life in mumbai

Hi all,

Did I mention you as to how I am doing in mumbai and what I am doing in mumbai? Well, I guess I havent had the chance to say this. So I take this chance to explain all of you as to what my life has taken in, in this vibrant city called Mumbai.

Mumbai lies on the west coast of India and is the capital of the state of Maharashtra. But it is famous as the commercial hub of India. With a staggering population of 12,691,836 it comes as the second highest urban population in the world, behind only to shanghai, china. It houses one of the most recalled building structures in india, the BSE. Also, the architectural flora of the city includes gems like The Taj hotel, Gateway of India, the dargah of Haji Ali, etc. It is the city of cinema and the corporates. Its said that if you can rule this city then you can rule India (dont say this in front of delhites who think its their call). Many people come to mumbai, to earn their livelihood and as I have experienced in my short stay, the city does welcome them. Though the arms are not open and there is no smile on the face, but the city does let you in. Afterall, it knows that it is the finest example of "survival of the fittest". Either you can surf through the mazes of problems that it throws at you or get lost, never to be found.

If there is something you find unique about this city is that it is formed of many ecosystems. Or in the parlance of more scientific nerds, its the city formed of ghettos. Not just divided on the basis of religion but also on the basis on language (gujarati, hindi, marathi, tamil and bengali being the principle ones), on the basis of the region of origin(west, east or south india), etc. Also, its quite contrasting considering the proximity to gujarat, that the city has no hatred towards one religion. Its easy to find muslims living peacely in a hindu dominated place and even have a mosque of their own. It does signify a lot for the tolerance of this city. I guess, its just that the city is too busy to even give a thought as to who is the neighbour.

It has been a week and I have now formed a real fine routine. A guy who found so hard to get up at 9 in the morning, now gets up at 6 30 and is able to reach his office by 9.I guess thats the beauty of this city. It can get the best out of any ambitious guy without even giving the hint of it. Well, as usual, as some habits die hard, I do not have my breakfast. The office has a vending machine and if there was something in this place which reminds me of heaven, I think its this machine. Inside the cubicle, the world of my own, takes breath. The A/c blows with relentless care and never even gives a thought as to who I am and untill when shall i be. It kind of signifies the attitude of this city - cold, chilling, to the point and precise. Afterall, "time nai hai na bhai". I sit all day, surf the web, find out the relevant info that is required and then in the end leave. I have lunch in a mess which is much better than the same thing that out college runs. Nice food and back to my office. Each day I try and find people to whom i can send in mails and get in touch. Yes, that is which is motivating me a lot.

At the end of the day, around 4 30, i start the ardous journey back home. Take a bus and as happens most of the time, I sleep in the bus and the conductor wakes me up at andheri. And then, i just hurry up to the flat and drop in the bed as soon as it can. Evenings are eagerly awaited as by then Vikas is back and we take the rounds of the neighbourhood, either for food or some other thing the emerging Halan-Tyagi household needs.

Thats the normal day of mine though there are those similarly wonderful weekends I go home.

I hope you had the time and the courage to read my crap,

would do something which mumbai never does, say "Thanx".

Take care and have fun,

j.