When I moved from Delhi to Mumbai approximately 3.5 year ago, the first question that was addressed to me perpetually everywhere I went was- “Ah!So u r from Delhi- So ? Do u like Delhi more or Bombay???” And since I’d newly moved from Delhi and was used to the luxury of space and was spoilt enough by many other such things I obviously favoured Delhi.
When I moved to Mumbai, my first thought was- “Eeks!!!I can’t breathe here, it’s so humid, I felt my skin was getting spoilt(read horrid!!!)and when I went towards Yaari road the stench of fish almost killed me grunt...(ok I’m being over dramatic but, I’m an actor, I’m allowed that liberty;-))
But, here’s the truth, after spending just 2 months in the city, it grew on me...it started with my love for the rains!:-) No, the muck, the puddles didn’t make me hate Mumbai it made me fall in love with it! Where most Mumbaites complained about trains getting late, them getting late for work and getting drenched and ill and the works- I enjoyed my cup of tea sitting by the balcony window with my roommate. My office people (more like family and friends than colleagues) made it even more comfortable, which truly made me feel there are nicer people in this city too. But, alas, this niceness wasn’t meant to last forever...because, I wasn’t meant to stay in the job forever!
One day I quit my job, because like many others I was in this city to become an actress. From here on the real struggle started...Struggle to find my real friends, my real life,real calling,real true self. There were days of happiness, extreme joy, extreme self satisfaction, extreme sadness, defeat and dejection, sorrow and loneliness yet I decided never to give up!
Innumerable, uncountable people came in and out of my life in the 1.5 year of my joblessness...I did a bit of theatre,2 short films, some promos, print work here and there, photo shoots for friends and my collection and 1 ad shoot recently. Endless meetings and auditions with some big directors, some small yet substantial directors, some upcoming substantial directors and some B graders who thought they were just too cool! (and oh btw I turned them down very smartly ;-)eh...I’ve learnt few tricks of the trade...one being goli dena...) Also met few south casting agents and producers and till date haven’t figured out their way of working...they straight away say “compo??” to which I say “FO!”
Ok forgive me for bringing this bit in between the Delhi vs. Bombay but my work is an important aspect of my Delhi vs. Bombay debate. So coming back to the comparison, as I move on, I list a few great things below which are characteristics of both the cities:
What are the things I love about Delhi:
My friends and family – there can never be anyone like you anywhere else-love you – Dad,Deepa ,Shruty and Deepti and Ridhi(all from Delhi) not naming my friends from other places here but, will b marking this link to them!
Delhi is truly Dildaaro ki- while in Mumbai u might not know your next door neighbour and can die alone in your house in Delhi you can be rest assured there’ll be some one to help you in your time of need (provided you have been a nice neighbour yourself)
The pot lunches and frequent parties are something to look forward to every week, I will always remember fun times I had with my best friends and office friends in Delhi. I miss u all.
The wide roads and the greenery and the spacious houses(yes you don’t have to pay 18k for a so called 1room kitchen, which is btw so called close to a store room in Delhi!.
Being the fashion capital(Oh the clothes used to be to die for and my sandals size can only be found in Delhi, yes it’s a tiny size 2..sigh!:-( )
The food-kulche chane, chole bhature and chaat papdi and dahi bhalle are jus yummmmm--slurrp!!!!
The variations in weather....:-) (wow the patjhad,saawan,basant,bahaar,ek baras me mausam chaar!
The metro train rides- so comfortable and fast!
What I dislike about Delhi:
The “shoshebaazi” – from who is driving what car to who is having a more lavish wedding to iske zevar hamse achche kaise...uff I’ve seen all this n more in my ex boy friend’s family and even others in Delhi!!! Thank God “Angie” (as I was fondly called by their family and friends) doesn’t have to worry about wearing particular pieces of jewellery at any particular parties anymore and thank God he’s an ex now!
Power and politics (as very rightly shown in No One killed Jessica-anyone can think they can get away with anything they want to coz of being xyz children.
The dudes – yaar most of them are oh so yo! Please leave the trying at home when you are the Oh so sophisticated variety who aren’t trying to hard we like you better, trust me you are so much more classier then! ( Wonder why I never found such- Ah! Girl’s college-sigh! :-( )
The auto rickshawallahs- u r bloody chors,if I had my way I would lock u all up in a hawaalat! Ur meters are non working for the entire f***** year?!!! WTF man?!!!
All the relatives and neighbours more concerned about my wedding than my own family and me!!!
The fear of rapes and murders for women travelling alone at night vis a vis any other city in India.
Cop monitoring drinking driving is very loose, should be tightened considering it’s the capital city of India!
What I love about Mumbai:
No noosiness-The next door aunty ji not asking me “beti ab shadi kab kar rahi ho?!!!”
Security and safety at night-Not worrying about driving home late last night and not worrying about having my dad sleeping at ease at night for the same.
Bollywood everywhere in everything at every corner!
Variety of clothes and cheap bargains!
Rains and my house and the hills next to it-its bliss :-)!
Freedom - to be able to follow my dream and do what I want at my own pace in my own sweet time without anyone at my head ;-)
Food-Sevpuri , bhelpuri,vada pao,missal pao and pao bhaaji and sea food along with a whole lot of south Indian delicacies.Almost everything at Out of the Blue, Pop Tates,Olives,Gajalee,Mahesh Lunch Home, The Dome ,Main Land China and Indigo is to die for!Slurrp!
Bandra, Band stand and Carter Road.
Cops being vigilant at night and keeping a check on drunken drivers!
Being able to sit at Band Stand alone at night with my friend at 1 a.m. at night and have a chat about life!Sad that friend and I aren't together anymore becuase longevity of friends in Mumbai isn't there!
The rickshawallahs (well to some extent) and the local trains!
What I dislike about Mumbai:
The sky high property rates and rents for pigeon holes, where you literally have pigeons littering and annoying you around all the the f***** time!
Everybody here is running from wee hours of the morning to very late at night you’ll find the city never sleeps! It sometimes gives a very unsettling feeling!
People here are mostly very selfish, nobody cares much about anybody till they have their own matlab with you!(1 out of 10 would be friends with you for selfless reasons) actually nobody has time for anybody else!(I’m glad to have few countable people who have time for me and vice versa)
Akelaapan-Ye shehar kai logo ko apna to leta hai par ye khud kisi ka hota nahi – kai log is shehar me akele sote hain aur akele he yahan aake, akele he khuda ke paas upar bhi chale jaate hain! Akele he yahan aansu bahaate hain ,akele he khuda se gille shikwe karte hain , akele he muskurate hain ,akele he shishe me khudko dekhke ek saathi dhundhne ki koshish karte hain!
Yahan har ghar me ek sapna panap raha hai jaise baki har shehar ke har ghar me ek parivaar panap raha hota hai! Ek tarah se dekha jaaye to ye acha hai par mujhe lagta hai ek tarah se isme bachon ka bachpan gum sa jaat hai.Main auditions pe chote chote bachon ko makeup lagaye adyein maarte dekhti hu to taras aata hai ke inka bachpan to gum sa gaya.Inhe kabhi masumiyat ka pata he nahi chalega!
The lines from this song sum it up very nicely for me :
(Kahin building kahin traame, kahin motor kahin mill
Milta hai yahan sab kuchh ik milta nahin dil) -2
Insaan ka nahin kahin naam-o-nishaan
Zara hat ke zara bach ke, yeh hai Bombay meri jaan
Aye dil hai..
(Kahin satta, kahin patta kahin chori kahin res
Kahin daaka, kahin phaaka kahin thokar kahin thes) -2
Bekaaro ke hain kai kaam yahan
Zara hat ke zara bach ke, yeh hai Bombay meri jaan
Aye dil hai..
(Beghar ko aawara yahan kehte has has
Khud kaate gale sabke kahe isko business) -2
Ik cheez ke hain kai naam yahan
Zara hat ke zara bach ke, yeh hai Bombay meri jaan
Aye dil hai mushkil jeena yahan , zara hatke zara bachke yeh hai Bombay meri jaan
So yes, it’s true that I do prefer Mumbai in terms of liveability but, when it comes to friends my heart sure is in Delhi! :-)
When I moved to Mumbai, my first thought was- “Eeks!!!I can’t breathe here, it’s so humid, I felt my skin was getting spoilt(read horrid!!!)and when I went towards Yaari road the stench of fish almost killed me grunt...(ok I’m being over dramatic but, I’m an actor, I’m allowed that liberty;-))
But, here’s the truth, after spending just 2 months in the city, it grew on me...it started with my love for the rains!:-) No, the muck, the puddles didn’t make me hate Mumbai it made me fall in love with it! Where most Mumbaites complained about trains getting late, them getting late for work and getting drenched and ill and the works- I enjoyed my cup of tea sitting by the balcony window with my roommate. My office people (more like family and friends than colleagues) made it even more comfortable, which truly made me feel there are nicer people in this city too. But, alas, this niceness wasn’t meant to last forever...because, I wasn’t meant to stay in the job forever!
One day I quit my job, because like many others I was in this city to become an actress. From here on the real struggle started...Struggle to find my real friends, my real life,real calling,real true self. There were days of happiness, extreme joy, extreme self satisfaction, extreme sadness, defeat and dejection, sorrow and loneliness yet I decided never to give up!
Innumerable, uncountable people came in and out of my life in the 1.5 year of my joblessness...I did a bit of theatre,2 short films, some promos, print work here and there, photo shoots for friends and my collection and 1 ad shoot recently. Endless meetings and auditions with some big directors, some small yet substantial directors, some upcoming substantial directors and some B graders who thought they were just too cool! (and oh btw I turned them down very smartly ;-)eh...I’ve learnt few tricks of the trade...one being goli dena...) Also met few south casting agents and producers and till date haven’t figured out their way of working...they straight away say “compo??” to which I say “FO!”
Ok forgive me for bringing this bit in between the Delhi vs. Bombay but my work is an important aspect of my Delhi vs. Bombay debate. So coming back to the comparison, as I move on, I list a few great things below which are characteristics of both the cities:
What are the things I love about Delhi:
My friends and family – there can never be anyone like you anywhere else-love you – Dad,Deepa ,Shruty and Deepti and Ridhi(all from Delhi) not naming my friends from other places here but, will b marking this link to them!
Delhi is truly Dildaaro ki- while in Mumbai u might not know your next door neighbour and can die alone in your house in Delhi you can be rest assured there’ll be some one to help you in your time of need (provided you have been a nice neighbour yourself)
The pot lunches and frequent parties are something to look forward to every week, I will always remember fun times I had with my best friends and office friends in Delhi. I miss u all.
The wide roads and the greenery and the spacious houses(yes you don’t have to pay 18k for a so called 1room kitchen, which is btw so called close to a store room in Delhi!.
Being the fashion capital(Oh the clothes used to be to die for and my sandals size can only be found in Delhi, yes it’s a tiny size 2..sigh!:-( )
The food-kulche chane, chole bhature and chaat papdi and dahi bhalle are jus yummmmm--slurrp!!!!
The variations in weather....:-) (wow the patjhad,saawan,basant,bahaar,ek baras me mausam chaar!
The metro train rides- so comfortable and fast!
What I dislike about Delhi:
The “shoshebaazi” – from who is driving what car to who is having a more lavish wedding to iske zevar hamse achche kaise...uff I’ve seen all this n more in my ex boy friend’s family and even others in Delhi!!! Thank God “Angie” (as I was fondly called by their family and friends) doesn’t have to worry about wearing particular pieces of jewellery at any particular parties anymore and thank God he’s an ex now!
Power and politics (as very rightly shown in No One killed Jessica-anyone can think they can get away with anything they want to coz of being xyz children.
The dudes – yaar most of them are oh so yo! Please leave the trying at home when you are the Oh so sophisticated variety who aren’t trying to hard we like you better, trust me you are so much more classier then! ( Wonder why I never found such- Ah! Girl’s college-sigh! :-( )
The auto rickshawallahs- u r bloody chors,if I had my way I would lock u all up in a hawaalat! Ur meters are non working for the entire f***** year?!!! WTF man?!!!
All the relatives and neighbours more concerned about my wedding than my own family and me!!!
The fear of rapes and murders for women travelling alone at night vis a vis any other city in India.
Cop monitoring drinking driving is very loose, should be tightened considering it’s the capital city of India!
What I love about Mumbai:
No noosiness-The next door aunty ji not asking me “beti ab shadi kab kar rahi ho?!!!”
Security and safety at night-Not worrying about driving home late last night and not worrying about having my dad sleeping at ease at night for the same.
Bollywood everywhere in everything at every corner!
Variety of clothes and cheap bargains!
Rains and my house and the hills next to it-its bliss :-)!
Freedom - to be able to follow my dream and do what I want at my own pace in my own sweet time without anyone at my head ;-)
Food-Sevpuri , bhelpuri,vada pao,missal pao and pao bhaaji and sea food along with a whole lot of south Indian delicacies.Almost everything at Out of the Blue, Pop Tates,Olives,Gajalee,Mahesh Lunch Home, The Dome ,Main Land China and Indigo is to die for!Slurrp!
Bandra, Band stand and Carter Road.
Cops being vigilant at night and keeping a check on drunken drivers!
Being able to sit at Band Stand alone at night with my friend at 1 a.m. at night and have a chat about life!Sad that friend and I aren't together anymore becuase longevity of friends in Mumbai isn't there!
The rickshawallahs (well to some extent) and the local trains!
What I dislike about Mumbai:
The sky high property rates and rents for pigeon holes, where you literally have pigeons littering and annoying you around all the the f***** time!
Everybody here is running from wee hours of the morning to very late at night you’ll find the city never sleeps! It sometimes gives a very unsettling feeling!
People here are mostly very selfish, nobody cares much about anybody till they have their own matlab with you!(1 out of 10 would be friends with you for selfless reasons) actually nobody has time for anybody else!(I’m glad to have few countable people who have time for me and vice versa)
Akelaapan-Ye shehar kai logo ko apna to leta hai par ye khud kisi ka hota nahi – kai log is shehar me akele sote hain aur akele he yahan aake, akele he khuda ke paas upar bhi chale jaate hain! Akele he yahan aansu bahaate hain ,akele he khuda se gille shikwe karte hain , akele he muskurate hain ,akele he shishe me khudko dekhke ek saathi dhundhne ki koshish karte hain!
Yahan har ghar me ek sapna panap raha hai jaise baki har shehar ke har ghar me ek parivaar panap raha hota hai! Ek tarah se dekha jaaye to ye acha hai par mujhe lagta hai ek tarah se isme bachon ka bachpan gum sa jaat hai.Main auditions pe chote chote bachon ko makeup lagaye adyein maarte dekhti hu to taras aata hai ke inka bachpan to gum sa gaya.Inhe kabhi masumiyat ka pata he nahi chalega!
The lines from this song sum it up very nicely for me :
(Kahin building kahin traame, kahin motor kahin mill
Milta hai yahan sab kuchh ik milta nahin dil) -2
Insaan ka nahin kahin naam-o-nishaan
Zara hat ke zara bach ke, yeh hai Bombay meri jaan
Aye dil hai..
(Kahin satta, kahin patta kahin chori kahin res
Kahin daaka, kahin phaaka kahin thokar kahin thes) -2
Bekaaro ke hain kai kaam yahan
Zara hat ke zara bach ke, yeh hai Bombay meri jaan
Aye dil hai..
(Beghar ko aawara yahan kehte has has
Khud kaate gale sabke kahe isko business) -2
Ik cheez ke hain kai naam yahan
Zara hat ke zara bach ke, yeh hai Bombay meri jaan
Aye dil hai mushkil jeena yahan , zara hatke zara bachke yeh hai Bombay meri jaan
So yes, it’s true that I do prefer Mumbai in terms of liveability but, when it comes to friends my heart sure is in Delhi! :-)
loved it..so damn true :)
ReplyDelete- Madhur
As i am from delhi, that too old delhi...i prefer to be delhiite in terms of my character integration and mubaiite in terms of professionalism...Anil
ReplyDeleteVery very good, Anjali! I cant say for sure but this one cud b the best blog from u so far. Surely among the bests I have recently come across anywhere on the net.
ReplyDeleteIts an irony for us denizens of these two great cities that we are compelled to stay in the one which is best suited for just occasional visits (Mumbai) and we occasionally visit the one which is certainly more livable (Delhi). Delhi versus Mumbai is actually a dilemma between having arrived at, and trying to arrive at that space where we are at a lasting peace with our dreams and aspirations.
Wow babes loveeeee it. What a comparision between both the cities. Thanks for mentioning me here......am sure your dreams will soon come true my best wishes are always wid you....
ReplyDeletehey sweetie... lovely blog!!! ya finally managed to get some time to read it... really wanted to follow u but cudnt figure how!!! duh!!! oopsie... simba's calling... love u... n loved readin it... write more:)))
ReplyDeletebeautifull writing!!!!!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteHope to meet u some day, so dat I can learn to rite dis way...
@Madhur-thanks :)
ReplyDelete@Anil-yes totally agree :)
@Vishal-as always a BIG thanks for the appreciation and kind words :)
@DD and shruty-thanks for finally reading and folllow and stay glued both of u now...i want more constructive feedback from both of u...espclly from u shrutta cz u r a reader "reader";-)
@anonymous-thanks :)
Hi
ReplyDeleteIf u wont mind! Wud like to chat with you, when u'll b online.