Majhi Mumbai Post 2

Mumbai at night is a different city all together. The lights, the sound of cars zooming past you, and the best of the lot, no traffic! Even the air has a certain new character about it. Even though the roads are as empty as empty could get in a city like Mumbai, there is a certain charm that holds you in its grip as you try to savor in the flavours of the night life.

The city that never sleeps, and believe you me, this statement absolutely holds weight. If this city has one thing to offer (of the many good things), it is the pure pleasure of being yourself in the dead of the night without feeling antsy about it.

As night befalls, one can see various creatures of the night come out to play. You have the regular party animals, the religious sect who walks to Siddhivinayak, the chaiwala anna, the cops, the drunks, the tuk-tuks, the workaholics, the lovers, the insomniacs, the daredevils...and a whole lot more! One thing that makes this city come alive at 3 in the morning, is the Dadar Flower market.

Truckloads of carnations, roses, marigold, jasmine...any flower under the sun, seems to make it to the legendary Dadar flower market. Located right across the station, the flower vendors get their scented luggage from far off places like Virar, Vasai or even as far as Dahanu. Just as one enters the stretch between Elphinstone and Matunga, one gets welcomed on a bed of roses, literally! For you have flowers strewn across the road making a blanket of petite scented loverlies! There is a certain joy in seeing these men hover around flowers like bees. One would be extra precious with something as delicate as a flower, but not these men and women. They treat it like any other vegetable, any other job. Afterall being a flower girl or a flower man is no pretty selling job.

This is one sight that makes up for all the tiredness, all the dullness that one may feel in the dead of the night. But come Dadar and there wafts a new scent in the air, making your headiness fly away, even if it lasts just for a few minutes!

Majhi Mumbai...Post 1

Mumbai...the city of dreams, a city that never sleeps...and a city where people understand 'humanity'!

Every now and then we hear that people have forgotten the meaning of 'humanity'. More so, have erased the word out of their dictionary. If that is how you feel. Then you haven't experienced Mumbai. If there is any city in this country that can teach you how to live, it is this. There have been stories about people not really caring a damn, or just too busy to even care about anyone else apart from themselves. But people here, no matter how busy they are have this tiny corner in their heart that still cares about their family, their colleagues, their neighbors, their dabbawalas, their peons, their drivers, their bai's, their watchmen, their sabziwalas, and practically anyone who is a part of their universe. I think this city's DNA structure itself is modified that way. So anyone who walks into the space, with dreams aspirations or whatever it may be, automatically gets genetically changed to fit in with the city and it's way of living.

Why i say this is because i have witnessed it. While travelling in the train, the lifeline, the bloodline, the heart of this city, i was lucky to have actually seen such a sight. It was quite a simple gesture but, it made my faith in humanity stronger. There was an old lady who got in and there was no seat available. But this young girl got up and offered her seat to her. These two didn't share any relation, but just belong to the same race. It just made me wonder that if people are actually sensitive and caring and loving, why is it that they hide this self under blankets of bad ethics? Is it cool to be bad? or what is it exactly?

Whatever the case, to each his own. And as they say, slow and steady wins the race. So even if the start is slow, we can atleast hope the trend spreads through like wild fire and we get to live in a better, brighter world and not just dream and pray for one every time we go to bed!

My True Calling!!

So what is the true definition of the word OCCUPATION?

The oxford dictionary defines it as: 1. a job or profession

2.The action, state or period of occupying or being occupied by force!

I like the second definition better, ' being occupied by force!'. So how many of us actually have an 'occupation' we enjoy or are not being forced to follow. I'd say 1%. Ok chances are there maybe more, but a majority of us are either always cribbing or bad mouthing our so called 'jobs'. Why can't we ever try and do something that we truly love and that we fell is our true calling?

there maybe many reasons. One could be 'parents'.The heritage old reason. 'My parents wanted me to be an engineer/doctor/teacher!'. The past generation seems to have taken over the dream profession their frustrated parents ever dreamt of being. 'Well if i couldn't become a doctor so wha, i'm going to make my child one!'. Honestly, get over yourself, and let your child be.

It may seem that i myself suffer from the 'i-hate-my-job' syndrome, but no. I very much am in a profession which i thoroughly enjoy and look forward to every day. Well you see I'm a copywriter 9and a budding one at that too!) so in my profession, there is always a curiosity to look forward to, always an eagerness to do something new, something exciting something 'world-shattering !'. Well almost. What I just described is the dream job for any copywriter. But in the real world that we live in, well realities are sour! So to start off we have 'clients'. This species, i don't intend to inflict a wrong image of them by calling them species, but they truly deserve that! So, coming back to clients. They are the species that have evolved from the lowly trade of 'client servicing'. When they are a part of the agency, they slave. when they quit, they rule. Because then they get a chance to make the agency their slave and have some fun. To start off with, they give absurd timelines. Almost all their jobs are on fire, and lastly they feel their brand is the most powerful of all and hence, they own the creative.

Next in line is the agency. Not agency per se, but the people who work in it. Like your team. There will always be two sides to a coin, but certain people will try to be innovative and somehow try to make you realise that 'dude, you've been living in an illusion. the coin is one-sided!'. They will see to it that you start seeing the world from their eyes, all the time making a point to 'grow you into an individual creative mind'. (I really don't know if that made any sense!)

Anyhow, moving further. There are the higher creatives. the CDs, the Sr.CDs, the VPs, the ECDs and if your lucky, NCDs!! All this jargon, exists in real life. So don't get flabbergasted!

So coming to the point, i don't really know if copywriting is my forte, or is my true calling?! Well i certrainly enjoy writing, but i am still in a dilemma whether to continue in this profession or just go explore.

Just while thinking the other day, i felt a strong urge to just pack my bags, leave to anywhere and just ravel. Maybe become a travel journalist. Or maybe just a travel blogger. I would really love to write about places, people, FOOD, clothes, music, roads...anything for that matter. I don't know. But feel the urge.

So, to unravel the mysteries or just experiment for all you know, i'm going to blog about the city i live in. MUMBAI.

I know the city has been used, abused, battered and bruised, but honestly i feel every person has their own way of looking at things. Maybe mine are similar to a lot many, or maybe i just am following a trend, or whatever....but this is an urge that is definitely not going to be suppressed or undermined. It's a feeling and i'm going to make it good!

So...here it goes...'AN ODE TO THE CITY I HAVE COME TO LOVE....MAJHI MUMBAI!'