'We've never felt insecure'

Melting pot

Born and raised in Nagpur, Maharashtra, Mahesh Baliram Shebe believes Bengaluru is his ‘karma bhoomi’. He says the City holds a lot of sentimental value for him because this is where he began his career and started a new life.

   His wife Sheetal Mahesh Shebe had visited Bengaluru a few months before they
tied the knot and she too says that she always wanted to settle down in Bengaluru someday. 

After Mahesh found himself a job as a project lead with IGATE Global Solutions Limited, the family decided to waste no time in moving to Bengaluru.

   “We were very nervous when we first moved herebecause the language and the culture were alien to us. But there were many elements that bound us to the City and its people,” explains Mahesh. About his work, Mahesh says, “I felt very welcome on my first day at work because most of my colleagues were Kannadigas. This is what has helped my family merge with the culture of the City.”

    His wife Sheetal is a trained software engineer who works with Zool Tech Solutions Pvt Ltd. She says the first thing that crossed her mind when she decided to move here was whether she would be able to balance work and home.

 “I am sure all working mothers have this question reeling in their heads all the time. But the complex where we stay and the atmosphere where I work helped me settle down fast,” she says.

The couple bought themselves a house in Pride Springfields, Jayanagar Housing Society in Uttarahalli and it’s Sheetal and their five-year-old son Ojas, a student of Deccan International School, who seem to be enjoying every bit of their stay here. Sheetal points out that it helps to have a close circuit of friends in any new city.

“It didn’t take too long for me to find people of my interest in our apartment complex and our son too has found his set of friends. The apartment has several active communities and I am a part of the group that exchanges recipes,” shares Sheetal.

She says that in addition to cooking authentic Maharashtrian food, she has learnt how to make ‘rasam’, ‘sambar’, ‘idli’ and ‘vada’. “We love fish, so through my recipe exchange, I’ve learnt how to make fish and its interesting variations,” she adds.

The couple spend their weekends exploring the restaurants in the vicinity and scout around old areas like Basavanagudi and Jayanagar to understand the culture and food.
“A few of my Kannadiga friends have guided us to visit a few places around Gandhi Bazaar and Jayanagar to get the real taste of authentic local food. We really love the ‘ghee dosa’ that we get here,” tells Mahesh.

Mahesh’s parents have also moved in with them here and he says that surprisingly, his mother has adjusted rather well.

“My wife and I haven’t picked up the local language as well as my mother has. She speaks fluent Kannada and moves around like she has been living here forever. We have never felt insecure here at any point in time,” adds Mahesh.

Mahesh has worked and lived in cities such as Pune, Mumbai and Delhi but he says that this is the only place where he could adjust well, thanks to the humble people around him.

“I’ve never seen or heard people scream at each other on the road here. This is
something that happens quite often in other cities,” says Mahesh. 

The couple believe in giving some part of their income to help the poor. “We regularly donate some money to a non-governmental organisation that supports the poor.  We have tried to inculcate the same habit of giving in our son as well,” concludes Sheetal.