The India Against Corruption Rally.

"Dhuan chhata khula gagan mera nayee dagar naya safar mera
Jo ban sake tu hamsafar mera, nazar mila zara"
-Roobaroo, Rang de Basanti

It was a damp evening in Mumbai today. And there was a rally organised by India Against Corruption that was to begin at Bandra(W) and culminate at Juhu. For a city that's well known for it's spirit and resilience, there was no way that the rains or the crater laden roads or even certain open manholes were going to deter the will to join the movement against corruption and support the bill for a stronger ombudsman.

Let me tell you, the last time I saw so many people on the roads was when India won the World Cup. However, this time around the gathering wasn't revelling in victory. Rather it was a gathering of people who were angry. Angry and frustrated with the state of affairs of this country. The lack of governance. The corruption that has engulfed everything. Even the very roads on which the protestors marched bore signs of corrutpion. The so called infrastructure on which crores of rupees are spent for repair and other purposes and which were repaired just 2 months back were nothing short of kuccha roads. And this time, there were people from all sections of society. Young and old, rich and poor..it was India that poured onto the streets. I wonder what the struggle for independence was like.

And since no protest march is complete minus slogans, this rally too had it's fair share of interesting slogans besides of course Inquilab Zindabad and Bharat Mata ki Jai! Sample these:
1. Gali Gali mein shor hai saare neta chor hai!
2. Hamara neta kaisa ho? Anna Hazare jaisa ho!
3. Desh ka youth yahan hai. Rahul Gandhi kahan hai?
4. Desh ki beemari...Manish Tewari!
5. Kapil Sibal..maaro chappal! (x2)
6. Saari sarkar nikammi hai...Sonia iski Mummy hai!

It was a rally of responsible citizens. They made sure that the streets were not left littered. They made sure that ambulances were allowed to pass. They made sure that there were no untoward incidents in a gathering of over a lakh people.

It is on days like these that my faith in spirit of the nation is reaffirmed. We too are capable of bringing about a revolution. A billion voices. United!

Why I Love and Hate the Rains

It's been a while since I've blogged. This was thanks to my internship which consumed the entire week and left me so exhausted by the end of it that all I wanted to do was sleep and watch TV and sleep some more.

So anyway, the monsoons graced Mumbai in the last week of May bringing much respite to the EXTREMELY sultry weather which was so bad that I'm told even the sight of those ridiculous deodorant adverts which feature 'hot' women drooling over the deo owner would repulse them. Hence, you can imagine how bad it was.

As usual, the Municipal body was less than prepared to handle the fury of the rains because in our city, when it rains it pours. And the bylanes and more often than not even the main roads start resembling the Venice of a third world country. And no, these waters don't discriminate. So there are frequent sights to marvel at like the ones when a BMW gets stuck in the middle of the mini pool and the humble autorickshaw is able to manoeuvre it's way through like a badass machine.

Believe you me, if you really want to experience the monsoons Mumbai style, it is highly recommended you travel by public transport just so that you can experience those everlasting memories.

Here are the top 5 reasons why I love the monsoons:

1. The breeze doesn't dehydrate you by the time you reach your destination because more often than not you will NOT find public transport.
2. Since you sweat less, your face doesn't look like that of the Bride of Frankenstein.
3. The rains make it impossible for the eunuchs to corner you at traffic signals and force you into giving them money.
4. The abundant craters and potholes ensure that every part of your body is given adequate workout before you reach your destination. Who cares about those Telebrands exercisers nowadays anyway?
5. And we can be assured that there won't be a water cut next year unless a certain industrialist decides to channelise every drop into his 22 storey Altamount Road wonder.

And here's why I hate them:

1. Because the access-way to the local train stations resembles a landslide site which has to be carefully treaded over. This basically means that I have to trek in my 3 inch stilletoes which basically isn't the ideal situation.
2. Because the local train seats are dripping with water ensuring that you all you can do is stand and stare at the vacant seats while your toes get mutilated. It's like being forced to listen to a Himesh Reshammiya song on TV because you cannot find the remote. Seriously, MTV?
3. Because your phone has to wrapped in several layers to plastic which effectively reduces the ringer volume ensuring atleast 5 missed calls in the span of 2 hours.
4. Because Tata Sky almost never receives signal even during the slightest of drizzle which basically means that I have no access to television till the month of September while my neighbours who've subscribed to the local cable services get uninterrupted transmission. My life is so not jhingalala! x(
5. Because the freaking wind makes my house seem haunted!

And umm, since I can't think of an appropriate ending for this post why don't I leave something for you to chew on:

Ever wondered what would happen if Freaky Friday transpired between Manmohan Singh and Digvijay Singh?!

☺