Party Rocking in Hyderabad

Hyderabad is not the most exciting place in the world. I am sorry, but it is a sad fact. There is not a lot of things to do beyond shopping, eating at restaurants (which are still small but expanding) and going to Sunday brunches at the international hotels. Thus, the weekends can get pretty dull at times if you do not find ways to entertain yourself. Luckily, there are many parties and events to keep us amused on most weekends.

There is a very active expat group here called the Twin Cities Expatriates Association of Hyderabad and Secunderabad or TEA, through which we have made some great friendships. The TEA group hosts a few parties throughout the year such as a White Christmas Dinner Party or more recently a Cowboys and Indians Party (The men dressed up as cowboys and the women wore traditional Indian sarees.) These parties always feature good food, drinking and dancing.

The dancing can be quite entertaining. It is typically an eclectic mix of American, European and Indian music and dancing (while it is not surprising that Indian dancing is very different than than American dancing, European dancing is also much different – being more smooth, refined . . . and just cooler, than the prototypical American bump and grind method.) While we are on the topic Indian dancing is a something that has to be experienced. It is a complicated mix of different genres including line, Broadway, hip-hop and traditional Indian ethnic dance – it makes the Macarena look like the Hokey-Pokey. What is really amazing is that it seems all Indians are amazing dancers (Bollywood dance lessons are very popular) and have memorized all the moves to the most popular songs. Indulge me for a slight diversion to explain a little bit about Indian music. The business model for music in India is very different than the rest of the world. Music is usually given away for free in order to promote and sell movies. Bollywood and Indian movies almost always included a dance number (regardless if it is an action flick or rom-com.) Many of these dance numbers are considered an Item Number which means it has absolutely nothing to do with the plot of the movie and is there only for entertainment value featuring the current Indian “IT” girl. These songs and dance numbers are put on You Tube and the Internet prior to the movie launching to generate buzz and sell the movie.

To give you an understanding of what I am talking about and experience Indian music and dance, here is a popular song and video from the 2010 Bollywood movie Tees Maar Khan. I find the lyrics hilarious (the chorus is in English.) Be warned, though, the song is catchy and  grows on you.

“Sheila Ki Jawani” with Lyrics

 

Paparazzi

An interesting part of the Hyderabad party scene is the paparazzi. Yes, at most parties – particularly the big expat parties or an event hosted by one of the hotels – there are usually photographers snapping pictures that find their way to Facebook pages, the entertainment section of the newspaper, or magazines. We feel like celebrities having our picture taken as we walk into a party . . . it is also can be annoying having your picture taken while you are eating and spilling pizza on your shirt. I was not exaggerating when I said there is not a lot to do – if people find reading about our social life exciting . . . please help us all. Maybe we should start a reality show. Laura could become the Kim Kardashian of India. I guarantee the highest rated episodes would be the ones when the in-laws visit. Now there is a million dollar idea!

Park Hyatt Grand Opening

On Sunday, we attended our fanciest shindig yet, the grand opening of the new Park Hyatt hotel. This was a high class affair with formal attire, security and a who’s who guest list.

A galaxy of top politicians, film stars, industrialists, business tycoons and others graced the grand opening here on Sunday of Park Hyatt, the only luxury brand hotel in India from global hospitality major, the Hyatt Group. Union minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy, and several other Union and state ministers led the inaugural ceremony. – Deccan Chronicle, April 30th 2012

The kids and I were trying to decide if Laura and I were considered the business tycoons or the others.

The hotel is fabulous with great food and the best wine cellar we have seen in India. Suffice to say we ate and drank to excess during the evening. My hands were filled the entire night with plates and glasses – thankfully others took some good pictures that I stole for the blog.