City of Dreams / Train Story

Juhu

Just some of the things you can do on a Bombay beach:

- Fly monkey balloons.

- Watch planes circling the bay.

- Pick up a prostitute - male/female.

- Have a full-body hour-long massage.

- Wade in the water.

- Risk getting a serious infection by swimming.

- Build sandcastles.

- Play frisbee.

- Get an instant photo taken.

- Hear your fortune on headphones as told by CP30 with flashing lights.

- Buy lighted yoyos, flying discs, key chains and other assorted 'items'.

- Shoot balloons with an airgun.

- Eat:

Pao Bhaji - about six different kinds
Kulfi Falooda
Bhel Puri / Sev Puri
Channa Jor Garam
Peanuts
Chaat / Golguppa
Ice cream
Dosa / Idli
Pulao
Kala Khatta gola
And more...

- Drink:

Daab
Milkshake
Beer
Sharbat
Fresh juice
Tea / Coffee - machine or desi - thick and sweet
And more...

- Blow bubbles from coloured soap liquid, bottles of which are stacked to make patterns of crosses and hearts.

- Cuddle with a loved one.

- Watch the sun set and the moon rise.

- People watch for hours.

- Have a picnic with the entire family - bhai-behen, husband-wife, chacha-chachi, saas-sasur, bunty-babli.


Mumbaikars feel free to add to the list!


Fleeting Impressions

- Land in Mumbai at 12.30 pm. Go to lunch (pao bhaji of course!). Serial audition being held at table next to ours. Watch fascinated at Raveena Tandon and Hrithik Roshan look-a-likes. The guys in shades, open shirts, tank tops, leather jackets (in May afternoon heat), chains and lockets, bleached hair. Women in tight tops - cleavage showing, waved hair, movie make-up!

- Read Wabbster's blog. Looked out the window at the neighbouring 21-storeyed building, wondered if the stays there.

- Crowded, busy, in a rush. Bees getting somewhere, always. Coming home to multi-storeyed bee-hives without balconies.

- Most places the air smells of fish, in others it smells of rubbish. Smells of striving, pain, laughter, dreams, but most of all it smells of LIFE.

- Two feet wide pavements at night filled with tired, sleeping workers, loud traffic rushing on either side.

- You can - just get into an auto without a long discussion on where exactly you are going and a huge negotiation over price. The correct rate is one rupee less than what the meter reads!!

- You realize how aggressive, on-the-defensive, you as a Delhi-ite are, when everyone is normal and pleasant and not out to take you for a ride!

- Watching DDLJ in its 500th week - SRK as 'Raj', Kajol as 'Simran'... The audience saying the dialogues before they are said on screen...

- An autowallah telling me that the Marriott Hotel, with the flames on either side of the entrance is Amitabh Bachchan's house. No, of course I don't correct him.

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On the Jammu Tawi - Bandra Summer Special

My parents sent me away to Bangalore when I was a child, away from the trouble in Srinagar. I grew up to study medicine there. In my first year of study, I came back home to Srinagar for the Id break. One day, when no one was home, I heard a knock on the door. I opened the door and came face-to-face with some army jawans. They asked me my name, where my parents were, why I was here from Bangalore. And then asked me to come with them. I asked where, but they just said I should come with them. I had no choice but to go with them.

They took me to a building, where they suspected militants to be hiding. I too had heard talk in the neighbourhood of militants hiding in that particular building.

They pushed me forward, crouching behind me with their rifles. The ground floor was clear and so was the first floor. Then, the second floor. Next, was the third and last floor. My mouth ran dry as they pushed me towards its entrance. Since the other floors were clear, the militants had to be here. My breath almost stopped, I nearly fainted. I wet myself. But I had to move forward. I knew I would not survive the cross-fire.

Thankfully, the third floor was clear too.

They used me, a nineteen year-old, studying to be a doctor, as a shield for three hours...