Christmas cheer fills city, families get together

PUNE: The red Santa cap and mask were ubiquitous, many a shop and eatery decked in festive glory and Christmas tidings brought in much mirth and merriment on the eve of the festival. Last-minute shoppers and people with families filled the roads, with eager attendance witnessed at churches for midnight mass on late Saturday evening.
Santa Claus attracted toddlers dressed in cute Santa costumes at corners across Camp.A variety of exotic cakes, marzipan, rose cookies and other Christmas specials were large-scale takeaways for revellers at bakeries and cookie stores. Dressed up in fake holly, mistletoe and other colourful paraphernalia, shops, too, welcomed hordes of eager shoppers. For Momi L, the evening marked a hectic shopping schedule. "I'm doing last-minute shopping. I will pick up some clothes and interesting knick-knacks. Sunday begins with a Christmas morning mass at my church," she said.
Medico Priscilla Jyoti was busy distributing leaflets on a New Year blessing meet organised next weekend. An eager carol singer at her church in Camp, Jyoti had enough company to tag along for a midnight mass at Oldham Church in Camp. "I may not be very good at carol singing, but I join in the celebrations. I am here with my friends distributing these leaflets as a goodwill gesture for a good cause. Christmas is a big day for me and I look forward to having a nice family get-together," she said.
Several families and friends chose the occasion to enjoy a pleasant evening out, walking the streets and wading through packed ice-cream parlours and eateries. Pratiksha Rastogi was with her friends. "We are roaming the streets and enjoying the local junk food like most other people on the streets," said the collegian.
But for someone like Simran D'souza, who likes to enjoy every bit of Christmas fully, it doesn't feel like festive fervour yet. "Christmas Eve doesn't look like Christmas Eve anymore. The levels of enthusiasm in these celebrations are lessening slowly by the year. People are more interesting in running around getting things in order when it comes to Christmas. But not many are actually enjoying the festival fully in the right spirit," she said. But she is looking forward to the morning mass on December 25. A family get-together at home, too, is much respite.
"We will be joining the Christmas celebrations with her family and our other friends in Mumbai on Sunday," said Simran's friend, Sharda Kulkarni.