Mumbai for kids: Hideout Farm provides a unique experience for city-dwellers

After we spent a night camping in tents, my two kids - my 10-year-old son and 12-year-old daughter - and I had been itching to do an overnighter in similar rustic surroundings. Having heard of Hideout Farm from friends who have been there and seeing a few Facebook posts, we made our bookings for an overnight trip and arranged for a vehicle to take us there.

Hideout Farm is family-run. Hemant and Sangeeta Chhabra left their house in SoBo to set up home on a piece of land they had picked up long ago as a weekend getaway place. Today, they have acres of land that they farm on and have taught sustainable farming to the indigenous people living nearby. Their home can also be converted into a homestay and is open to anyone - from families to corporate houses and school visits - interested in an immersive farming experience.

We've been given astute directions and we reach the farm by 10 am, too late for breakfast and too early for lunch. It's the perfect time to get a sense of the place and settle down. We get to choose between two rooms. Both are minimally furnished, with brick walls, bed frames with a cotton mattress, a mosquito net over the bed, a stool with a jug of water, and a bulb covered with a paper lantern. There is another bed at the side and a mud ledge where you can place things on. One side of the wall, facing the wooded area is open - there are no windows - and the only way you can sort of shut it is with a bamboo chatai that can be pulled down. It is cold, very cold. But we had been warned and there are warm blankets provided.

Lunch is simple and delicious and everything has been cooked by Sangeeta and two farm hands. Most of the ingredients are freshly plucked from the farm. The rice bakris are to die for. Apart from us, there are two other families with young kids, and ducks and dogs and lots of things to explore. The next day, after two more meals, we get more into the rhythm of the place. We have two options: visit the nearby waterfalls or head to the magic garden. Donning hats and carrying baskets and fruit-picking sticks, we head to the magic garden. And then I know why we are here.

The farm - which the Chhabras call magic garden - consists of acres of land growing all kinds of veggies, fruits and herbs. There is mango, starfruit, chickoo, yards of pineapple and much more. We spend hours picking starfruit, eating them; still warm from the tree, and then head to pluck more for the mid-day meal. The mustard field is bright yellow with blooming flowers and we are dizzy with delight after Hemant shows us how to pick tender mustard greens for salad. Then we go pea-picking. We are already carrying a load of starfruit (one batch of which will be turned into a smoothie and another into fresh condiment), tender drumsticks and raw banana.

Back in the fascinating open kitchen, I wash and chop the starfruit for the condiment and then help Sangeeta, who is making date-peanut rolls as the desert for the meal. When we leave, we carry with us starfruit and drumsticks and masala, generously thrust into our car.

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