[Editor's Note:  The Picnic was such an unqualified success that two of our Communications Team Members wrote up on it.  Since the perspectives were different, we decided to carry both articles;  This one is from Roshan Choudhury.]

The annual DI picnic, the long awaited get away, was held on Sunday, 13 January 2019. Members arrived, armed with picnic gear like badminton rackets, wearing denim and sneakers, huddled in their jackets to ward off the early morning winter chill. 
We walked into DI to see members talking about the picnic and what it had in store for us. My daughter Suhana was very excited, as this was her very first DI picnic, just as it was for us.
Soon the big yellow bus arrived. After a little manoeuvring, the bus made its way into our DI parking area. Brinelle wisely asked children to visit the washroom before boarding the bus. Some adults paid heed to the advice as well, as we waited for the second bus to arrive. The second bus didn't arrive, but news about the bus did...we heard that they had misunderstood DI as Dunlop and had reached there instead. It was decided that the first bus would leave with all those who had already arrived and we left at 8 am. 
The beautiful Kamala Gardens awaited us as we arrived. Beautiful flowers skirted the path to the garden. Suhana loves flowers and she was thrilled to walk  down a path with beautiful flowers on both sides.
A pretty red and white bungalow with sloping roofs, tables with garden umbrellas, a beautiful little pond with a gazebo, a patch of vegetables, a badminton court, all contributed to making this spot perfect. 
As we settled in, admiring the place..a little white and black puppy wandered in, attracting much petting, specially from children, including mine. I am sure most parents just like us, had requests from their children to take this cute bundle of joy home. 
Hot peas kachoris and spicy aloo dum, with hot freshly made jalebis awaited the hungry picnickers. We all enjoyed our cups of hot tea as we basked in the morning sun. Children started playing in the wide expansive garden,  running around, chasing each other. A red and a yellow frisbee was soon seen flying around as members dived to catch the flying disc. 
Soon it was time for team games. Four teams were formed namely Team Won (wordplay for Team One),  Dazzling Diamonds, Avengers and Knights of DI. 
The 'lemon and spoon' race was quite eventful, with the first round being called a trial round since two teams claimed to be first. Team Dazzling Diamonds won with 5 quick children contributing to the pace. 
The next race Tunnel Ball  was again won by Dazzling Diamonds.
A ten-minute break for snacks and a drink was announced. Fish finger, gandharaj chicken, mutton Shami kabab, French fries, cheese n corn nuggets, vegetable gold coin...the list of delicious snacks was long. By now the second long awaited bus had arrived bring more friends. Also the "spirited corner" had been set up in the gazebo by the pond, attracting fishes with two legs and no fins.

It was time for the tug-of-war. The teams had expanded with more members joining in, and now had unequal number of participants. Soon, a fair way of forming a team was thought of by our very wise and witty game anchor Christabel. 
The legendary rope was tugged  pulled by teams and team Knights of DI finally won. 
The next game, the beer drinking competition had most men wanting to participate. The only thing better than drinking beer on a Sunday afternoon, is drinking it free with your team cheering you on. Each team had 5 members and this game invited much cheer from all. The Dazzling Diamonds won the drinking game too. 
No picnic can be complete without a round of cricket and badminton. The children made good use of the badminton court and of the expansive garden. The heat of the day couldn't keep them away from their favourite sports.
Little Mishal was unwell and despite that she participated in the games and was a part of the winning team. After the games were over, her friends decided to cheer her up by spending some time with her as she rested inside the beautiful bungalow. Soon Mishal felt better and was out again playing with her friends. 
After the games, we had the very talented brother-sister duo, Tushar and Pooja singing karaoke. The appreciative audience clapped as they sang and invited others to sing along. More talented members came up to sing. The karaoke was a hit!
'Yaad aa raha hai ' made anchor Raju dance with other enthusiasts. 
Inspired by the beautiful singing, Raju also sang 'Zara paas aao'. 
Christabel sang 'l can't help falling in love with U' and soon Brinelle, Stella, Melvin and many more joined in. The beautiful song seemed to resonate the feelings everyone felt about being together this January Sunday in 2019. 
'Achy breaky heart' got everyone to dance together in unison in the now famous Line Dance. With all the activity, appetites had built up and the delicious lunch was devoured. 
Housie was the perfect game for all who felt quite full after the delicious lunch and wanted to sit and rest. Two rounds of action packed Housie, hosted  by Melvin, was most welcome. Finally it was time for the prizes to be given out for the team games played earlier. The Dazzling Diamonds received the coveted first prize after all the hardwork. 
Prizes were given to everyone who participated in the morning. My daughter was delighted to receive hers. 
We had a quick round of delicious tea and biscuits before we all headed towards the bus. Our day of fun and frolic had come to an end.
My daughter Suhana couldn't get over how much she enjoyed the day with her friends and kept telling us about what all they did. Such days fill the heart with happiness and joy. A heartfelt thank you to all those (the Entertainment Team) who worked hard at making this wonderful picnic possible, along with all who came and made the day complete. 

The Photo Album is available on Facebook at Annual Picnic 2019