My Bombay

I'm back in Bombay. And how!

Four months of being away from the city melted into a blurred memory within a few hours of landing at the Santacruz airport. Having spent a few hours roaming the streets, paying tribute to Marine Drive, chatting up all my pseudo-bhai-log friends, I feel like I never went away.

That leaves me to wonder.. WHY do people, oncluding me, love Bombay the way we do? Is it because we're a little filmy inside? Or because everyone seems to say it so what the hell, let's follow the herd? I think it's neither.

Sure, most people love the city. But there are plenty that hate it too.

To tell you why I love it:

It's next to the sea. And being the water baby that I am, I need my proximity to the sea. And to just stare at it every once in a while (read: every weekend).

It's buzzing with people. The millions are, truly, the city's strength. Sure, it's a little intimidating being alone here at first, because you get sucked into the crowds and all that. But it's that many stories, that many different lives existing in the same humdrum of the world. And that's fascinating beyond anything to me.

The food. Oh so many options.

The theatre. The number of plays and gigs and stand up comedy shows in different parts of the city. There's just so much to do!!

The enterprising attitude of the people. Every job is everyone's business. Money must be made and all of one's grey cells must be used optimally. So the bhajiya guy in the local market knows how to get me an illegal cylinder, the guard at the doctor's clinic I went to visit will double up as a broker and the auto driver who took me to Bandra yesterday is also a television mechanic. Its people are the ones that make the city special. It's a cliche proven true when they say the city has its own spirit.

Shopping. From the piggy-shaped pancake mould at Debenham's to the lovely floral dresses in the tiny shops of Bandra; from the grilling machine in Crawford market to the junk jewellery at Colaba; from the luxury stores in Palladium to the roadside, dressy Kolhapuri chappals on Link Road. If only I had an overflowing wallet.

 The weather. Yes, you may not like it but I come from Cal and the weather there is just like it's in Bombay. I may crib about it when it gets too hot or humid but somewhere deep down, it works for me. And it instantly feels like home.



PS- My only gripe with the city- it makes me feel poor. I have just too many things to do, too many places to discover and too many things to buy. But then, it's that much motivation to do well and lots more money. Question now is, how?