A Merlin Greens bungalow

Amit Kumar Tandon, a pilot with Indian Airlines, drives off with wife Kavita to the soothing greenery of his Amtala bungalow over the weekend. Sometimes, the couple’s son and his friends join in. The short trip readies them for the next five days of urban stress.

Sanjay Dey Bakshi, a doctor, and his wife Chitralekha, a schoolteacher, too, regularly set off for their weekend home in the country. Sometimes the children and the dog come along. “The serenity works wonders for us,” says Chitralekha.

The trend of Calcuttans buying property somewhere in Santiniketan’s Prantik or Purba Pally has come to be complemented in the past couple of years by locations closer home.

The Baganbari fad is back, though in a more structured avatar, with people buying finished bungalows and villas on the city’s outskirts.

Come Saturday morning, and doctors and IT professionals — who hardly get to spend time with the family during the super-saturated week — speed off to their bungalows and villas.

After spending two days in the promised “country” ambience supplemented by facilities like gyms, clubs, discos and horse-riding in some cases, they return to their “first homes” in Calcutta.

According to Sushil Mohta, the managing director of Merlin Group, when Merlin Greens, the Amtala country-homes project, was launched in 1996, the concept of a second home did not have too many takers.

“City life has become more hectic since then and the disposable income in Calcutta has also increased. We have already built 200 bungalows in two phases, but there is demand for more. So, we are building another 150,” Mohta said.

Customers and developers attach a great deal of importance to security. Real estate developers also keep in mind that outdoor activities are a big draw for the weekenders, especially the young.

Merlin Greens has an exclusive club, Ibiza, at the centre of its 150-acre compound. Computers, copiers and fax machines offer the option of attending to small business matters.

Not all bungalows and villas are used as weekend getaways. Many buyers are NRIs. When they visit the city, they like to stay at a place of their own rather than putting up with a relative or in a hotel.

“NRI customers, with or without roots in Calcutta, have raised the bar as far as facilities at these sites are concerned. They are willing to pay and will not settle for anything but the best,” says Jitendra Khaitan of Pioneer Properties, marketing agents for Country Homes and Ideal Villas, in Howrah and Rajarhat.

Real estate projects in this bracket try to marry a green ambience — a big hit cutting across age groups — with modern facilities. With competition getting fiercer, developers are trying to squeeze in add-ons.

“It’s fantastic. Even the boundary wall is natural — it’s a green hedge. A walk amid the greenery revives you like magic. The younger people can enjoy themselves playing pool or table tennis, sweating it out in the gym or dancing away at the disc. There is something for everyone,” gushes Chitralekha.

She stresses that a second home does not mean “all play and no work”. “It is a whole house, which needs to be cleaned and looked after. But at the end of the day, it all seems worth the effort.”

Some have shifted to these bungalows permanently. But travelling time to and from work and children’s school holds back many others who would love to succumb to the charms of the countryside.

Many couples using their second homes as weekend getaways said they would shift to the country homes for good once they retired.

Property price, which continues to rise, is another consideration.

Most second-home owners, however, said they would not sell the second house. “It’s not important if this is a second home or a third. I am extremely attached to this property and would never sell it unless really hard-pressed,” said the owner of a baganbari.

Property consultants, however, point out that second homes are a good investment option.

“The cost of land in these places is relatively lower at the moment, but as the city grows towards the peripheries, these areas will soon be considered within city limits. Prices will then suddenly shoot up,” said Abhijit Das, regional director, Jones Lang LaSalle Meghraj.

Das added that those who built a second home in the country earlier, would never think of selling the property, but nowadays, the trend has changed. “Many more owners are selling their second or third homes in recent years,” he said.

Pranav Dasgupta, who recently sold a baganbari for a smaller abode in the same compound, agreed. “I did make a profit when I sold the house. But I am not liking the smaller place either. So I might just shift to a bigger country home soon,” he said.