Our Forum had to suspend outdoor activities for the past years in view of Covid 19 and the lingering fear. The members were therefore yearning for excursions and outstation trips for quite some time. So, everyone was overjoyed to learn that Senior Citizens Forum has organized a picnic at Surjivan Resort, a farm retreat just off Manesar Gurgaon and adjoining Aravali Hills on Wednesday February 8, 2023. 45 members joined the trip.
We left Gulmohar Park at 9.00am by a deluxe bus. Breakfast was served en route and in serving the same Ramesh Gupta and Lalit Thukral lent a helping hand. Bhajans and songs kept everyone entertained in the long drive.
At the resort, we were welcomed with a hot cup of tea and settled down in the comfort of charpais and chairs spread in the sprawling courtyard with a rustic touch. It was a typical village setting much like Chaukhi Dhani. The rooms around the courtyard were decorated with rural paintings and motifs by local artisans. Canopies of different sizes were spread over the large courtyard. Pushpa Mishra has beautifully captured this ambience in the video she has shot – a real professional job. Members wanted to carry these beautiful sights back with them and were posing individually and in groups in different settings. Our in house photographers Praveen Upadhyaya, Lalit Thukral, Pushpa Mishra, Mohan Singh Gulati, Sunita Rajora, I. C. Bhardwaj, Subhash Saluja showed their talent and took some beautiful photos. These were posted on Seniors’ whatsApp Group so that the members who could not participate in the picnic could also enjoy it with us.
Soon ladies occupied a large canopy and started their program immediately. There were songs sang in gusto. Santosh Sharma has a large repertoire of soulful bhajans. She sang some of these which were highly appreciated by all. And then started a game of Antakshari. All participated in it actively. Meenakshi Venkataramn surprised all with her collection of hindi film songs. Madhu Bhandari and Sunita Rajora led from the front and encouraged all to take part in singing.
Soon gents started feeling left out, picked up their chairs and joined the ladies group. They also contributed solo songs, shayari and joined in group singing. Vijay Sharma stood out for his beautiful ghazal. Vinay Sharma and Bhagwan Bharwani presented some lovely shayari.
Next on the agenda was a “conducted tour” of the large property and a representative of the Resort accompanied us for the same. Surjivan Resort is spread over 50 acres and includes 8 lawns, organic farm, spice garden, 24 rooms, a DJ hall and courts for a variety of games. For the more adventurous they have a hurdle track similar to the ones used by paramilitary forces.
Everyone was excited to see plants of spices and ayurvedic medicines. These included among others lemon grass, cardamom, black cardamom, ashwagandha, shatavari, black pepper, kala bansa etc.
At 1.30pm food was served in dining hall. All vegetables were from their organic farm, even the oil used in food was extracted on site in their “Kolhoo”. Food was home like and very delicious and was relished by all. Everyone highly appreciated Mr. Amrit Sharma who arranged delicious homemade lassi for all at such a short notice.
After lunch, everyone was looking forward to a game of Tambola. It was deftly organized by Madhu Bhandari, supported by Geeta Jha. There was total silence and everyone was concentrating on the numbers being announced. Two rounds of tambola were played and prizes distributed.
Around 4pm, high tea was served. It was a piping hot tea with cookies and pakodas. This was time to bid good bye to Surjivan resort and carry with us the sweet memories of this wonderful trip. Everybody thanked the Forum and in particular Subhash Saluja and Rajiv Bhalla for organizing this memorable outing. They also expressed appreciation for Amrit Sharma, Lalit Thukral,Ramesh Gupta, Madhu Bhandari, Sunita Rajora, Santosh Sharma, Geeta Jha and others for extending much needed helping hand and making this picnic a huge success.
