Have you ever sat back and imagined what was it like to have a birthday party back in the 90s’? It was an all-day rush- from cleaning home to picking up the best dress for the party, to waiting for your friends and family to come, etc. All the 90s’ kids would relate to this more than anyone, that the charm of a 90s birthday party was incomparable. Where today midnight cake delivery in Hyderabad is quite common, but back in the 90s, cake bought from a bakery near you would be the best. Come, let us have a look at how the 90s birthday parties were like and have a sight full of nostalgia.
- Morning Prayer- Though morning prayer is a crucial part of every one of our lives, back in the 90s- birthday means a visit to the nearby temple for worshipping God. This worship can be followed by a home-cooked thali of vegetarian food that was presented to the temple’s priest as an offering.
- Dress up Nicely- Now, if you are going to school on your birthday, then dressing up in party clothes was important so that, at least for a day, you are a Miss/Mr Popular in your class. And wearing a casual piece of clothing on your birthday was a BIG DEAL back then.
- Sweets Distribution- A day well spent in school on your birthday needs to include chocolate distribution sessions. This part used to be very crucial as you were allowed to take (only) one of your friends along with you to distribute the chocolates. And picking that one friend among a bunch of them was nearly a ‘Do or Die’ situation. 😀
- Special Lunch Box- During the lunchtime, getting surrounded by your fellow mates to peep into your lunch was not a big deal. After all, everyone wants to know what special lunch you brought to school on your birthday. From sandwiches to bread rolls, everything seems to be so special back in the 90s in our birthday lunch.
- A House Full of Aroma- Remember? Soon after you reach home, your house used to be filled with some yummy food. Ahhh… those delicacies! After having that yummy lunch at home, we would sit and discuss with mommy, whom all to invite for the birthday celebration at night.
- Decorating the House- Soon after we have finished inviting our friends via call or visiting their home personally, the next step used to be decorating the house. Birthday balloons, crepe belts, HBD banners, etc. were the main decoratives back then. And decorating the living room walls with the help of elders used to be so much fun.
- Restless Waiting Time- After the party preps are done, i.e., food is almost prepared, the house is well decorated, the cake is ordered, etc., that two to three hours of the gap in between, used to be the worst part of the day. After all, it was our birthday, and we can’t keep calm.
- Party Begins- Finally, the most awaited part of the birthday begins, i.e., guests coming in, dance, music, cake-cutting ceremony, food, and gifts… loads of gifts. 90s birthday parties would include our relatives and friends from school and our mohalla. The celebration used, to begin with, some dancing no. on our audio cassettes, followed by some fun games.
- The Real Celebrations- One thing you all would relate if you are a 90s kid is that the cake-cutting ceremony would never begin before our father’s use to come back home with a cake in his hand. Soon after he would be back, we used to cut the yummy cake in pineapple flavour. (P.S.- Pineapple was the only flavour in the cake, available back then) which was followed by gifts and birthday blessings from the guests.
- Dinner Time- Soon after the cake cutting ceremony, dinner was served, and the menu precisely had- chole-puri, boondi raita, salad, dum aloo, jeera rice, and rasgullas! Yes, this used to be the authentic menu for birthday parties in the 90s, and it was yummy.
Nostalgic! Isn’t it? The 90s birthday parties used to be a one-day drill in themselves. Where today, we have access to buy red velvet cake online and call party-organisers to keep a check on the menu and decorations, back then a nearby bakery would be the only choice to pick our cake from and all the other things would be in our control. Well, all we would like to sum up this post is by saying that birthdays in the 90s were insanely wonderful.
