The Mumbai Locals

The first thing that comes to a person’s mind when he thinks about the Mumbai local trains is the crowded compartments that are packed to brim and looks as if people are overflowing from the compartments, but after a couple of years I am accustomed to this life and I must admit its really a very efficient mode of public transport. The services start at 4am in the morning and goes on till 1.40 am the next morning which leaves only round about 2 hours without the services. The trains are usually jam packed and u have to actually squeeze yourself in to the compartment and be abused a dozen times, once I was jam packed in this local so bad that I could feel the phone vibrating in my pocket but I could not manage to get my hand to the phone it was so damn packed, and incase u have someone who’s taller than u standing in front of u then u will die of the stench of his sweat and there’s no means to escape and if a lady is travelling in the second compartment then u have to be very careful not to even touch her as u will be bashed. Pickpockets are a big menace during the rush hours and because of this even if your hand brushes a person’s bum by mistake u will be frowned at, I have seen people rubbing themselves to a person standing next to him as his hand is unable to reach the specific body part and many a times u will see people in funny poses like I have seen a person who had another person’s leg tightly squeezed between his own legs. I recently had a two month internship for which I used to regularly catch the 6:16 Virar and after a few days even the fellow travelers were no more strangers and I knew precisely where everyone would get down this reminded of my school going days when I used to go in an auto with other kids and we became fellow travelers. There’s something in the locals that makes u feel good when a guy who tries to catch a running train a fellow travelers lends out his hand to pull him up regardless of the fact that he himself doesn’t have enough space to stand, whenever the train’s packed and a guy stands up from his seat and offers it to someone and that person in turn offers it to you in case u are eyeing at the seat, the regulars having a suitcase placed between them and playing out cards, organizing events inside the trains etc. for many people this bonding becomes a second home I have seen people reserve a whole booth for their friends who then join form the next station and then they have a blast. Its also the best place to catch sleep but u need to be alert when your station comes I almost missed mine once. The heavenly feeling of travelling in a train comes when u stand on the footboard at night on a fast train which is travelling from dadar to Mumbai central because that’s when most of the trains touch breakneck speeds and the cool air slaps against your face. But as good the trains are so are the mishaps once I saw a man go down the train in front of me and he broke his leg so bad that he had to drag himself onto the platform before the next train could come a terrifying site and so horrible that I feared travelling in locals for over a week but this has now become a part and parcel of life for mumbaikars sadly. The best part about the trains is that u wont ever feel lonely even if u r depressed catch a borivali fast or a virar fast u will be so involved in finding your own standing space properly that u will forget every tensions of life. Mumbai wouldn’t have been what it is today if it weren’t for the trains.

Age of Social Networking.

Earlier whenever I opened the internet I always used to go to yahoo mail or gmail but the increasing trend of social networking sites has changed that routine to facebook and twitter. Its amazing how people are addicted to it so badly……..i mean its good for connecting with friends but what’s the use of adding people in your friends list whom u have just met once in your lifetime. The moment u meet someone somewhere at a social gathering or some party after 20 min of conversation the inevitable next question is are u on facebook??.....what the heck u r not gonna meet that guy again ever and still he need u in your friends list just to brag about it in front of others that my friends list is longer than yours……..i just don’t understand such people. Sharing anything new in life and something good on status updates is fine but when people put status updates like,”m going to pee will be back in 5 min”……..dude are u in the middle of an AGM that u need to inform others the time u need to take that bathroom break. People keep their best pics on the profile photo, the pic which shows them in their best looks and I know people who go through a lot of pain to just get that perfect pic so that others can comment. The most funny thing about facebook is that u don’t meet your neighbors in the building but u will find them online on your fb chat list……there’s just one wall separating u but still u need to chat on fb. And acquaintances who meet us accidently on chats have this typical tendency after 5 min of formal hi how are u, to type in “gotta go dude sorry catch u later”………..i get it u need to chat with other people and that’s just an excuse to stop chatting…….FB has its own best points, in a family like mine where its big enough to populate an restaurant v walk into, it helps to know whats new with the other cousins in the family as they regularly update their status.

Twitter is just madness like facebook, the only difference being that u can add celebs in your list of following. I have a twitter account and often use it to see what my fav. stars are upto, like I knew that SRK was on a family holiday recently, Piggy chops returned to Mumbai after shooting for two months in coorg etc. U can find all celebs on twitter from Barrack Obama to Chunky Pandey (superstar of all time)……….twitter has bridged the gap between fans and their idols, thats good as v get to know things before the papers can publish them, and if u get lucky there is a chance that your idol may also reply to you on the site. But there are two things I find pathetic about it:-
1. Why is there a breaking news when big celebs get their accounts made, when Big B made his account there was enough coverage let alone news even people like Karan Johar twitting,” roll the drums for Big b”, similar situation when sachin joined in he recorded highest no. of followers in a hour ( he is really synonymous to GOD and doesn’t tweet like crazy ), now when aamir joined it on Big Bs request another top story same was the case when bipasha joined. There are so many things to cover to be shown in the news I just don’t get it why these things have to be breaking news. People who are on twitter will already know about it the rest are just oldies who want to do better things in life than following celebs on social networking sites.
2. The other irritating thing I find is when celebs tweet like crazy and stupid, specially people like Celina Jaitely and Mallika sherawat, twitter guys should put in a tweet limit for such people for eg only 30 tweets in a month. And sometimes they forget that they are celebs and chat normally on twitter and when its breaking news all they have to say is “no comments “or “people should respect others personal life”……..if u want that u shouldn’t have been on twitter in the first place.
As I always believe that nothing’s permanent, even this phase of facebook and twitter will pass out as orkut did.

P.S.:- I love following Priyanka Chopra on twitter as she’s regular with uploading pics which gives fans like me a chance to take a look at what she’s upto.

R.I.P. Nana

I woke up early as i had exams in two days time and i had not studied anything for the subject. Before i could sit i decided to give a call home to inquire about my grandfather's health which was very bad the previous night. I was informed that last night he was restless and now that he's sitting up and all and that he's on the road to recovery. My dad held the phone to his ears so that i could talk but he didnt talk to me probably because he didnt even understand what was going on. I started my usual routine of studies and dad called at 9.45 before i picked up the call i knew something was wrong and somewhere in my mind a thought of my nana passing away crept up, i wasnt wrong that was indeed the news, i still remember how dad sobbed on the phone and his only lines were "Appu's gone" he disconnected immediately after this. I was standing like a thunder had struck me, tears rolling down uncontrollably. And as soon as i closed my eyes to stop the tears, i saw my grandfather carrying a red pedal car on his back and walking into my house on my 3rd birthday and it was the best gift i had got that year, the next picture of the last time i had seen him and i could see those helpless eyes trying to say something but i couldnt make out what. It was so sudden, he was unwell for quite a sometime but was recovering. I had to get there no matter what was my first thought, dad called me up and told me to catch a flight somehow and get to ahmedabad asap. i called a friend of my sister to get an agent to book a ticket because there was some problem in the airport and the last flight to leave ahmedabad was at 1.30 so i had to get a ticket on it no matter what. The same friend got me the ticket printout at 12.45 and i had to check in by 1.30... it was a mad run to the airport but finally i made it. All the while in the flight i could only remember his helpless eyes and the red car that he had bought for me. I landed at ahmedabad and was straight on my way to my house. The moment i entered my house i saw him lying motionless its really a wired feeling because the person whom u have seen around u all your life suddenly knowin he wont move any more sends a chill down his spine. The situation at my place was really bad and soon as i went inside every1 was crying my tears were about to erupt but i knew i had to hold it back as every single person i saw from my dad to my smallest cousin were crying. I knew i had to be strong here and i met my grandmom she hugged me and said to me in my year in the middle of unstoppable sobs " Appu's gone son, he's gone".....

After a while of crying and despair i was informed that i was supposed to be the one along with my uncle to do the last rites and it was hard because as soon as they tied him up i felt really bad and a sudden feeling of anger filled me up to hit the guy who was doing this to my dear grandfather but i held myself back still not shedding a single drop of tear. But then came the most toughest part when we took him to the crematorium and i was told to apply ghee on his feet and face so that the body could burn fast while applying it i could see his eyes and still i could not manage any tears and then another depressing task was to put his body into the electric furnace which again i had to initiate and there was a sea of sorrow in my heart. And finally when i thought that all was done came the last rites of the charred bones and the first piece was a piece of his skull which we had to take in a clay pot for immersion. As soon as i reached back home i knew in my heart that i had grown into a man. I had to get back to mumbai the very next day as i had my exams day after so it was a really long shot. At night i realised that i hadnt cried since when i had first heard the news but somehow i couldnt, i really felt the need of someone with whom i could just sit and cry. Sadly i could not do it with my family members, thats when i realised the importance of a shoulder to cry on. As soon i sat in my flight the very next day it hit me hard as to what i had gone through the previous day and for almost 45 minutes i just kept cryin alone in intervals because of the small small things i remembered. I landed gave my exams but still even today when i close my eyes to remember him all i can see is the red car on his shoulders and his helpless eyes in his last days and i felt bad for one thing when i had met him last time when i was coming back to mumbai i kissed his hand which he held tightly and mom told to give him a hug, which i didnt i dont know why but i just didnt hug him and that pain of not huggin him will stay with me for the rest of my life. R.I.P Nana

The 2 Years!

The other day i woke up with a thought of going back to my old college in baroda where i had spent 2 years of my life just enjoying along with bogus college studies..........so i packed my bag and headed to the place, all nature's odd were against me with sudden heavy downpour and flooding early in the morning i had to delay my commencement but i did go. Returning back to the city made me feel a bit fresh all the old memories came flooding back to my mind and to top it all there was this excellent atmosphere settleing in which promised the onset of rains. I met one of my close friends first of all, a guy who when i came to this city with my friend and we were lonely for being away from home in a strange city for the first time in life, rendered a helping hand and was kind to us. We caught up on old times and thats when i realised that it felt as if i had been here again after ages while it was just 2 years since i had left the city. A ride through the campus made me more excited and happy and finally we reached the hostel where i can vouch that i had spent the best and the most carefree days of my life. All the memories of us having tea together at the canteen, playing cricket at midnight in the lobby, pouring water over each other, celebrating birthdays etc made me nostalgic. I met my room mate who used to stay with us in the hostel and it did feel good. Sometimes it made me wonder how would have life turned out if i had never left this place........guess it will remain a mystery forever. But i learnt that its really important for us to go back to our roots once upon a tiime just to see and realise as to from where v began our journey of life and where v have to reach. It feels good.

The First Pay Cheque

The day was full of excitement as it was my last day in office I was about to get my first pay cheque of my life and I was going back home the same night. I reached the office really early by 10.45 a feat I didn’t achieve in the whole month of my internship period. We had to get our certificates signed by the Firm Partners to get our pay cheques. But as soon as we went to meet the partner he had already signed it. And then we rushed upto the accounts department to get our cheques and they woundt give it to us till afternoon, waiting for the cheque was really like waiting for exam results. Finally we went upstairs and they handed us our cheques and as any curious human being would do, our eyes went over to the payment amount and it was a shocker it was 6 grant, we hadn’t expected anything more than 3 this was a real shock and surprise for us. With 6 grant and 1100 worth of sudexos we had earned 7100 as my first salary the feeling was damn good as if a whole new independent phase in my life had begun. It was a moment to live for. We left the office soon enough to start our journey back home. At home when I handed over the pay cheque to my dad he had tears in his eyes, mom was jubilant and as far as my sister is concerned she was already planning how to spend those 1100 worth sudexos on meals. I got the cash from dad and went over to meet my grandfather who was not well and as I gave my salary to my grandmother she was thrilled and I could actually imagine her going back in thoughts to the time when I was a toddler and she took care of me. My grandfather being unwell couldn’t make out what I had placed in his hand but then when I left I was told he realized what it was and was trying to keep it safely in his pant pockets. That was a touching moment. As for mom and dad I knew if I gave them money they would the very next day deposit it in my account so I bought them a new cordless phone as a gift and finally all were happy and the next working day I sent some money over to my grandma in Kerala and m sure she will also be thrilled as everyone else. Over all the first pay cheque that u get has a lot more value than just being money it holds a significant importance in your life. The best part in all the drama was that i found a deep sense of satisfaction because i knew that i had achieved it all by my self i.e. without any reference or anything, i applied for it on my own worked for it on my own etc...........so one little achievement in my life.......

Birthday with policemen at Gateway!!!

Many times a very simple and odd way of celebrating a birthday turns out to be a memorable one. At this birthday of one of my best pals we did one of the most unique things, we celebrated his birthday by cutting his birthday cake at the Gateway of India at midnight with the cops. It all started with a surprise planned for my pal, he wanted to celebrate just by being at marine drive till midnight so we decided to add up some spice to his plan. Two of our friends decided to come with the cake to marine drive exactly at 12 and the original plan was to cut the cake at marine drive but as there was still some time left before midnight we decided to grab a bite and to do that we ended up near Gateway. So after we had some food one of our friends gave us the idea of cutting the birthday cake at Gateway. Initially we were against it considering that after 26/11 the security around Gateway will not permit any kind of get-together and that too at 12 in the morning. As soon as we placed the cake on the dusty walls near Gateway a policeman on beat duty came in and demanded an explanation but seeing that we were innocent college kids he ordered us to round it up quickly. We did cut the cake and celebrated his birthday in an unorderly manner and afterwards as by the end of the celebration we saw that by that time many a policemen had gathered on patrol duty at the Gateway. Instinctively we decided to offer them the cake in good faith and we were a bit skeptical about their approach to our offer. But to our surprise they were pretty happy that we offered them the celebrated birthday cake and by the time we distributed the cakes to all there were none left. In the end they wished the birthday boy a long and successful live with the add on tips of being a good citizen. After all this ended and we were on our way back to our bachelor pad that’s when we realized that this was one of a kind birthday celebration at the Gateway with the policemen.

Immature Love

College days are the days to enjoy with your friends and chose your field of interest and start work for a living, but what I see nowadays is the urgency among people hardly in their 20s to fall into a relationship with the opposite sex. I have seen people going crazy after each other to the extenet of forgetting even their closest buddies. The best dialogue that I often hear from people when I ask them about the craziness of a relationship is, “You wont understand it because u haven’t been in a relation, it is a different feeling that is fun and cant be described” Ok fair enough I say but what really bothers me is the mad rush for commitment among the youngsters, I cant believe people who have been in a relation for just 5 months committing to get married at the tender age of 21. You know your parents who brought you up and your friends who have been with you in thick and thin and one fine day a girl or a boy comes to your life and then all the people who have been with you till now, take a backseat. I appreciate one school friend of mine whom unfortunately am not in touch with, one day I saw him at the movies and was about to go and meet him when I saw a girl emerging besides him and I had heard the news that he was into a relation, so I decided not to go up and talk to him. The next time when I met him I told him about the incident and all he said was, “dude she knows me only for a year and u know me since the last five years so who do you think has the priority you or her?”……this sentence really touched my heart. I have known people who just because others have a girlfriend are desperate to have one in their life and the most illogical reasoning that they give is that “I am fed up of my life I need a change” so try going on a vacation but for such people its getting a girlfriend that s the solution. What happens is that at such tender age people tend to get so emotionally involved that when the relation does not work out and they break-up they go on to the extent of ruining their careers as these years are critically important. I am not against boyfriend-girlfriend relation but I really feel that people should be mature enough to enter into a relation and not go on dreaming about their future life. I find it really irritating when people are like, “I am done with her now and I am going to move on, but she’s still my very good friend and v are still in touch” I find this concept stupid when a boy and a girl break-up and say that they are still the best of friends, if its only the boy or the girl then its fine but if its their lethal combination that makes it illogical. Now after seeing many of my friends deeply involved I have derived one thing which is that people who are really in love can go to any extent of madness and during that phase of madness their rational thinking drops to an unbelievable level. As one of my best friend asked me this question “Why is it that people always “Fall” in love?”……………….and I believe that no one can give an appropriate answer to that one.