Like the fourth seat
rushikeshgk2they say one has to live life king size but wasn't monarchy abolished? Why even dream of royalty when even living like a pauper is difficult? But one can't live…
Dreams of Freedom
I often dream of a cliff which overlooks the sea waves crashing over at the base looking down is scary But look across and you see the wide horizon stretching…
Escaping to the Coast – Erangal & Dana Pani
There are a few places in Mumbai which have endured the onslaught of development and stuck to their original forms. The reasons behind them vary but the villages of the…
The Bookshop
A bookstore is always a nice place to be at. Especially those who have stacks of books everywhere. No categorisation, no cataloging. Old books and new. Hardly read and read…
Chasing Sunsets
Have you noticed how sunsets are a silent wonder? The setting sun radiates its glow and turns everything golden. Your visual senses are activated fully and you are drawn to…
Dreams
There are many kinds of dreams. Certain dreams help us to sleep better. You wake up restful when you have had those dreams. You wake up with a promise in…
A Warm Sunny Day
There is not a day that passes when I don't think of that warm sunny day. That warm sunny day which may or may not have passed. It definitely has…
Embracing the Distress
The heat of the day is difficult to deal with. But that is precisely why one must embrace it. So over the past week, I have been making it a…
Migrants in Colaba
Every month a visit to the local saloon brings new insights and stories. Today, Monday, most hair cutting parlours are shut. It's their weekly off. But I was lucky to…
A Tale of Two Colonies
Certain neighbourhoods hold precious memories. These pockets of nostalgia are retained in these neighbourhoods. A jog down memory lane means exactly that when you visit these areas. One such neighbourhood…
Sweet Sticky Rice & Mango
Sticky rice and mango. What a delightful combination. Today a friend of mine cooked it for us. He sourced the rice from Assam, another friend brought the coconut milk from…
Birds
The Oriental Magpie Robin is a songster, he sings for a mate, sometimes with a mate. I see two of them, a happy pair, trying to build a nest. This…
Hanging Out By The Tracks
The Suburban rail network of Mumbai is inextricably linked to the lives of the city dwellers. It is even more embedded in the lives of those who live next to…
The Heat Wave Washeth Over
The heat wave is washing over the city. The humidity is at an all time high. Now I'm not the one complaining. I'm good with warm sunny days. It is…
Choti Si Baat & Other Stories
A day at the Jackson Tolaram Company doesn’t seem so bad. You arrive at 10 and punch out at 5. There is a long lunch break. And grade 2 promotions…
Bhelpuri
What a great Indian innovation. Puffed rice, fried lentils, peanuts, some basic vegetables - TOP (tomatoes, onions, potatoes), some chutneys and sev - all mixed nicely, served in a rolled…
A Syncretic City
Where I grew up, we were always surrounded by three places of worship. The temple of the village goddess - Jarimari, the Madina Masjid and the Our Lady of Remedy…
The Power of Now
One of the greatest human fallacies is the wait for tomorrow. Tomorrow never comes, they say. Tomorrow never dies, if you ask Mr. Bond. But tomorrow is just too far…
Sold on the Streets
The other day at Hill Road, at one of the many stores I saw something peculiar. Branded stuff available at fixed rate. Now one of the two is acceptanle but…
like a merry-go-round
Silent lanes, criss cross each other5th Road, 10th Road, Carter RoadQuiet homes stand tall over meLit with warm yellow lights Like a street urchinI look up longingly into these homesWhere…
Losing Myself
Where does one truly belong? It's a question that haunted me and kept me up at night. Am I produce of the city's slums or now another hobobbing faux elite?…
A noise filled world
What do you absolutely detest? I detest noise. Source of the noise doesn't matter. Noise which disrupts the silence. But it's not always auditory noise. Like the great Daniel Kanheman…
Punishable Offence
Sweaty brows have returned. It is 745 am and the sun is beating down upon my brow. I look to the north but there is no sign of the train.…
Story of Sewri Fort & The Siege of Bombay
The eastern seafront of Bombay has not featured in popular imagination in recent times. However, with the advent of the Eastern Freeway, a lot more traffic flows through or rather…
Old Times
What happens when you catch up with people after a decade? A decade is a fairly long time for a tectonic shift in people's personalities. But to see that not…
What’s the word
Each time you struggle to articulate your ideas, it's mostly because of the words that elude you. A bad vocabulary is okay but what happens when a word fails to…
A Walk Across the Maidan
The grass is nice and warm at Oval Maidan in the evenings. If you are lucky, you may find a friendly cat sitting and observing the world, as cats always…
Bombay Fast Musings
Where do needs end and wants begin? What comes first. With limited means, needs take over. What happens when needs are beyond your means? How does one make ends meet?…
Energy Sappers
There is very little written about energy sappers Those people and things and moments Which steal the good life from you Absolute thieves of joy and happiness They make life…
Build Something
There is magic in creating something. Building something. Watching it come alive. It could be anything. A business or a book. A house or a household. It's all part of…