It's been a while now since i felt dreamy, full of aspirations and happiness about nothing in particular. I remember feeling like this when I was a school girl looking forward to the uncertainties that lay ahead. I feel the same way now. And, I can't be more grateful!

If 2010 was a year of bad decisions, 2011 has compensated and let me live it up. All the 'wrong decisions'  have only proven to be boons in disguise- made me value my surroundings and opportunities far more than I previously did.

We all have a Master-Aim in life which has got nothing to do with having successful careers, making our favourite people happy, having a comfortable life, or having a lavish life. The Master-Aim is usually something we dream for ourselves and something that wants us to break away from our routine, whatever it may be. And I believe we all get a chance to break away and make that Master-Aim possible; most of us even do.

Right now, I am looking at a possibility of fulfilling both- my aim and my Master-Aim. There's no other place I'd rather be!

Mumbai rains filling me up

It is believed to make Mumbai look 'romantic' and 'beautiful'. It is the ruthless beauty people want to abstain from but can't resist falling in love with. It slows down the city which is in a perennial state of hurry. The Mumbai Rain has arrived.

I'll fail to understand what's so romantic about wading through the muck or getting drenched right before entering office or college (School kids are always happy). I fail to understand the aesthetics involved in over-flowing sewers and stench that gets a booster from the rains.

But, i admit, I love the rains here! It has a strange calming effect on the city. The fast pace exists, only it is happier now. I have been in other places during the rains, and even if the momentum of the rain drops were similar, Mumbai responds differently to the rains.

There are dull rains, boring rains, depressing rains, creepy rains, lazy rains, scary rains, truculent rains and miserly rains. Rains in Mumbai are  generous and happy rains. It satiates your monsoon cravings and sometimes fills you up (and the city) a bit too much. The good part is that Mumbai is ready for the rains - only mentally. There are huge puddles filled with water that looks like coffee. As long as I don't have to negotiate with these man holes and car holes, i'm not complaining! However, I wish people in the admin would gobble up less public money and put at least some portion of it to use here.

I love the bus/auto ride to University with the rain spraying on me and I'm happy as long as it is only rain water that fills my shoes. Today I saw a couple maneuvering their way out of what clearly looked like very very dirty  water from a nearby drain. I cringed, but when I looked at their faces, it seemed like they were walking through a path laden with rose petals. More than Mumbai,  Mumbai people intrigue me. But, I like it in when it rains here!

Full Circle

I have been resisting the temptation to get back to my blog with yet another one about my unwavering love for Delhi! However, by virtue of me heading back to this city for a summer internship, Delhi has swept me off my feet yet again. And, I have finally given into the urge to write about it.
A trip to Delhi in summer? I got to have some major reason! I have. Many!

Now, i don't want to sound bad for Mumbai University, but that place did make me quite passive for the past one year. I noticed that creep up on me, but i was hardly much able to  shake it off me. So, the only possible escape route i could envision was a summer stint in Delhi. After much effort, patience, frustration I received a confirmation call from IDSA for a month long internship with them. And, the victory dance that followed was one of a kind!

I also wanted to get back to Delhi before i began my second year in Mumbai (so that i didn't have much Mumbai all over me). I know that's provincial parochialism, but what the hell! I feel the need to list down the things I missed about this place, so I will.
1. The broad, smooth roads. The vast gardens, the Amaltaash and Gulmohar trees which are in full bloom now splashing the city with their bright and delicate yellows and fiery oranges.
2. The DTC buses which have now become smart and swanky. Making the roads look better with their green, red, orange and purple contributions!
3. The extreme weather. The heat has been intense and it has sapped a lot out of me for sure. When I was about to slump on a chair and give up, we had a strong dust storm followed by fat drops of water from the skies shaking my soul up.
4. My all weather friends here. I know this should be right up on this list. But being the friends they are, they won't mind.
5. The dashes of good looking people all around. No matter where one is. (Does that make me sound vain? Do i care? No!)
6. The intelligence all around. IDSA has been an amazingly stimulating experience for me. Having so many people wanting to and doing the things that I aim to and am working towards, I suddenly see things more sorted out for me.
More on IDSA now. The Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses. A think tank organization and what style! Go on their website if this interests you. I have come across such a large number of interesting people that i feel i needed more time here to take back more with me.

We have 'Research Clusters' at IDSA and the group of interns here who are the fun lot here, have set aside 'Lunch clusters', 'Ice cream clusters' as well.

So, on one of the lunch times, I expressed my desire to make a trip to Old Delhi and my Cabin partner said in almost my style "let's go". It took me some time to realise what she said, and when i did, i couldn't be more thankful! We did go. And the day had to be the hottest Summer day yet- with Delhi searing at 44 degrees. We went for it. A super fast and packed trip down the mystery lanes of Chandni Chowk. Pani Puri-check. Mango Kulfi-check. Now let me write a bit about this piece of heaven called the 'Mango Kulfi'. Alphonso mangoes- de seeded and filled with kulfi and frozen. Served after being sliced and spread on a large leaf made into a bowl. It takes much time to convince oneself to eat it! And when you do, your eyes close out of their own will and you go into a mango world while the kulfi reminds you of its presence time and again. okay, so after that trip to heaven, we headed for the 'Paranthe wali galli' where we saw not-so-appealing men deep frying paranthas on huge pans. It was too hot for that. So, we gave it a skip and headed for the 'Desi Jalebis'. A long walk it was in search of the 'T-junction' which seemed to be running away from us. Almost out of breath and about to collapse, we saw our life savior- the Malai Lassi in Kulhards. One sip and you can almost see your escaping soul come back to you. Just then we noticed a man with a big piece of wood beating the crap out of a big block of ice covered with a big sheet of black rubber on the road. And just when i was thinking..'wow, that's a lot of work on a summer day", I stop stunned as a tiny piece of ice makes itself felt in my mouth! Too late, the lassi is too good to be thrown away. The Lassi guy smiles at us almost saying "We are like that only, kindly adjust and don't mind". We break into shrieks of laughter and head for our destination. Finally, Desi Jalebis! These are supposedly 'Jehangiri Jalebi' that were the Mughal emperor's favourites! We all love such stories, don't we?
What can be better than a cool and fast Metro ride after this crazy day out! The announcer's concern about the traveler's safety.. "Please mind the Gap", "Doors will open on the Left"..bring a tear to my eyes as i remember the ruthless local train rides in Mumbai that i have to return to! Let's not crib about Mumbai here. It just has to be my punching bag. I feel bad.

With just week remaining of my internship here and the first draft of my paper on Cote D'Ivoire gone for scrutiny at my Supervisor's, all I have to do is to look out of my cabin at the palms swaying along the cool winds that have brought a huge respite for all of us here, and listen to the super fun FM Radio.

As I finish a year in Mumbai...

I am about to finish a year of stay in Mumbai, and I believe there couldn't be a better time to bring my blog back into life!

So many things have happened in this one year since I said a sad goodbye to Delhi and moved to Mumbai for my education here. The first question people ask me is: "why did you choose Mumbai over Delhi for education?". I can understand their astonishment. I give them a number of reasons- I didn't sit for the JNU exam, I missed the DU forms, I wasn't fond of my job, and I missed home. Some of them tell me I should have waited and appeared for JNU/DU exams the following year. Yes, now I agree.

A year of being away from Delhi and i still can't get over it. Why? Isn't it supposed to be an un-friendly city, unsafe for girls, full of thugs, no night-life, pervert auto-rickshaw drivers, and full of men who keep staring till one turns to powder? All that yes, maybe.

Delhi's beauty-it is one of the greenest capital cities of the world. It's many layers of history- you drive around the posh and shiny localities of Delhi and suddenly at a corner you can spot the remains of a fort/tomb/an ancient structure protected from the modern world. It's nightlife- yes Delhi has a nightlife, and you are enjoying it best when you drive down Rajpath, cross the India gate and head towards the Rai Sinha Hill past the Vijay Chowk and stop to have a stick of ice cream on a spine chilling December night. The Chinese chaat at one of the best places to shop, Lajpat Nagar. Big Chill at Khan Market, which is also home to Khan Chacha's. The smart mouthed Blue line bus conductors who have an unmatched sense of humour and the crude yet amusing Jatt conversations. The intellectual crowd that one comes across at the India Habitat Centre. Old Delhi's history laden lanes. All this makes up the Delhi that I fell in love with the very first day I stepped into it in the year 2007.

Delhi was my first city. I grew up in the small towns of Panvel, Nazira and Ankleshwar. Yet, for some reason I was always preparing myself for Delhi. I would bathe in cold water telling myself it would be colder in Delhi. I always knew I would be in Delhi for some part of my education, I never knew when that would be. I landed myself into an under graduate course of Journalism in Delhi university. I knew immediately that I would be accepted without a fuss, and i did blend into the city before I or anyone else knew it. Three years passed and I never realized the days going past me. I made friends who I know I will have for the rest of my life. In short, I lived my life. I joined work immediately after I finished college and got overwhelmed by it before I had imagined. I needed to leave.Also, not having friends around after college made me a little bit less fond of Delhi (for which I feel guilty)! So, there was an attempt to go back home which had shifted to Mumbai.

Then it was time for me to bid goodbye, for which i never had enough time- I had just a day to get my tickets in place, pack my bags and leave. I remember my last bus ride in Delhi that night. I tried to fill my mind with the pictures of the roads, the buildings, the trees, the night in Delhi, the people, the bus stands, everything that had crossed my sight in the last three years.

I wanted desperately to go back to being a college student. Mumbai university and an M.A degree became the means. I entered the university and was hit by a strong craving for my old college and its people! I wanted to turn around and run back. I made life difficult for my folks by telling them every day how much I missed Delhi, its roads,its gardens, its people and its public transport. I missed even the rick drivers who refused to turn on the meters! It is not difficult to imagine what these people around me were going through. I was on a non-stop Mumbai bashing. I criticized the lack of aesthetic sense, the garbage strewn all around, the mind boggling traffic and the narrow roads. I spared nothing.

Finally, one day I found 'enjoying' myself in Mumbai. I felt a funny feeling of betraying Delhi. I was alarmed! How could I like Mumbai? Had I unknowingly started appreciating the democratic side of Mumbai, where one of the richest men and one of the biggest slums co-exist? Had i become an admirer of the discipline within the chaotic city? Or had I just blended into it like I had in Delhi? Maybe. I did take my sweet time to do so. But ya, if given a choice, I would want to run back to Delhi right now! :-)