HOMES AT LAST
New-age hostels run by entrepreneurs are offering students AC rooms with free wi-fi, in-house gyms, laundry and housekeeping.
What’s it like being caretaker of a building full of youngsters? “I have to constantly shuttle between being a strict father and an elder brother to these boys,” says Vivek Aher, head of Pune’s Aarusha Homes hostel for young men.
“Some of them recently cut the wires to five CCTV cameras because they wanted to bring booze in for a farewell bash. I had to threaten to write to their parents.”
Aher’s hostel in Wakad is home to 252 boys. “Girls tend to have more stuff, so their rooms are generally messier, but boys typically are more troublesome,” he says. “There have been days where I have had to play mediator to resolve a fight,” he adds, laughing.
There’s the odd bizarre moment too. “Recently, the drainage was choked. One of the boys’ undergarments had blocked the line. These are the kinds of things that happen,” says Aher.
“Thankfully, they’re good-natured and we all got together and fixed the pipes ourselves because it was a holiday and no plumber was available.”
Sundar Ram would not agree with his verdict on girls, though. His MSR Ventures runs three women’s hostels in Bengaluru, housing a total of 500 students.
“Dealing with students is a full-time job,” he says. “We have had to deal with things like rooms being set on fire.”
At Mumbai’s Bright Youth Student Housing projects, meanwhile, founder Chander Matta says he loves being in the business. He’s ‘Bombay Dad’ to many of the residents here.
“We discuss all our problems with him,” says Neelakshi Chaturvedi, 18, a BSc student from Lucknow.
UPS AND DOWNS
Private bathrooms, free housekeeping and relaxed norms: these are the three biggest pros on most students’ lists. In some cases, location was listed as a con.
“It’s so cool that I can invite guests and friends over,” says BCom student Sharad Mundhra. The 20-year-old from Nepal has a shared room at the Coho Villa hostel in Delhi.
“Not having to clean your room or wash your clothes is a huge relief,” says Kolkattan BBA student Arunava Roychoudhary, 22, a resident at Aarusha. “The best part is, we don’t have to pay extra.”
Banking student Manvi Kastiya, 18, loves the ‘extra-curricular activities’ at Bright Youth in Mumbai. “The hostel plans picnics for us. Twenty of us recently went to Lonavla together. It’s like a family away from family,” she says.
There are lots of surprises too, says Arts student Anisha Jain, 18. “One day, the fridge was full of ice-cream. On Holi, the management threw us a surprise party, and I didn’t miss home at all.”
Gandharvi Rai remembers thinking 15 km was a long commute to opt for. “But it was love at first sight,” she says, referring to the Your Space hostel in Greater Noida. “Before moving here, I lived in a hostel in Lucknow for a year. It was dirty, cramped, and there weren’t even cupboards in the rooms,” says the 20-year-old architecture student from Madhya Pradesh. “In comparison, this is like a hotel.”
“If I could change one thing at YS, it would be the hostel’s location,” says law student Ritika Sarkar, 20. “It would have been nice to have it closer to the markets and malls.”
PRICE INDEX
The relatively low cost was described by most students as ‘a highlight’.
In metros like Delhi and Mumbai, hostel rates start at Rs 5,000 a month without meals and PG rates typically start at Rs 10,000 excluding meals and housekeeping.
Meanwhile, Coho costs Rs 8,000 per month for a triple-occupancy room with meals and housekeeping. At Bright Youth’s six hostels in Mumbai, fees range from Rs 12,500 to Rs 16,500 a month, with an additional Rs 5,000 a month for food.
MSR Ventures in Bengaluru has rooms starting at Rs 70,000 a year, with all meals and daily housekeeping. And rooms at Your Space cost Rs 1.05 lakh to Rs 1.25 lakh for the academic year, with the same.
As they expand, these hostels are finding more takers. Aarusha has a waitlist of 42. Coho says its occupancy rate is 90% to 95%. “Response has been good,” says Coho marketing head John Jacob.