The city that lets you become yourself

When Amit Shankar moved to Gurugram from Delhi’s Lajpat Nagar in 2001, few imagined the city would become one of India’s most recognisable urban landscapes one day

When Amit Shankar moved to Gurugram from Delhi’s Lajpat Nagar in 2001, few imagined the city would become one of India’s most recognisable urban landscapes one day.

Amit Shankar (Parveen Kumar/HT)

Today, after more than two decades, Shankar no longer thinks of Gurugram as the city he moved to.

He says, “Back then, dust defined the city. Tower cranes stood where mustard fields had once flourished, roads ended abruptly, and most people treated Gurugram as a place to work before returning to Delhi each evening. Twenty-five years later, I find myself living in a city that has transformed not just physically, but emotionally as well.”

Shankar was born in Allahabad, studied in Delhi and has now spent nearly half of his life in Gurugram. “At 53, having lived in DLF Phase-V for over two decades, I often realise that my own journey has unfolded alongside the city’s remarkable evolution. Watching Gurugram grow has been like watching a child find its confidence. The skyline changed first, but the real transformation happened much deeper.”

He adds, “Unlike many older cities that expect newcomers to adapt to an established culture, Gurugram absorbs people from every part of India and allows them to add something to its personality. Everyone contributes a small layer to the city’s ever-changing façade. That is perhaps Gurugram’s greatest achievement.”

“The city has also matured emotionally. In its early years, everyone seemed to be racing against time. Friendships often revolved around work, networking and ambition. Success was the common language. Today, I see a different Gurugram. I see neighbours who know one another, cafés where conversations matter more than business cards, and young people who call this city home rather than a temporary posting,” he said.

“Of course, Gurugram remains a city of contradictions. Luxury apartments stand beside villages. Global corporations coexist with traditional communities. Infrastructure continues to chase rapid expansion. Yet somehow these contrasts have become part of its character rather than its weakness,” the 53-year-old believes.

“As a novelist, I am always searching for stories. Gurugram never disappoints. Every street carries a different language, every neighbourhood a different aspiration and every resident a different journey.”

“It is the city that quietly shaped me while I believed I was merely living in it. And perhaps that is what makes this place unique. Gurugram does not ask you to become someone else. It simply gives you the freedom to become more of who you already are,” the novelist says.

(Amit Shankar is a resident of DLF 5 and a novelist)