The trip brought back memories of 2 decades before!! Then a freshly qualified CA (read : me) had the company of 5 younger cousins, grandmom, uncle-aunts and parents as we took off on a similar day-long Mumbai Darshan.
Thought of putting down some similarities and differences observed from the 2 trips - one in mid-2000s & now :
1) Capturing memories :
Yesterday we may have clicked 100+ photos on multiple devices.. Samsung, OnePlus, Motorola and Xiaomi were not known back in 2000, when we set off with our one Kodak camera and 36 colour reels.. the resultant 36 photos are still preserved to the day in respective home albums, but most of the 100+ photos have already been deleted. The balance few have been already shared to the cousins, uncle-aunts WhatsApp groups and they don't have to wait for a visit to see the albums. Ultimately what may remain are the memories right before and after the photos were clicked. The longevity of these recent photographs need to be tested, but the memories of the 20-year old albums remain intact still!
2) Frugality & struggles :
One highlight of the 2000s trip was to stand inside the grand Mumbai CST railway station where I proudly showed my cousins how common men/women survived the hustle & bustle of the city. In hindsight it seems to be more of a sadistic pleasure of showing off how difficult life was here !
Yesterday I took my parents to Jio World Drive to show how their common-man son has retained his middle-class stature, inspite of the luxuries on offer !! We did lots of (window) shopping 😜 and left after some coffee.
3) No Entry ⛔🚫:
There were 2 spots which I ended up missing on both ocassions. One the Old Lady's shoe house at Kamala Nehru Park - I was too old on both ocassions to be permitted inside.. instead I took pictures of my cousins (then) and my kids (today) on the boot-house !
The other place was Taj Mahal Palace hotel. In 2000, I couldn't imagine getting anywhere near that place, while yesterday they actually didn't allow us because of stricter security detail (it was the 15th anniversary of the tragic 26/11 terror attack).
The biggest miss however was Gateway of India. I understand the security concern but the way the Gate is guarded with barricades, metal detectors, police staff, it puts you off !! After all this thaam-jhaam, we had to stand some metres away from the Gate too.. Its unfortunate that my kids won't be able to visualise the Gateway in its true glory. I wonder if there could have been a better way to retain its beauty/ grandeur, just like India Gate is maintained in New Delhi.
4) Where's the sea(face)?
After a visit to Aarey Milk colony in the past, we had spent good times at the Worli Sea Face.. also I fondly remember manuvering through the rocks into the sea after Mahalaxmi temple visit. This time around, neither of the three were an option! 😔
Worli sea face is non-existent now and Mahalaxmi sea front was blocked - both for the Coastal Road works. Instead of that, parents got a first-hand experience of a drive on the Bandra-Worli sealink & a session by me on how the city will look after all the flyovers, metros, coastal roads, underpass/overpass etc etc currently under works.. My dad quickly reminded me that he spent better part of his work-life with similar dreams !! The hopes for a 'better tomorrow' still goes on with the Mumbaikar thinking the next flyover/metro/sealink/road will improve our lives !!
5) Holy smokes !!
The Queen's necklace was not visible this time around from Kamala Nehru park, because of the smoggy weather !! Since they had seen it earlier, so my parents could visualise the beauty.
I thought the park has been much better maintained these days compared to earlier visit.
6) Temples and old-world charm :
One constant in both the trips were the charm of the temples. Barring the metal detectors at the entry gates, I think the Gods/ Goddess have ensured that their sanctum is preserved and revered at the same levels. Luckily, we didn't get much crowds either and we may have taken about 30-40 minutes each in Matunga, Siddhivinayak, Mahalaxmi and Iskcon temples.
While most Mumbaikars may have moved/ moving up the vertical skyscrapers, we also did witness the other large population for whom the world seem unchanged for the past many decades ... The Banganga ghats, ChiraBazar/ Kalbadevi areas look pretty much the same, delapidated buildings still stand unfazed by the underground Metro-3 work, the narrow bylanes with the presses printing out wedding cards and old eating joints like the Shree Thakar Bhojanalay serving sumptuous Gujarati thalis... Also unchanged was the NCPA/Marine Drive promenade with the towering buildings on one side and the tetrapods seemingly protecting them from the waves hitting the shores.
At the end of the long day, our final plan of eating bhelpuri & chaats at Juhu beach was foiled by untimely rains, thunder and lightnings. It seems the Gods didn't want me to write anything more about the sea and the crowds - the two constant things about Mumbai !!
That's me signing off on another blog.. also I am inviting my brother and cousins to add comments on their memories of the last Mumbai Darshan !!
Cheers
Sunil
