Delhi: It’s My Way or the Highway!
October 28, 2011
After numerous discussions, views, allegations
and confusions, I decided to begin with the obvious. Delhi is fun to be 'with!'
I am not saying that because I am born and
brought up here (yes, that too) but because my many years in Delhi have taught
me that the city can be dicey but only when you are not living “with” it. Accept
it the way it is and it can be the best city you have ever lived in/been to.
Board a congested metro train, try “Shamsher
ki Mashoor Shikanji”, allow yourself the luxury of “Chandni Chowk ke chole
bhature” stuff yourself with plum “aaloo gobhi ke paranthe”. No matter how
sophisticated it claims to be, most people here barter sanitation for taste and
it goes well with the richest of them.
Never question obvious things. Why are men disinclined
to leave the seats reserved for women/old? Why do people take jumbo sized yawns
with their hands nowhere near to their “pretty” wide mouth? Why they can spend
thousands on “Dal Makhni and chapti” in Le Meridian but argue with a poor
vegetable seller for Rs. 5/-. Ignore all this and you will be forgiven.
One major factor that makes the city a ‘must
explore’ metropolitan is its capability to remain mysterious and a stranger to
the majority of people living in it. You will never understand why some people
have 4-5 ACs at home and some can’t even get blankets for winters, why one
feels lonely here even with 200+ Facebook friends and why people get hyper for
nothing! If the nation rues Fiscal deficit, the city is resident to trust
deficit.
“Sutta” will remain sutta because fag is a term reserved for the 'Elitists' and it does not sound cooool. Carelessness runs
in the family of the car drivers and the “elderly” CM should not be blamed for
any mishap.
If the traffic jams and the complicated
ways confuse you, ask someone for the way and you will find that his situation
is not any better because he himself is searching for a destination. Soothe
yourself for the things you cannot get hold of. Give time a chance and be
patient.
Stay here for a year or two and you will be
amazed with the kind of surprises the city throws at you and the way it watches
your reactions. It is a homeland for strangers – living life all by themselves,
busy but lonely!
The Formula One roads, metro rail all over
the city, the much talked about Common Wealth games, swanky malls and 7 branded
shops in 100 mts radius will tell you how far the city has come and how it has
hugged comfort and convenience but has very little space to accommodate your
inflated sentiments.
If after all the glitters and discos, the
city makes you lonely and creates a pigeon-hole in your heart, “faluda kulfi”
and “dark chocolate ice-cream” can work wonders. If the search for jobs and
family issues write struggle all over dusty faces of people, just remember that
dust never settles here!
The First World stays with the Third World
in Delhi. The maid from Munirka gets AC's chill in a plush Hauz Khas bungalow
and an amateur helper from Okhla manages square meal at NFC’s expensive
condominium.
Delhi can be a multi-talented crook or a warm
lover, you either get used to it and its ways or you don’t!