Six-year-old Rashmi walked up to the podium, set up close to CG Road, and broke into an impromptu jig. As a singer belted out Bollywood number Hum to aise hai bhaiya’, the girl danced, with a huge audience cheering her on.
CG Road was more like carnival road on Sunday. The car-free day, organised by Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation and Ahmedabad traffic police, saw a heady mix of activity and fun as Amdavadis came out in large numbers to have fun on the emptied out road. After tasting success last year, this is the second attempt at transforming CG Road into a zone where cars are banned for a few hours.
A huge queue for getting a tattoo was a testimony to success. Children skated with gay abandon. Others rode their cycles and then there were some who chose to dance and express their glee.
At 7 am the event kick-started with the run for a cause’ with people jogging to create awareness on making Ahmedabad greener, followed by a cycle rally. Then youngsters took centre-stage. Students of St Kabir School highlighted traffic problems and solutions. A special stage was set-up for children to showcase their talents. Pooja Shah, 23, says, “It was great fun seeing tiny tots come up on stage to sing and dance. I couldn’t help but join the crowd in cheering them. It was heart-warming to see elders join them on stage”.
To add to the excitement there were look-alikes of Amitabh Bachchan, Hrithik Roshan, Nana Patekar and Naresh Kanodia parading on the road with a huge group of children trailing behind.
Vijath Mehta, who got his nephew for a day out suggested, “Days like this must be organised more often. It feels good that our very own C G road that is generally crowded is free from the hustle-bustle of the traffic and pollution”.
Dhruv Pandya, 7, said, “This is first time I visited a mela’ on CG Road. I enjoyed a lot with my brother and want to come here tomorrow as well”. The revelry continued till 10 pm with a packed crowd leaving citizens asking for more days like these.
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When Walkers Took Over CG Road in Ahmedabad