Free! Free! Free!

As the famous saying goes, "The best things in life are free", the last weekend has been a very good weekend made better with freebies!

First, a free lunch by a friend who dropped in for a weekend in Bangalore and second, a free music concert.


The last time my dear friend, Nilutpal, came to town, I had to 'treat' him for numerous reasons that he had summed up. This time around, it was payback time and he had no respite! He has recently ventured into business and he has been seeing good results. Cheers to that! and off we went to this restaurant that I had been meaning to visit but for some or the other reason couldn't make it: Pizzeria Romano.

I had read rave reviews of the restaurant and it was on my list of "want-to-visit" places for nearly a year and a half. When I finally went there, I was not at all disappointed.

Neat and Nice

I totally absorbed their interiors, especially the posters of films and portraits of artists on the walls surrounding the staircase. If you are a movie buff or a music buff, you will love it. And if you are a foodie, you might wanna marry the chef.

We ordered two mocktails: watermelon and strawberry based: and both turned out delicious. We also order a pork rib steak that was very juicy. The texture of the mashed potatoes was unlike any mashed potatoes ever tasted, different and full of flavour.

Pork-Ribs Steak... yum!

We also ordered a Four Seasons Pizza which was hand-stretched into a thin crust. A few slices of it and we were so full that we packed the rest of it.

Hand-stretched Pizza

Lunching with Slash and Elvis... no big deal!

On the walls of the staircase... good utilisation of space

Good thing we packed that pizza! When our friends arrived at the concert venue in the evening, they were more than happy to hog!

By the way, this concert, named 'Sadbhavana concert' was organised by North East Welfare Association of Karnataka and Bangalore City Police to foster peace and ... music 'course! I think the passes were free; in any case, mine were taken care of by my friends.

The Adugodi police grounds, undertaken for the concert, was huge and the turnout was pretty decent. The atmosphere was that of fun. Laughter and music, people of all ages, music of different genre, friends!




In the beginning, a tribute was paid to the Lt.Dr.Bhupen Hazarika which was a good start. Then, Joi Barua performed songs in Hindi, English and Assamese, there was also Jankee Parekh who performed 'Iktara' (Wake-up Sid) and then, there was Lucky Ali!

Joi Barua and Janki Parekh

Lucky Ali onstage

Lucky Ali songs are reminiscent of teenage years and it was a very nostalgic feeling to listen to them after years, live. I surprised myself, I remember many of his songs and lyrics even though I have never consciously listened to Lucky Ali since the end of high-school.

As I say, unplanned plans are the best plans. This Sunday was one such days when everything went perfect. And two things that I longed to do in Bangalore in this final year was ticked off:

• Went to Pizzeria Romano
• Went to a Music Concert

To that, I can add:

• Eating Pizza on a Police Parade Ground
• Singing aloud while the cop nearby slightly head-bangs!

Bangalore, Thank you for such 'free' days! 

Dance like no-one's watching