Friday 24 May 2013

An Outsider’s love at First Sight: MUMBAI




As my first day in Mumbai comes to an end, here I am standing at Mohammed Rafi Chowk showcasing a silent protest against the legendary Rafi sahib’s 1956 song that claimed

“Kahin building, kahin traame, kahin motor, kahin mill
Milta hain yahaan sab kuch , ek milta  nahi DIL
Insaan ka nahin kahin naam aur nishaan
Zara hat ke, zara bach ke, yeh hai Bombay meri jaan”

Translation
(Buildings, Trams, Motors and Mills.
You get everything here except a HEART
People don’t have a name or identity here
Keep away, keep safe , This is Bombay my dear)

At around 4:15 pm, I set my foot on Mumbai. A lot of Bollywood scenes went through my head in fast forward mode. I just reached the city of double-decker buses, yummy street food, capital of Bollywood, fast-paced life, extravagant culture, jam-packed local trains that are a norm, romantic locations, diabolical traffic, a city that never sleeps etc., in short the CITY OF DREAMS .  I looked outside and saw people. I turned my head towards the right and then left, there were people, a lot of people. Now that’s POPULATION EXPLOSION! I ve never felt the same in Kerala, Bangalore or even Chennai, always kept wondering where are all these people. Now I know the reason “EVERYBODY WANTS TO BE IN MUMBAI”. If Mumbai alone were to break away from India, its population would still be greater than Australia’s. Anyways, the human eye always finds what it wants and mine was quick enough to spot it. My heart just skipped a beat, body felt loose as if someone was pulling me towards it . There at one corner engulfed by people was a shop that sold ‘Vada Pav’. Adding to it, there were samosas, pav bhaji and much more, I ate all of it till my heart’s content.
My new roommate said he’ll reach the flat only by 7 pm that left me stranded on the streets of Mumbai with three huge sacks that had everything including memories of my wonderful friends. Where there is a problem, there must be a solution! What followed was one of the most successful deals, I had ever made in my life. After a fair amount of negotiation, an autowala promised to take me around the city (nearby places) for just Rs 150.  Now I had a place for my luggage while also exploring this astonishingly huge city.

You cannot ask for a better start when the first two places you saw in Mumbai were the Hanuman Mandir in Dadar and a 350 year old Dargah in Mahim, the oldest of its kind in Mumbai. This was followed by the Khodadad Circle that was formerly known as Dadar TT (Dadar Tram Terminus) in an age when there used to be a tram service in Bombay. This site illustrated an imposing colonial edifice just like Chatrapathi Sivaji Terminus. The next in line was a Portugese Church, a spiritual center that is an architectural beauty. God is omnipresent, he is everywhere be it Church, Mosque, temple or Gurudwara. Before entering the church, a passerby told me “Ask for anything with a pure heart and he will give it”.
After a while, we (Me and jatin bhai (autowala)) resumed our journey. Our chit-chat about Bombay continued. Jatin Bhai had come to Mumbai 23 years ago to receive his father’s body, which died in an accident. Ever since, Jatin Bhai is in Mumbai feeding his family and most importantly providing good education to his children. The places we visited might be low-profile compared to Mumbai’s status. But as they say “Every wonderful story has a humble beginning”. Actually “they” didn’t say that, it’s one of those random things that just popped up in my head right now. It’s one  of those typical adolescent things where you find a quote that relates to your life and adds a ’feel’ to it, and you just keep it as if you were born to do it. :P.  It was time to meet my flat mates and that put a halt to my journey for the time being. But technically my first day is not yet over; there is time till 4 pm the next day. I met my typical migrant Mumbaikar flatmates , and one word for them would be A=W=E=S=O=M=E. Not as Awesome as you Somesh, if you ever read this. We went out for dinner and they took me around a few places in Andheri.
In Bangalore, waking up early was an occasional exercise just to ensure we have breakfast atleast once a week. During M.C.C days, breakfast was just a myth. Despite crashing at 2 am , I was up and steady by 5:30 in the morning. This was new, but something dragged me for a morning walk. Socks rolled up, sneakers on! I set out to burn some calories. I have a feeling that 90% of the Gravitational force in India is concentrated in Mumbai. Scientifically impossible but this city just attracts you towards itself. There are three beautiful gardens near my place, one named after the brave Vijay Salaskar who sacrificed to save his fellow countrymen during the Mumbai attacks. After the unusual exercise, I made up my mind to cover the two much-hyped locations in Mumbai.
Every Nature lover must have a journey along this natural bay.  A friend told me that if there is any reason she would come to Bombay that would be Marine drive (actually one of the main reasons).  Lovers here, lovers there, lovers everywhere embracing each other with love, were taking long walks holding hands, staring at the sea probably imagining their long happy future or God Knows what! Lined with palm trees, known as the ‘Queen’s Necklace’, this place is surreal. The breeze at the place is so refreshing that on just don’t want to leave the place.
With the image of an amphitheatre placed above the ocean, Bandra Bandstand is a lover’s paradise. The self-proclaimed ‘king of love” , Shahrukh Khan’s not-So-humble abode “Mannat”is located very close to this romantic location and probably serves as an inspiration for his successful romantic run in Bollywood. Wait! The not-so-romantic Salman Khan also lives nearby. Well, anyways discussing their “looowee” story could be injurious to health.  Mumbai is filled with lovers embracing , kissing and holding each other. I ve heard similar stories about Paris and Venice.

Hence Mumbai is not just the “CITY OF DREAMS” , but also the “CITY OF LOVE ”. Anyways, here I am at Mohammed Rafi Chowk with my love , Vada Pav and a small message for Rafi Saheb.

Dear Rafi Saheb,
Yahaan dil hein, dilon mein pyaar bhi
Yahaan insaan ka naam hein aur voh kamaane ka dhariya bhi ,
Arey socho mat , daro mat . aayiye
Yeh hai MUMBAI meri jaan

Translation

This city has a heart filled with love
Here people have an identity earned by patience
Think not, Fear not. Just come
This is MUMBAI, my dear

13 comments:

  1. Had goosebumps while reading your blog Fawaz!! It felt as if i was with you in that auto rickshaw while reading this. A perfect scenario of your 1st day in the City of Dreams and the City of Love as you have rightly described has etched in my mind!!
    Gosh!! Truly, one can never get done with staying in AAMCHI MUMBAI!!

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  2. Thanks a ton Mayuri! It's a very hurriedly compiled post!
    Your comment means a lot!!!

    I Just love AAMCHI MUMBAI ! :D

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  3. It was immense pleasure reading your take on Amchi Mumbai Fawaz. A good read!! Must say, u had a pretty good start to a new city!! Guess its all d magic of Mumbai! Very well described. Good job!!

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  4. Thanks you Pooja :)

    You re RIGHT! Wanna have a feel about magic? Come to Mumbai ! :D

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  5. Amazing write up Fawaz.. I absolutely love your descriptions and the narration.. Ah!! I feel like packing my bags and running off to Mumbai now :D Great job! :)

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  6. Thank you Rukmani!!! :)
    Mumbai is amazing! do visit :D

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  7. FAWAZ!! seems like Mumbai is just in front of me!! (tempted to make a trip soon :-P) very well written!!! :D

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  8. beautifully written :) loved every bit:)

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  9. Aww!! Thank u Prachi !!
    happy u liked it :D

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  10. Impressive Dude!!!!! Your story remind me of my first day in Mumbai. Though i hvn't attempted to express it in words but good to see that you realize the experiences of many. A heart touching story with essence of humour and sarcasm. Good Work.

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  11. thanks a lot Abhinav. That is a lot of inspiration ..

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  12. Nice blog dude, awesome, Keep it up

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