.
For Satish Bharadwaj, who is on a visit to Bangalore from Jamshedpur, it’s time to bond with his six-year-old grandson Abhay. “I’m buying DVDs for him. Children are glued to their television channels and they miss out on classic comedies,” he said. Spotted shopping at the Planet M, Bharadwaj was just one of the many people who were combining the holidays and discounts to the best effect.
“We’ve borrowed four DVDs from the neighbourhood library since I’m worried there won’t be any cable television,” says Arjun Singh, an engineering student who lives in a Jayanagar apartment with his classmates. For singletons, it’s also time to stock up on food and ready-to-eat meals, and instant food was fast flying off the counters. “Although it’s supposed to be a bandh only till 6 pm, one never knows what will happen. If restaurants and pubs open in the evening, it’ll be great to catch up with friends,” says IT professional Nakul Sharma, who was picking up varieties of ready-to-eat biriyani and tubs of yoghurt at a departmental store on M G Road. However, leading malls, multiplexes and restaurants have decided to remain closed. “We don’t know what will be the situation and would rather stay shut for safety reasons,” said mall representatives.
Vacation time: When the bandh was announced last week, most companies declared Wednesday a holiday and Saturday a working day to compensate for the loss. That prompted most people to take Tuesday off and go on a fiveday holiday since Monday was a holiday owing to Gandhi Jayanti. “Kodagu, Goa, Pondicherry, Wayanad are the top destinations and most people have driven down. Be it resorts, budget hotels or star hotels or even homestays are all booked. Most of them have increased prices, but are still packed,” said a travel agent. What has aided the holidays is the decision of most schools to reopen post vacations only on Thursday, so children weren’t left out of holiday plans.