Well, I am not the best person to write something on Mumbai because I had spent not more than 3-4 months in this city. My first experience with this city was in 2002 when I came from Chandigarh to Mumbai to pursue my summer internship. Last week I had another chance to step in Mumbai and I could feel the same intensity in the city ‘that never sleep’.
It’s really true that this city hardly sleep. We were coming back from late night movie show in auto rickshaw and still could anticipate the crowded traffic jams on our route. The time was around 2 AM..!!! The city has grown over-crowded with people, automobiles, slums and pollution. A distance of 10kms can take hours to reach during office hours…number of auto rickshaws seem to be more than total private vehicles…you inhale more of pollutants than fresh air during jams. Sometimes I feel politicians were right in saying that this city has more number of ‘outsiders’ than it can accommodate. There was one sad situation while we were in auto and traveling over highway road…we saw the ambulance carrying a patient and it was continuously honking the siren to clear out the way within traffic jam. Not only the ambulance guys, the traffic owners were too feeling helpless and feeble that they couldn’t give the way either. The roads are perfect companion of vehicle’s mechanics. It seems that roads all over Mumbai are ripped apart for getting repaired at the same time. Right from the small street roads to big highway roads, they offer a tough time for vehicles plying over them and the credit are normally reaped by mechanics..!!!
Apart from all the negatives this city has its own flavor of people. People have aggression that makes them good at profession as well as towards life. People have developed stamina that can keep them charged up for longer time. The average daily routine of individuals are so planned that there is hardly any time to intrude into other wasteful thoughts. There was an interesting incident in Mumbai…while we were strolling a very crowded street in Mumbai called Alpha where we entered one of the busy general shop, we (I) found a beautiful girl wearing a mini skirt got out of auto rickshaw and entered the crowded shop where the situation was looking more like trading hall in BSE (people jostling their way out towards the counter and shouting at attendants to grab their view and get the items they are looking for). I asked my wife about the boldness these ladies can possess in Mumbai which is un-imaginable in other metropolitan cities (these ladies and their dresses can actually make main headlines of local newspapers in places like Delhi..!!). She told me the basic reason behind such situation is that the normal Mumbaikar is already occupied with so many complexities in his life that he hardly gets time to get attracted by other’s affairs. He has to travel a long distance, face the tragic traffic, attend the office, think about his family, make purchases for home etc, that he hardly care about what the lady standing adjacent to him is wearing. On other hand the fashion has become so common because of film industry that people are tired of gaping at others. On a positive note, I feel women can feel more secure and safe in Mumbai as compared to other cities.
We went to Marine Drive in the evening and this place is called the heart of Mumbai. The famous Necklace road was full with many strangers resting over the sea boundary. Parents were holding their children, enthusiasts were jogging with their i-pods, couples were mingling their heads, bachelors were frolicking with beggars, tired ones were laid on their back and some were looking at the half grown moon over the restless sea waves (and we were watching all these). Life seems so calm and in peace when you reach here.
Mumbai has all the ingredients that can capture every aspect of life…struggle, peace, love, sympathy, hatred, aggression, poverty, boldness, attitude etc. I don’t know my reply to the question if someone asks me that whether I would like to settle in Mumbai but certainly I would like to associate some more interaction with this city in future.
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