It couldn’t possibly be happening to me

Bobby Parikh, Managing Partner, BMR Advisors: A group of us were dining at Golden Dragon Restaurant when he first heard loud sounds at around 9.30 pm, which I dismissed as crackers. The initial thought that came to my mind was that it was someone celebrating. Only after the second volley of shots did it sink in that it could be someone firing bullets.

Initially, there was commotion outside the Golden Dragon, but then the action moved elsewhere . The hotel staff instructed us to lie down on the floor or get under the table. We lay in that position for about 15-20 minutes. The initial feeling was one of disbelief; it couldn���t be possibly happening to me.

Meanwhile, there was a lot of shouting outside and more shots were fired. The Taj staff then led us to the Chambers. We were in the main hall of the Chambers and more than 100 people had been brought to the Chambers. All the action by then had moved to the old wing of the hotel.

We were in the Chambers for 5-6 hours, and there was lot of confusion and no TV was switched on. So, we didn���t know what was happening outside. All across the room, people were going through various emotions. Throughout, the Taj staff kept their cool and really took care of people.

At about 4.30 am, we were moved through an internal route with stairs, to the back alleys of Taj Mahal. From there, the staff had arranged buses for people to be ferried to other places. People walked to the Regal to take the buses. Buses dropped off people at President Hotel, where they could call for their cars. No doubt, the Taj staff did a brilliant job.