Beauty in a Burkha in Vakola

As the car I was sitting in negotiated traffic towards the Western Expressway Highway I saw her for what was less than 10 seconds. She was in a black burkha but did not cover her face. It would have been a tragedy if that gorgeous face, which points towards ancestry in Herat, Tabriz or Aleppo, was hidden from public view.

The young woman would not have been older than 25 and there was more than beauty in her face, more than grace. She had a story to tell. Was this a story of oppression? Was this a story of a young man seeking emancipation in a patriarchal society, using education as a tool to salvation? Did she voluntarily wear that burkha that probably hid a slender body? Was she forced to wear it to keep the eyes of strange men off her? Did he feel more secure in those clothes or did she wish she was like the hundreds of thousands of others in her age group in Bombay, who were shorts on a warm March afternoon? Was she religious? Was religion forced on her?

I don't think I will ever know the answers to any of those questions. All I do know is that she was one of the most beautiful women I have ever seen in this city.  The equatorial moon could just as well have fallen on earth and manifested itself into a woman.

IIT Bombay to host the Mumbai i-race

There are very few places in this crazy city, where you can enjoy a good run like the green and sprawling IIT campus in Powai.

On August 20, the institute will host a 5K and 10K run with a twist. According to the race's website, "the uniqueness of i-Race is that the participants are compared with their own limitations, and the ones who come closest to their abilities are ranked higher."

So, even if you finish slower than other participants, you could be the eventual winner. They use this model http://i-race.yolasite.com/model.php  Under that model, given my weight and height, apparently I can finish the 10K in 34 minutes!!! Pigs would fly first.

It will be a wonderful occasion for sure and a lot of fun. Register on the website and get to the campus by 6:30 am on August 20.

Scared? Us?

It's been over a week since 3 blasts claimed 20 lives and injured more than 100 people. Life crawled back to normalcy within a couple of days. No, we aren't indifferent or apathetic to these gruesome incidents but neither are we scared.

Life in this city is more dangerous than anything the ISI or the Lakshar-E-Tayaba can do. On Sunday, a young movie-goer and her infant died because a tree fell on them in Nariman Point! A TREE!! Who do we blame, the ISI, the LeT, the RSS (Ask Digvijay Singh)?

Dying is easy in this city. It could be through a manhole in the monsoons, or by getting hit by a speeding auto rickshaw or bus or truck, while crossing the street. Many people die every year falling off trains. Others die of malaria, dengue and some just because of breathing in the polluted air.

So! Are we scared of the Lakshar-E-Tayaba or Indian Mujahideen or any other terrorist group? Not one bit!

Terror strikes Mumbai again

17 people woke up in Bombay on July 13 without knowing that this was their last day on earth. They went about their daily routines, rushed to work and went through the motions like it was just another day. Only it wasn't! 17 famillies will never see a loved one again, 17 famillies shattered forever by an evil act. For these people, the pain is permanent, things will never be the same for them again.

I love going to Dadar's Plaza Cinema to watch "masala" Bollywood movies like Dabang. It's more about enjoying the crowd's reaction to the movie than the movie itself. I can't count the number of times I have walked outside Dadar station through that busy area. It just wasn't my time to go. That's the only way I can put it.

This city is so crowded that it is easy for hate-filled monsters to carry out their agenda. Those who do these kinds of things in the name of religion, do their religion a terrible disservice. Frankly, I would sum up these blasts as another intelligence failure. Improvised Explosive Devices were used and not every roadside fanatic has the ability to make these.

I am over the shock of yesterday, as everyone close to me is out of harm's way. I switched off the television after watching the initial reports as the electronic media has made a circus of the incident. They should not be allowed near the site, as crowds form and forensic evidence is destroyed.  I also didn't want to hear the oft-repeated 'Spirit of Mumbai' garbage. Life goes on as normal, because we don't have a choice. A vast majority of people live in this city because it is only here that they can make a decent livelihood. If people don't go about their normal routines after such incidents then they won't be able to feed their families and pay the bills.

I know these blasts aren't the last we'll witness in this city. And I know that when my time is up, I'll go, whether it's on account of bomb blasts or something else.

Bombay's Fat Cats

All sorts of studies and reports have indicated that India will soon be the diabetes capital of the world. In this, I think Bombay is going to be a torch-bearer.

Just try a visit to any middle-class locality and you’ll see more people with big stomachs than those without. While shopping for groceries this morning, I was startled to find myself the most fit-looking guy in the supermarket. I peeped into their shopping carts and what I saw was an excess of cokes and potato chips and chocolates. Now add that to a diet of fried foods, and parathas laced with ghee and extra servings of rice with fattening curries and papads and pickles. Combine this with the fact that most Middle Class people have no time for any kind of meaningful exercise except for a slow paced walk in the morning and you have your answer as to why this country is becoming a coronary artery disease and diabetes hub!

Let’s face it: this city is not conducive to fitness. It’s tough to run on the streets, without breathing in toxic fumes from vehicles, the pot-holed filled roads and sidewalks are another problem. The sea is just too polluted to swim in and most of the pools in the city are not cleaned regularly. That leaves people with the option of expensive gym membership or running on the few places suitable in the city, like the Worli Sea Face, Bandstand, Carter Road, Juhu Beach and Marine Drive. What happens if you’re far away from these places? Tough Luck, I guess!

But then again, we Bombayites are underdogs. We thrive under adverse conditions and take pride in overcoming the challenges of daily life in this city. So, I will continue running on Juhu Beach, dodging cricket balls, the hordes of humanity around the Ramada, the tides and of course, the heat. If fitness was easy, I guess I wouldn’t value it that much.

Yeh Hai Mumbai Meri Jaan

I haven't seen any other place with so much 'in your face' poverty. Millions go to bed hungry each and every night in this city.

A couple of days ago, a friend and I were going to have a sunset drink at AER, a fancy rooftop bar 34 floors above the ground at the Four Seasons in Worli. My friend had a sandwich she wanted to give away to a beggar and as soon we rolled down the glass and called a young boy of 8 or 9, he dashed towards us to take the sandwich, which probably would have been his only meal of the day.

At AER, expats and rich Indians were enjoying the sea breeze and great views by paying Rs 500 for a beer! Enough has been written about the gaps between the haves and have-nots, so I won't get into that.
But what irked the living daylights out of me was an article in the Hindustan Times this morning about a dog whisperer training program.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/mumbai/Sudden-change-in-pet-s-behaviour-Learn-to-become-a-dog-whisperer/Article1-702463.aspx

It costs Rs 13,000 for the course, which helps dog-owners understand the behaviour of their canines. I am just amused that people might actually be ready to pay that kind of money for something as trivial as this when millions go to bed hungry!

No 1 person can solve the poverty issues in Bombay or India by himself or herself but wouldn't Rs 13,000 go a long way in helping several starving families?

Tropical paradise in the wrong hands

On this beautiful summer Saturday morning, I am listening to the chirping of the birds, enjoying the breeze and watching the neem leaves partially lit by the sun swinging away. This blessed plot of land deserved better owners.

Any people with a sense of beauty would have helped enhance the aesthetics of Bombay. Seeing, the May flowers on the trees, I can't help but wonder how much of a paradise this city would have been, had it been in the hands of another set of people.

Would we have beautiful public squares with flower beds? Would we use our seafront better? Would we have beautiful plazas where vehicles wouldn't be allowed? Would people celebrate the glorious extended evening hours in these months, when the sun sets late? Poverty is no excuse for this kind of mismanagement. In fact, employing people to beautify and develop this city, would be a way of getting at least a few out of poverty.

How would it feel like to enjoy the crimson and pristine sunsets in the city without the noise and the dust?  

Andheri (West)- A solution from Yogananda

When my parents bought the cosy apartment I live in, Andheri (West) was a peaceful suburb far away from the maddening crowds of southern and central Bombay.

In 2011, the area from the railway station to Navrang Cinema is among the most chaotic you will find anywhere in the world. Hawkers, vendors, 3-wheelers bikes, hordes of humanity and stray dogs all tussle for space in the midst of the metro construction work, which like any project in India is behind schedule.

It's impossible to walk from my building to the station without getting my nerves tested in some way;  a speeding 3-wheeler, someone spitting paan on the roads, piles of garbage, the regularly-broken sewer lines. But then I have 3 choices: put up with it, fight it or move the hell away from the locality.

But this is India, a country with a great history and tradition of spiritual and self-realized human beings. One such person was Paramahansa Yogananda. His words are an answer for my neuroticism and hopelessness in anger management.

"Do not take life's experiences too seriously. Above all, do not let them hurt you, for in reality, they are nothing but dream experiences...If circumstances are bad and you have to bear them, do not make them a part of yourself.

Play your part in life, but do not forget it is only a role. What you lose in the world will not be a loss to your soul."

He goes on to say "Trust in God and destroy fear, which paralyses all efforts to succeed and attracts the very thing you fear."

Full speed ahead for the Kuala Lumpur 21K

It was just 2 days ago that I started training for the Kuala Lumpur Half Marathon, which is on June 26. Although I lost quite a bit of weight in March, thanks to Delhi belly and an extremly unhealthy lifestyle, while travelling on work, the shedding of weight by no means indicates that I am in better shape.

Day 1 of the training was a struggle to put it mildly. I have run 2 half-marathons, both in Delhi, and feel I have what it takes to go the distance in KL. The weather in Bombay is similar to that in KL in terms of humidity but there is little chance I will be aided by the late-evening Bombay sea breeze, which cools things down, when I run in KL.

This will also be my first run overseas and that should motivate me all the more. 53 days is enough time for me to prepared enough to beat my Delhi 2010 timings.

Unshakeable faith

While taking an autorickshaw from Juhu to Bandra, my Swedish friend Bjorn and I had an interesting conversation with the driver, who was initially driving like a maniac. "I have been driving since 1983 and I have never hit anyone or gotten into an accident," said Ramesh, who originally hails from Pune. We told him that we didn't want to be part of the first such incident.

His reply was full of references to God. He said God creates and it's his responsibility to look after his creation. Which is why, this humble auto-rickshaw driver has a flat in a chawl (something like community housing for poorer people). He said his fear of God prevented him from ever cheating a passenger and God rewarded him by giving him enough money to educate his 2 sons. The elder one is an accountant and the younger one an engineer and both of them have their own homes and cars. Ramesh said God also rewarded him for not drinking alcohol.

It's amazing how strong and unshakeable Ramesh's faith in God is. I hope this faith will keep him happy in the future as well.

Seeing the city through an outsider’s eyes

A friend of mine from Boston once remarked about how Labernum Road in South Bombay reminded him of Berlin. A friend from New Jersey said he saw a piece of Barcelona there and a Swedish friend felt he was in Ipanima in Brazil.


I am privileged to have visitors from all over the world and when I do get sick of life in this city, I get fresh perspectives on how nice Bombay actually is.

Yes, the long set of stairs down to Banganga from Malabar Hill is really nice as you get a stunning sea view before you enter the tank area. There is an interesting spot near Banganga, which has a huge collection of cats. Again, this was something I only noticed when a visitor pointed it out to me.

In terms of variety, energy and oddly enough, pockets of sheer beauty, very few cities in the world can actually compare to Bombay. We have arguably the most beautiful railway station in the world in Victoria Terminus, amazing seaside promenades, stylish art deco, neo-gothic and heritage buildings. And yes, we also have the slums and the homeless people and the crowds.

In all fairness, it’s a tough job getting bored in this city.

Shiv Sena's Malaysian Muslim Cousins

Every year in Bombay, ahem Mumbai, we go through a cheap but violent Shiv Sena circus against couples celebrating Valentine's Day. Their cadre usually attack shops that sell greeting cards and go and beat up couple who cosy up on the "day of love." 

I have never cared about Valentine's Day but the meaningless violence from the Sena harms more than helps their cause. But the Sena might just have found an ally in Malaysia. 

This is an AFP despatch from Kuala Lumpur.

"Several Malaysian states are planning a crackdown on "immoral acts" during Valentine's Day as part of a campaign to encourage a sin-free lifestyle, an Islamic party leader Wednesday.

Authorities in the northern states of Kedah, Penang and Kelantan as well as central Selangor state will carry out "immorality checks" on February 14, said Nasrudin Hasan Tantawi, head of the Islamic party PAS's youth wing."

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5j6M0sZ21MDSUVipeFjbBXxnD4BRQ?docId=CNG.b0bd9634a7d95d37ca7220a20828e2b0.5d1

Non so se ridere o piangere (I don't know whether to laugh or cry) When will Asia ever rise above this kind of non sense?

Indian passion meets German proficiency

The above words were used by German musician Prem Joshua to describe his band, which performed in front of a jam-packed audience at the steps of the Asiatic Library on Sunday. I didn't expect such a large turnout for a fusion music concert but this is Bombay, people are always open to all sorts of creative endeavours.

Music is something that is ever evolving and Joshua's band plays with an incredible harmony between Eastern and Western elements. Joshua himself plays the sitar and the flute with almost a sense of perfection. We were treated to a fabulous concert for two hours. 

On a funny note, the musical performances of the Kala Ghoda Festival are being sponsored by Air India, an airline that makes more than a billion dollars worth of losses every year! Since the first time I saw the Kala Ghoda festival in 1999, it has grown immensely and is now a big ticket cultural event. Events like the festival and the marathon enrich both the city and its citizens. 

As a huge fan of fusion music, I would be delighted to see more Prem Joshua performances. I have a few of his albums and I always feel that my mind is transported to some kind of utopia when I listen to his music.

More for more pics from Kala Ghoda and other parts of the city, click here

http://www.flickr.com/photos/7444188@N05/sets/72157623823412347/

This one is for the Shiv Sena

Dear Balasaheb, Udhav-ji and Aditya-ji,

Look at this open act of defiance! This isn't a sign in some elitist neighbourhood, but in the bastion of your recent success. The university in Kalina.

Come on guys, have that sign changed or deface it or better yet, threaten the vice-chancellor and make him remove such facetious and sacrilegious signs!   

The Sun stopped Shining

I am in shock to hear that my mentor Dr Leena Sen passed away this week. It took a lot of strength for me to not break down when I called her house and spoke to her son.

This post is as much about me as is it about Mrs Sen. I met ma'am in 1996 when I was a first year Bachelor of Commerce student at Narsee Monjee College of Commerce and Economics in Vile-Parle. She wasn't my Business Communication professor but I approached her as she was the professor in charge of the English Literary Association. I presented her an essay on 'Secularism in India' that I wanted to enter in a national competition. She ripped apart the 3000-word essay with remarks in red ink on every single page.

At 18, I could hardly write and the biggest book I had read at that point was an abridged version of Tom Sawyer. Over the next three years, Ma'am worked hard to turn me into a good writer. It was process that started with me reading the books of V.S. Naipaul and Salman Rushdie. Naipaul was her favourite writer and soon became mine as well.

I won the English essay competition at the University of Mumbai's youth festival and several prizes at national level competitions and my college rewarded me with the Best Writer Trophy two years in a row.

Thanks to her training and encouragement, I developed a love for literature. Books are an essential part of my life now and I am a much more knowledgeable human being.  Since I graduated from college, I went on to write a travel guidebook and continue to work as an international journalist for more than 8 years. Ma'am was indeed proud of my achievements and sense of adventure but I am sure she was prouder of the fact that I stuck to my ethics all these years.

I don't think I expressed enough gratitude to her for teaching me how to write and how to appreciate literature and poetry. I sat for her English poetry lectures in college, even though I didn't take English literature as a subject. Those were the most enlightening lessons that I ever had. She brought the magic poems of Keats and T.S. Elliot to life and helped us understand a lot more than just the text.

She definitely had the carrot and stick approach when dealing with me. I was an "idiot" for not recognising Sardar Patel on a billboard and I was once "banned" from being the public relations officer of the literary association as I didn't notice someone writing 'it's' instead of 'its' in a letter. I was also reprimanded for writing 'yours sincerely' instead of 'yours faithfully.' These are precisely the things that made a better writer and frankly a better educated person.  My pet peeve for insistence on correct grammar and proper usage of the English language developed when I was under her training.

Dr Sen was my coach, my guide and my inspiration. I owe my career as a journalist/writer to her. There will be greater success in my life ma'am. When we do meet again, I am sure that you will be proud of all that I managed to achieve.

Thank You for Everything. 

Beautiful sunrises

One of the best things about leaving the house by 7:00 am 3 days a week is the opportunity to catch some beautiful sunrises. I see gigantic crimson sunrises over the domestic airport when the train is between Vile Parle and Santa Cruz. When I see these lovely sunrises, I realise how this planet was before human beings decided to build ugly buildings, pollute and throw garbage all over the place.

Then there's the fresh air in the green university campus in Kalina. The gigantic bats are asleep on the trees and there's an unbelievable serenity as I walk from the main gate to the lecture complex. These are the kind of things that put me in the absolute best of moods early in the morning. 

Typical foreigner frustration at doing business in India

If you look around these days in any part of Bombay, you will see foreigners. It's not just the Europeans and North Americans anymore. You see East Asians, Africans and Latin Americans who can blend in easier than others.

There are many opportunities in this city and places like Bangalore and it's nice to see diversity but it's quite amusing reading rants about what some of these people think of life here. I point you out to a blog written by my friend using an analogy about the Mumbai Marathon and doing business in India.

http://indische-wirtschaft.de/?p=823

You'd read views here, which wouldn't be said in English given that they would offend Indians. But alas, there are those in India who can understand the languages of foreigners in a way that they would never understand ours.

My friend, the author talking about doing business and running a marathon in India says, "Beides ist in Indien härter als in Europa, weil die externen Verhältnisse viel extremer sind: Hitze, Luftverschmutzung, mangelnde Verpflegung beim Marathon beziehungsweise Wettbewerb, Bürokratie, Ressourcen-Zugang und Korruption im Geschäft)"  


That would translate as both are more difficult in India because of more extreme external conditions like heat, air pollution, bureaucracy, lack of food during the marathon, corruption in business.


These factors that don't stop these pioneers from coming to India to make money. The torch-bearers of civilization become more local than the Indians when it comes to getting things done.

This one riles me the most.

"Trotz professionellen Top-Managements, hat man doch immer wieder mit inkompetenten Hilfskräften zu tun, die keine Ahnung haben"

The author says despite  professional top management, you have to keep repeating things to get things done from incompetent support staff whom he calls clueless. 


A few weeks ago, I met a photographer from Vienna who is heavily in debt in Austria and works for a magazine on its last legs. She's here to live the life equivalent of a British Raj officer and has the same usual racist complaints about local men. 


She says they all look at her as a white chick, a commodity. She even has issues with her assistant. who she claims hits on her. Funny enough she shares a flat with her assistant as a paying guest. And the assistant is proud of hanging out with drug addicts and assorted spoilt brats. Maybe the Austrians haven't heard the proverb that "birds of a feather flock together."

The point is that you can't pay peanuts and get decent talent. Not in Europe and not in India.

It's amazing how so many European economies are on the verge of collapse and are floating because of IMF bailouts. Unemployment is rampant in the continent and so is racism often institutionalized. I think many European countries realise that they have major issues sans their colonies. How can you stay rich, when you can't exploit people in Africa and Asia? 


Going back to my friend who wrote this piece, he's an adorable young man with some nice ideas and I wouldn't like to say anything bad about him. But I am sure that he enjoys the security of the German language to express his true views on India, a country to which he has tied his financial fortunes to. 


All I can tell my foreign friends is, if you can't take the heat, leave the kitchen

Dhobi Ghat

I am not much into film reviews per say but I was moved enough by Dhobi Ghat to write down my thoughts. Without question, I can say that this was a very-well made film and most things that bear the stamp of Aamir Khan are of high quality.

Dhobi Ghat tracks the lives of four people in this maddening megapolis, a rich Indian girl from America on a sabbatical, a dhobi (washerman), an artist and a young women from UP, who is married to a man working in the city. This movie shows Bombay the way it is. The monsoon rains, Ganesh Chathurthi, Ramzan at Mohammed Ali Road, the trains, the slums, the rich parties, the spoilt brats, the headache that comes with changing flats.

If ever there was a mirror of life in this city,  it is this film. It made me realise how much I love and hate my hometown at the very same time. Prateik who played the Dhobi was by far the star of the show and I wish that young and talented actor a great career.

On another note, I would like to clear a misconception in many parts of the world that slum-dwellers in the city are lazy, dirty, thieving criminals. Nothing could be farther from the truth. While I don't deny that these kind of elements do live in the slums, a large number of people who live there work several jobs just to make ends meet. They send their children to school and have a dignity and attitude to life that should shame the lot of us "privileged" folks.

Here's a salute to the people, without whom, this city would collapse. Yes, it's the government that has failed you by not being to create a decent and affordable living environment. 

Mumbai Marathon 2011- A Great Moral Victory

Suffering from bronchitis and a fever, I was unsure until this morning whether I should run the marathon. I decided to turn up and at least feel the excitement of the start, even if that meant running for just a few kilometres. But when I saw the beautiful Victoria Terminus illuminated early morning, the adrenaline rush was strong enough for me to give this a real go.

The organizers got almost everything right and they did a magnificent job. It was amazing seeing lights of Marine Drive switch off in the morning as I ran past the best stretch of the city. Bombayites turned up in large numbers to cheer the runners and I am soo grateful to those folks that encouraged me as I struggled. Special mention to the audience on Marine Drive, Pedder Road, Worli Sea Face and ESPECIALLY Caddell Road. On the Worli Sea Face, which I crossed twice, angels disguised as children were volunteers, who handed us water.

Despite being in the unbelievable discomfort I managed to be on track until I reached the Bandra-Worli Sea Link. It takes 7 minutes by car and an eternity to run. By the time I was on the bridge, the sun was at its worst and many runners were cramping. The organisers should have had more people on the bridge or better yet, next year avoid that as a place to run on.

I had completed 32 kilometres in 4 hours and crossed over into Worli when the sun was just too strong and I would not have been able to survive the climb after Haji Ali. So, after giving it my all for those 4 hours, I just could not go on longer. But for the first time in my life, I realised what a moral victory is. Against all odds, I gave it my all and was within 10 kilometres of finishing. If this run was in a cooler place, I would have able to
follow through but the Bombay Sun was 1 obstacle too many given what I was battling.

The media will carry stories about some celebrities doing the 6 km dream run and some models doing longer versions but the real heroes of the city were the ones I ran with. The 60-year old Aunty who was encouraging young men on the bridge to run. Scores of others who were cramped on the sea link but decided that nothing would stop them from crossing the finish line even if they had to walk on sidewalks after traffic was thrown open. YOU ARE THE CHAMPIONS!

I've been living on and off in my hometown for sometime now and very few times did I feel gratitude to the wonderful inhabitants of this city than I did today. Thank You Bombay. It's because of you that I gave it my all today.

Oh and this post would not be complete unless I thanked my best friend Suyash. He was the one who talked me out of running on after the 32 K mark. If Haji Ali didn't kill me, Pedder Road would have. Instead I recuperated in his flat off Worli Sea Face.

POSTSCRIPT


A day after writing about how well the marathon was organised, I was shocked and saddened to get a message from my friend Wolfgang. He absolutely set the roads of Bombay on fire with his running and was leading among the amateurs by a long way but the organisers at Worli Sea Face diverted him back towards Poddar Hospital instead of letting him go all the way ahead towards Haji Ali and he dropped out.

Wolfgang Bergthaler from Facebook

I gave up (leading the amateur's race) at km 32, after I was sent on a de-tour by the organisers. Thnx guys, but I was not interested to run 45km and lose 10 minutes!

Is it possible that the two girls who were accused of cheating were actually diverted the wrong way by the incompetent staff at the sea face?

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/more-sports/athletics/Top-two-Indian-female-finishers-in-Mumbai-Marathon-disqualified/articleshow/7298746.cms

Another city, another world

There's a time of year when Bombay just ceases being Bombay or Mumbai. It's just the 3rd day of the year and most people are still on vacation. Schools are still shut. There's very little traffic on the roads, the air is clean and it's rather chilly (13 degrees at night is not the norm).

Spending a glorious Sunday afternoon in Bandra, which is by far the best suburb in the city, I couldn't help wonder what Bombay was like 30 or even 50 years ago. Bandra has traces of its laid back past. There are still many beautiful bungalows and cottages in leafy lanes. Most of the beautiful churches were built in the 19th century and the walls of convents and Catholic schools have witnessed a lot over time.

Bandra's Hill Road is nothing short of chaotic on a regular day. Add traffic, horns, heat, pollution and the likes and you've got the essence of Bombay but I think for just another few days, the tranquility may remain across Bandra and the rest of the city.