HYDERABAD: Hyderabadi winter is exactly like when Team India plays a Test match officially supposed to last for five days, but it can easily get over in three. For summer, we are well-prepared with equipment. For monsoon, we’re prepared for disappointment. But winter? We take lite. Here’s a typical day of winter in Hyderabad:
The harshest part about winter is always the mornings. Even in Hyderabad, temperatures can dip as low as 7-8 degrees. But let’s be honest…only one person is actually awake to experience this — @telangana_weatherman. The rest of us roll out of bed at 10.45 am, scroll through his weather update, and send hearts to the weatherman for downloading the weather report at 5.00 am.
From 10.45 am to 6.00 pm, winter is on a break. At 11, when we step out to collect our newspapers, we look directly into the sun and say, “Winter, ah?” Then we stare at the sun the same way we stare at the Indian scoreboard when they’re out for 159. And just like that, winter takes a day off. Fans start running at 4, ACs are set to 25, and the weather pretends to be at 28 degrees.
At 5 pm, when you’re almost done with work and winter finally logs in for its evening shift, you feel a faint chill. You turn to your colleague and dramatically declare, “Winter is here,” not out of concern, but purely to show off that you’re a Game of Thrones fan.
If you reach home by 8 pm, don’t step out, and wake up at your normal time tomorrow, trust me you’ll forget the spelling of winter.
Evenings are when you finally acknowledge the existence of Hyderabadi winter. Suddenly, you realise you need winter wear — but this isn’t Delhi, where people have entire warehouses dedicated to the season. Here, most of us have never gone winter shopping. Our ‘winter gear’ falls into two categories — stuff gifted by relatives and companies, or the sweater we panic-bought six years ago during a trip to North India.
We finally find that one piece of warm cloth hiding behind mothballs and your 10th standard marksheet. You wear it and wonder, “How come jackets make me look better than I usually do?” You step out confidently.
Winter at 9 or 10 pm is more like a friend — it helps with your appetite. You end up having more marag than usual, and though the biryani is hot in summer as well, you forcefully compliment it for being a contrast to the weather.
But it’s only after 11 pm that Hyderabadi winter starts to show its true colours — and even then, only if you’re out on a bike. Suddenly, your trusty jacket feels like a sleeveless vest, and you’re forced to sling your bag across your chest like a shield. It works, but much like a nightwatchman awkwardly surviving on a bouncy pitch.
Only your palms, handling the bike accelerator and brake, feel cold — so cold that you finally feel the need to warm up. The cold bites your hands like you’ve been inside the fridge searching for ice for too long. You finally give in and succumb to the weather, shoving one hand inside your jacket. And that’s when winter finally gets its one wicket.
(The writer’s views are his own)