When voting provided an opportunity to catch up with friends and neighbours

Voters of South Delhi on Sunday came to the polling booths in less than impressive numbers. But for many of those who did, it was not only an opportunity to elect their Councillor, but also catch up with their friends.

Many voters admitted that the busy lifestyle often did not provide enough of time to interact and socialise with fellow residents and occasions of mass gatherings, such as elections, provided them time to meet with friends and acquaintances.

Old and young voters of posh South Delhi areas like Saket, Malviya Nagar and Panchsheel Park, who came to cast their vote, later got together and spent quality time with each other.

Some of the busy voters regretted that though they lived in the same area as their friends, many of them had not met with each other for months.

While there were a variety of topics discussed at the polling stations, politics remained a popular issue and most of the voters did not shy away from expressing their views openly.

For some joint families, who had come together to vote, it was also a time to acquaint themselves with fellow residents and neighbours.

After casting their vote, many senior citizens voters in fact spent a decent amount of time with their colleagues, without any care about the scorching heat. The younger voters, ironically, seemed to be in a hurry.

"There is no denying the fact that the levels of socialisation in our community has lessened to a great deal. Today, there is just no emphasis on meeting each other face to face. It is sad that even as our neighbours are separated by few metres it takes months to have a good discussion with each other," said 75-year-old Y P Kapoor, a voter from Saket.

"I have been a resident of this area for more than thirty years. Yet there are very few people in my locality who recognise me. I made it a 

point that this time when I meet my colleagues, I will have a hearty discussion with them and strengthen our social circle. I do not have anything against new social media of communication. But I strongly feel that social media platforms have only added to our laziness of not meeting each other personally," added Kapoor.

Neena Suneja, a voter from Malviya Nagar who has recently recovered from breast cancer, said: "Most of the neighbours did not even know about my cancer. It was only when we met each during polling and had a discussion that they realised that I had a cancer."

"While events like polling have its significance, I really feel special on such occasions as this is one moment where many of us residents get together and have a good discussion after a long while," added an effervescent Neena.