Asters, chrysanthemums, zinnias, gerberas, petunias and pansies were VVIPs at Raj Bhavan, Ranchi, but they could not upstage the man or the mansion on the last day of the flower show.
"We have visited the gardens twice. Please ask governor sir to allow common people like us inside Raj Bhavan once," a girl was seen asking the security guard.
Since February 1, around 3.25 lakh denizens trooped in to the official residence of the state's First Citizen, the gates of which were thrown open to reveal gardens in full bloom. Last year, the visitor count was nearly 2 lakh, not 5 lakh as reported earlier.
But what intrigued visitors more than the visual delights was what lay inside the grand structure.
"Kitne rooms honge andar? (How many rooms do you have in there?)," wondered young Neetu Kumari, as she along with a couple of friends, took tentative steps towards the main entrance of the lobby.
They were brushed away by the guard on duty. "Do not come this way. Enjoy the flowers in the gardens and leave," came the stern reply.
Officials were happy that footfall was highest by far this year, ever since the tradition of opening Raj Bhavan gardens to the public started in Jharkhand in 2005.
Sprawling parks, lavish greens and exclusive rose gardens as well as musical fountains and four-seater battery-operated buggies to ferry the elderly and the disabled, were major hits. Incidentally, senior and special citizens made up 20 per cent of the total crowd this year.
People came from Ranchi as well as far-off places such as Gumla to catch a peek of the fabled gardens.
"We started around 6am today to witness the last day of the flower show. Our students are highly excited to see the various flowers here," smiled Malini Singh, a teacher at Gumla primary school.
But the hushed murmur that did the rounds was a wish to get a sneak peek of life inside the mansion ' the building's architecture and governor's rooms ' from next time.
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