"Pehli pehli baarishh ki cheetey" ......... Rains are here again & with a Big bang! This is my second session of the famous Mumbai rains.... and frankly speaking I am excited but also a little apprehensive.

I feel Rainy season is one of the most nostalgic seasons of all. I am sure each and every person has some or the other memories connected to it. Earlier for me, the begining of rains was a little depressing, because it meant the start of the academic year. It meant the begining of daily routine of going to school, studies, exams & well..... results. The sudden metamorphosis from the leisure days of vacations to the home-work days was too onerous & torcherous to bear. School and rains have a very deep rooted connection. I remember that every year in school till higher secondary, we had an essay on "A rainy day" which became more innovative into "The Floods" as we went to higher classes. I always felt it was a symbol of unwanted filth, rotten smells & diseases.

But with the passing years I couldn't stop myself from changing my outlook towards this "Indra ka vardaan". I blame it to my romantic streak. It unfolds some memories which make my heart flip even today. Waiting to get a glimpse of my crush coming to college with his wet looks, facing a heavy downpour to go to tuitions just because its the last day I can see him, writing puppy love poems for my lost love with my heart crying with the same speed as the cloud burst outside are some of my deeply etched memories. My lucky day was when the school/ college was closed
due to heavy rains & I was in my cozy room with a cup of hot coffee in one hand & a M & B novel in the other. Hmmmmmmmm........... the tantalising smell of the strong beverage is still as fresh !

From agriculture to bolly-culture, it marks the begining of new avenues :) Be it the new crops or new romantic ventures, rains add the necessary fuel to it. Be it Indians or red Indians,Odes, songs, stories are written to honour this season.

That day when it rained for the first time this year,I was just closing down for the day. It was lightening & thundering like hell. I felt "today's God's day to play pranks on us." The rumbling of clouds is something which sends shivers down my spine. Then my colleague & friend gave me a simple logic. If u hear the rumble it means the worst is already over coz the lightening has already struck(Light travels faster than sound). But this very basic Physics could not wipe out my fears. We both struggled to get to her parked car & the moment we sat we heard the loudest ever thunder. I felt the windows of the car rattle.Somehow my courageous friend managed to drive through the rains & we reached her house. Till then atleast the lightening had stopped. We got down & some crazy but beautiful idea struck us. "Lets get wet" we both said. We threw our bags, footwear & that's exactly what we did. Like school girls we giggled as the shower fell on us. We splashed in the puddles and got all the more dirty. For a moment which seemed like eternity, I closed my eyes & stretched my arms to embrace the rain. It felt as if all my anxieties, worries, unhappiness was getting dissolved and washed away. It took with it some of my tears
too. When i opened my eyes the rain had turned into a drizzle. I smiled & then laughed out loud. I was totally refreshed and felt happiness seep through me. Grinning & with a slight trot in our stride we both went inside to the warm coziness of her house.

I said silently ................Welcome Rains..............

Ae Dil Hai Mushkil Jeena Yahan.....Yeh Hai Mumbai Meri Jaan !

Mumbai plays a multifaceted role for people residing here. For some its a "Home" ,for some its source of "Rupaiyya" while for few others its a "Dream city". Well, whatever be the reason Mumbai always takes you under her wings. Nobody's invited............ but all are welcome.
After a year of my survival in this metro, I feel its not very tough to survive here.......... whether you really live or not is another question.
What triggered my thought process was a very short but not so insignificant scene in the train compartment. There was a lady sitting next to the door, seemed to be a beggar. She had all the features which defied her profession. Looked hardly 25 yrs., had dusky complexion (quite "in thing" now-a-days) & very lovely eyes. She had a little daughter in her lap. What's so special? one would think. What made me interested in them was that the mother was in a full mood to pamper her little one. In her tiny clasp was a candy & other she was holding a balloon, very tightly. As if she didn't want to loose her happy moment. A good day for her, I thought. Then came a lady selling false jewelry. Now my beautiful belle got interested in that & asked to see it. "Vees rupayala aahe" (For 20/-) said the seller with a smirk. "Baghoo tar dya" (Let me see atleast)................. She went through them and finally chose a stone stud........ "Heerya sarkha distay na??" (Looks like real diamond ??) She asked me.. I smiled my reply........She paid the money in a royal gesture & gave the seller a sly smile..........as if to say "Every dog has his day". I was wondering how a woman who might be living on daily wages basis can afford such flamboyance. I remebered that I too had bought some trinkets that day.
That's whats so special about Mumbai.............there's no discrimination. Be it a beggar or a high profile guy, an illiterate or a scholar, male or female or the third sex all travel by the same transport, eat the same vada pav, drink the same ganna juice, get tanned in the same
beach , shop in the same malls at the road side & well..... inhale the same smoke filled air . Nobody questions you...............Nobody cares to......... Then again what you get for 5,000/- same replica is available for 5/- A diamond solitaire or a fake diamond-looking stud........ not much
difference. So everyone's pleased. Everyone can enjoy little luxuries of life.
Everyone can live,so what is its just for a while.........
Another commendable thing I'd like to mention is the spirit of Mumbaiites. Its known that whoever comes here never leaves empty handed, that is if he ever wants to leave. I know a story where a traveller had come to Mumbai, lost, weary & hungry. It was 2 in night, & asked for help from some drunkards sitting on a katta. Well, he was sent away with a full stomach, some money for return ticket & a little sway in his gait. Though I doubt he would return to this Andher Nagri but its for sure that he would never forget his mentors. Be it a bomb blast, floods or riots Mumbaiites have fought (& helped to fight) there way to glory.

So,here's my new version song for Aamchi Mumbai
Ae Dil NAHI Mushkil jeena yahaan....................
Zara hasaya Zara Rulaye Yeh Hai Mumbai meri Jaan !

The (Hilarious) Taste of India.

I got the taste of a very untouched (read it "crude") Indianness on my flight back to Mumbai from Udaipur. It was my second flight, first being just 2 days ago. As a normal human tendency, I was trying to look very natural & pose to be very much acquainted to this atmosphere as if I am a very frequent flier. Most passengers
were "Firangs" who were trying to act too friendly while some too snobbish. Whenever I see these particular Homo sapiens I automatically want to scream "Simon go back".....
Well, I had checked in my luggage & was wondering whether they will take care of my precious luggage or should i have carried it along.
Suddenly i saw a "Safedi ki chamkaar". Nothing extra-terrestrial….He was a guy of about 25-26 yrs. of medium height, walked little bent..... I think the
stiff corduroy pant could be the reason for it, little dark complexioned and adorning a very WHITE shirt & matching shoes. To add insult to the injury he had streaked his hair blond.
Though very Un-Indian from head to toe, deep inside was a typical Indian-Dude. He came and sat next to me. I wasn’t feeling very lucky about it though.
And then started the worst part........... He had in his hands a plate full of what looked like "yesterday’s left sabji sandwich" & lot of Tomato sauce splashed over it. I have no problems with people satisfying their guts but i HATE the sounds accompanying them. He happily went on "Chomp-Chomp-Chomp". It was so loud that the announcements were difficult to understand. I was reading "Jughead".... What a coincidence!!!! But Jughead looked so cute chomping away. A firang lady next to him gave him an dirty look. Suddenly i felt sympathetic for mere vatan ka munda. Finally, my ordeal ended & he went away but he returned again with his hands full of another plate. I suddenly developed interest in the antic jewelry shop.......& left my seat.

After the security check we were waiting for the departure & what a delight I got to notice the Jitender enter. He had a bar of chocolate in his hand.
Wanted to ask how he maintains his slim figure. He went straight in front (infact very much below) of the TV. The TV was quite wide & could be watched from atleast 2 mtrs away........ lekin hume to bhai sabse aage khade rehena hai. News was being shown.......
He shook his head in despair at the discussion of the Indian team performance in the ongoing cricket matches. Idhar- udhar dekha & found another spectator. Started a serious discussion with him. Suddenly his eye caught on a skimpily clad blond & her male companion who were asking the airport personnel some queries. Apne hero ka HELPING Nature peeche kaise reheta? To my amazement he went straight to them & said "Need halp??" They were questioning him& he was simply nodding & all I could glean was "yah, yah". I doubt whether either party got any clue. Came to his rescue his swanky red mobile with a “Himmesh Reshamiya” Rt. He excused himself & started talking. I couldn’t understand why he required a distant communication system when he had such a buland awaaz. A little louder & he could communicate without mobile. “Mane Maja ma cho…… Nathi karvanu……… Nathi….Mane chokri pasand nathi awanu chu….” What a lucky escape for that girl…..…. I thought. He was oblivious of the stares thrown towards him. The flight departure broke my concentration & we boarded the flight.

When I last saw him……we were at the Mumbai airport & he was hurrying- scurrying to get a pen from somewhere. Then I realized…… Rekha, the film actress was sitting, looking all important. “Sign please” he smiled a wide smile matching Rekhajis.

Though very irritating, what I admired about that guy was his ignorance towards others. He was in his own world, not at all bothered about his surroundings.

A thought occurred to me……….. Sometimes we try to be more sophisticated than we really are, more cultured in our thinking than what we really think and in the process miss small pleasures of life. Why do we suppress ourselves to make the slurping noise while finishing the last drop of coke in a silent theater…..coz it’s multiplex? Why don’t we sing the melodies in our mind loudly in a bus………cos it’s crowded? Why don’t we lick our fingers off the masala in a hotel……….cos it’s too plush? Why do we suppress our laughter when somebody falls……..cos it’s etiquettes? But it’s all for the sake of others. I felt like screaming “Simon go back” but what about another Simon residing in myself who hammers me to do things in a lady-like manner? Scientifically, licking fingers aids in digestion, singing loudly strengthens the lungs & laughing loudly makes you feel happy. Maybe when some Baba or a US- proven theory comes out we will again follow them.
Its tough to unlearn what we have learnt since childhood…….but once in a while I’d also like to unwind & become a little “un-phoren” & a lot more Indian.