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Wonder what keeps the call centre employees going? With erratic working hours and all that slogging, the breather for them is the time spent at the local food joints and the great food available there
Ankur Dutta Gurgaon
It has been a really tedious day. Contemplating how to get rid of the immense stress arising after a hectic day at work, we headed straight for Zaaika, one of the many favourite hang out zones for MNCs and BPO employees on the Delhi Gurgaon Expressway. We were really taken by surprise on seeing the large crowd hanging around there even at 2 am. After a good 20 minutes wait we finally got a table to sit.
We ordered a plate of aloo ka paranthas and relaxed ourselves over a smoke and coffee. My colleague to her surprise found out her team manager sitting a couple of tables away. She went there to share a few light moments which is practically impossible during the close schedule at office. Later she disclosed that it helped her to rejuvenate a somewhat strained work relationship with her manager which arose due to a few negative feedbacks received from her client based in New Orleans, USA.
She definitely looked far more relieved and was chirping about her latest discovery, an interest in pottery, when something occurred to me too. Actually these road side eateries serve as melting pots among different levels of employees in the Outsourcing industry. Places like Zaaika, Machaan and the very popular Convergys dhaba are where stressed out employees unwind, share lighter moments while returning from work and try sharing interests that are usually outside their individuiual work domain.
It is a pleasant sight with smiling faces shining through the sparse yellow lights and lingering music. These are spots where people mingle, relationships blossom and sometimes are also perhaps severed. To top it all, these eateries serve an interesting array of food items, their USP being they are often open through midnight even at weird hours.
They do brisk business as they are the only joints open during late nights. Winters provide a totally different hue to these places. Foggy nights add a certain dreamy quality to the commonplace surroundings, while people interact and enjoy the sumptuous meals at such affordable prices.
The smiling faces of serving men, which often resemble the little kids, make you feel welcome in the natural ambience of these small food joints. It won’t be an exaggeration if I say that places like Zaaika, Machaan and the roadside dhabas are the real catalysts in our hectic lives that keep us up and running all the while.
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