SK Ammaji’s day begins at dawn. With several tin containers, paper cups, jars and an umbrella packed in three huge sacks, Ammaji, a resident of Allipuram, heads to Beach Road at 5 am. This has been her routine for the past two years.
Ammaji is one of the several vendors on Beach Road who sells health drinks to those exercising and walking there during the morning hours. From a plastic table hangs a blue banner with ragi malt, sprouts, lemon tea and green tea written in English and Telugu..
“The most sold item is the ragi malt. It is healthy. Ragi is mixed with buttermilk and lemon and sold for ₹10. After my husband expired two years ago, I had to take up a job. I saw many people selling these drinks and decided to do the same,” she says.
Contrary to the dusty and noisy image that Beach Road dons during evenings, the mornings are marked by cool sea breeze, the sound of waves and filled with fitness enthusiasts.
There’s a vendor stationed every 200 metres.
Not just ragi malt and lemon tea, there are several selling fresh fruit juices and tender coconut. In addition, one can also find idli and dosa batter being sold out of an ice-box.
Walkers’ paradise
Mahesh Varma loves his 90-minute walk on the Beach Road. He looks forward to the routine of completing three rounds and then enjoying a cup of hot lemon tea at one of the stalls. “The mornings on this road are so pleasant; there are walkers from various age groups — children zoom past on their skates and cyclists pedal away. It is quiet and peaceful. But I abhor the thought of stepping out on the same road in the evenings when the traffic is bad,” says Mahesh, a resident of Beach Road.
Evening makeover
However, Pallavi Varma, Mahesh’s wife begs to differ. She feels that evenings are for merry making and people should be allowed to enjoy their evenings with their family and food. “I do agree with him on the traffic part though. Like mornings, the road should be cordoned off even during the evenings to avoid the noise and air pollution,” she says.
In the mornings, apart from walkers, skaters and cyclists; a few people also practise yoga on the pavements, breathing in the fresh sea breeze.
“The best thing about cycling on this road is that you are not constantly worried about being hit by a vehicle as it is a no-traffic zone,” says M Sainath, who cycles here.
Business as usual
Prakashrao Vasapalli has been spending his mornings on Beach Road for the past five years checking people’s weight, Body Mass Index and sugar levels.
With a weighing machine beside a banner announcing the rates of his service, mornings are spent waiting for customers.
“I do not make me a lot of money as there are hardly any people who come to get their weight or sugar checked. However, there is a queue, when organisations provide the same service for free. It is a matter of shame that people are reluctant to pay for their well-being,” he says.
None of these vendors can be seen after 10 am. In the afternoon, the street wears a deserted look. And it lights up again in the evening when it is taken over by ice cream carts and stalls selling junk food.
The options vary from muri masala and corn to Chinese food. For children there is always enough toys and balloons being sold on the footpath. And so the beach is a provider, offering enough entertainment, food and breeze to anyone who pays a visit.