It's been widely accepted that Bombay is still safe for women, whereas Delhi is labelled the rape capital of the country. In all fairness, I don't think any city in India is completely safe for women and Bombay is not what it used to be in the 1980s.
I want to recall 2 recent incidents in this city, which show the dichotomy of life here.
Incident 1:- Juhu Beach 7:00 pm
It's a "winter" evening in Bombay and rally dark at this hour. I am on an evening jog on the beach heading towards the Godrej bungalow from the Sea Princess. As I cross the crowded section and pass by the food stalls, life seems to be normal. A few minutes later, I am easing past the Marriott and I start hearing someone screaming "Allah Rakha." The man then utters the worst profanities in Urdu and continues screaming "Allah Rakha". I reach the lonely stretch before the Godrej Bungalow and I can still hear the screaming.
A girl who I presume is in her 20s is jogging in the opposite direction. I warn her of the psycho screaming in the distance. She laughs it off and says that she has pepper spray and a knife! The pepper spray is for use where someone can see her and the knife is for use in a dark area!! "If someone tries to grope or molest me in a dark stretch, I'll calmly stab him and jog away," she said. "No one will ever be able to find out it was from me...it's so dark"
Incident 2:- Near Haji Ali 8:00 pm
With much difficulty, I manage to get a taxi on a busy evening. Just as I am about to enter, a young woman in office clothes, comes running and says, "I am sharing the cab with you to Bombay Central." I don't object and let her in. She says it was impossible for her to get a cab.
I tell her that something like this is dangerous these days. "I could be a psycho or a serial killer...you never know." She laughs at my face and responds that if I am a serial killer, she is Mother Teresa!
She insists on splitting the cab fare and then vanishes into the crowd. Needless to say that something like this is unimaginable in any other city in India.
I want to recall 2 recent incidents in this city, which show the dichotomy of life here.
Incident 1:- Juhu Beach 7:00 pm
It's a "winter" evening in Bombay and rally dark at this hour. I am on an evening jog on the beach heading towards the Godrej bungalow from the Sea Princess. As I cross the crowded section and pass by the food stalls, life seems to be normal. A few minutes later, I am easing past the Marriott and I start hearing someone screaming "Allah Rakha." The man then utters the worst profanities in Urdu and continues screaming "Allah Rakha". I reach the lonely stretch before the Godrej Bungalow and I can still hear the screaming.
A girl who I presume is in her 20s is jogging in the opposite direction. I warn her of the psycho screaming in the distance. She laughs it off and says that she has pepper spray and a knife! The pepper spray is for use where someone can see her and the knife is for use in a dark area!! "If someone tries to grope or molest me in a dark stretch, I'll calmly stab him and jog away," she said. "No one will ever be able to find out it was from me...it's so dark"
Incident 2:- Near Haji Ali 8:00 pm
With much difficulty, I manage to get a taxi on a busy evening. Just as I am about to enter, a young woman in office clothes, comes running and says, "I am sharing the cab with you to Bombay Central." I don't object and let her in. She says it was impossible for her to get a cab.
I tell her that something like this is dangerous these days. "I could be a psycho or a serial killer...you never know." She laughs at my face and responds that if I am a serial killer, she is Mother Teresa!
She insists on splitting the cab fare and then vanishes into the crowd. Needless to say that something like this is unimaginable in any other city in India.
