Ring your birthday at the Tank Bund

Hyderabad: Every night around 11:50pm, on Tank Bund Road, the cartons of birthday cakes are opened and ready until the clock strikes 12 o’clock. What follows is loud cheers, cake smashes and endless posing for the camera for those celebrating the birthday.

A few years ago, if you were hanging out by a lake in the middle of the night, you would find only police jeeps patrolling, or a few motorists passing by. Today, there is a full festival there. From tourists stopping for a quick photo to city dwellers relaxing in their favorite spots, this sidewalk echoes moments of joy.

“I celebrated one of my birthdays there. I was amazed by my friends and it was one of my fondest memories of the day. The cool breeze and the reflection of the street lights on the lake made this place stand out in the city,” IT professional Varuni said, adding that people celebrated birthdays at Tank Bund because it was in the city centre and it was free.

Vendors of ice cream trolleys, red heart helium balloons and bhel puri, as well as those selling glowing decorative items cater to the crowd, making it a reliable place for last-minute birthday planning. While logistics and panoramas are the reasons for most, some like Hemanth have other reasons. “I see a lot of people celebrating birthdays with strangers on the Tank Bund. You can simply cut the cake and share it with random people on the road. Also, bring food and distribute it to the homeless,” he said.

Aside from Tank Bund Road, which has been a hotspot for birthday celebrations over the years, throngs of young people can be seen celebrating their special day at midnight around DLF Road, in other parts of the city such as Durgam Cheruvu. The city’s roads were secluded at night before the pandemic, but packed with people every hour of the day after the quarantine. Midnight celebrations are just one of them.