Bhopal, June 5 -- As the first pre-monsoon showers settle the summer dust, Bhopal's seasonal rhythm begins to shift. Weekend plans turn outward. Jeeps are taken out, WhatsApp groups are revived, and picnic spots start filling up with chatter and food baskets. For many in the city, the monsoon is not a time to stay indoors. It's when the outdoors call.
This instinct to head into the wilderness is almost cultural. Some trace it back to the city's nawabi past, when the ruling elite would retreat to forested areas around Bhopal for hunting and leisure. Others say it's simply what Bhopalis have always done when the weather turns. The crowd may have changed-from nobles to nuclear families, groups of college students, or old school friends-but th...