Sunday, April 15, 2012

Magic Mumbai...



The placid ocean that runs away from you just to come back
The busy city that steals the sleep away from you but still makes you dream
The huge malls that awe you...the narrow streets that yell at you
The magic Mumbai that casts a spell over you...

The Mumbai that made me fall in love...


Mumbai....Of course!!! One has seen chunks of it in movies, songs and yes in zoom's zoomed shots of celebrities' houses and hangouts. And the picture I was having in my mind was clear....The busy city, the city of dreams, the city where all those celebrities grew up like me and you.
But Mumbai has its own magic. At times a magician turns one shape to another...Flowers to rabbits ..or a rabbit to a hat ....and other tricks that surprise us.
Mumbai too, is one such magician!!

The cute airhostess announced that it was time to land. Peeping through the small window I could see the gigantic city. Sky scrapers which dared to touch the sky, the roads which seemed like endless caterpillars, the slums which formed big black blots here and there.
The Chatrapati Sivaji International aiport was an expanse of wonder. From micromini aircrafts which were cute and stylish, huge majestic aircrafts took off and landed every now and then. Trivandrum airport seemed negligibly small...like a star near the moon.

The city had many stories to tell...the stories of natives who were struggling to claim their space...the stories of migrants who had either flourished or perished...
One part of the city was so different from the other. There was HeeraNandani which seemed carved out from New York and unfortunately so were there places that stubbornly stagnated and refused progress. And all of it together lay entwined with the calm ocean.

The house that sheltered me was carved out of a hill. A complex of huge flats took the place of tall trees that should have populated a hill. But that explains the cool wind i guess. The complex belonged to the white collar working class.Named after flowers(frangipani,zinnia,voilaalba) it was a great place to have a morning walk. Thats the only time I stayed in that place.
Each day's adventure start at around 10.30 am when the malls come alive,the streets stir and the traffic roars. The malls are inexplicable. All the super brands clutch and tear your purse. You come out with light bags and a much much lighter wallet. Well some of best times did come from them.. especially the multiplex theatre that housed hilarious housefull2.The streets were excellent competitors. The heartbreaking fact that you bought the same thing from a mall for 10 x price kills you and brings tears to your eyes. At those times you wonder how in the world the streets still do make a profit.
The temples in Mumbai are like a splash of colors. Never have I seen deities so vibrant,colorful and ofcourse beautiful. Siddhi Vinayak temple(yummy ladoos),Mahalaxmi temple and Iskon temple are some of them where I could go.

The bright Mumbai has its dark sides too. The Gateway of India has a sad story to tell. The Taj has even a sadder one. The gateway of India whose gates were open and which welcomed its people with love is now shut and angry.It is guarded by army and police.Eyes full of suspicions follow you everywhere you go...A beauty marred with agony and sorrow.


Mumbai can never be described to its full extent. One ought to feel it.Cos its Mumbai...The magician who never rests!!

Thanks a ton to my family who took so much pain to keep me smiling......Without them Mumbai will always be incomplete to me.



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