Watched movie "Black Friday" today, A movie based on the very famous serial blasts in Mumbai. To be precise, 1993 blasts of Mumbai, 'cause in the last few years the town has been a target of so many blasts that a few more may make the citizens of this city insensitive to the agony of the blasts(if they haven't become insensitive to them already)
This same point brings to me the famous "Undying spirit of Mumbai".
This spirit is saluted each and everytime there is any threat on the city, may it be bomb blasts, floods, electricity failure or anything. Each time the way the Mumbaikers get up the very next day and get back to work has been hailed by many as the ultimate salute to the undying spirit of humanity.
It really is different from other cities. After 9/11, New York was not normal for many days. London shook for many days even after the blasts. But Mumbai, UP & READY THE VERY NEXT DAY.
But, being an outsider, having never lived in Mumbai, to me this spirit does not seem to be a salute to the humanity. (I might not be the right person to comment on this topic, but you can say that I am misutilising my right of speech)
So is this really the undying spirit of Mumbai or is it something else.....
Is it the resignation to the fact that to survive in this city you have to behave normally or otherwise you will not survive?
or is it the resignation to the fate itself by the mumbaikers?
To me it seems a combination of both. The way the Govt's after Govt's have failed in providing basic necessities to the city, it is but natural that the citizens will resign themselves to the fate that whatever is being provided is all they can get.(It is not that other govt's of other states have performed any better) & to improve your living conditions all YOU can do is work day in and day out.
So, you cann't avoid getting up everyday and being a part of the rat race again irrespective of the environment around you.
So I come back to the original question. "Is it the undying spirit of Mumbai?"
May be or may not be. I guess citizens of Mumbai are in the best position to answer this question 'cause they are the ones who understand this city better than anyone else. However I can just continue my incoherent babbling......
Sayonara.....
Ankush Singla
