The lunatic is in my head

‘Na jee paaoge, na jaa paaoge…’ Another year in Mumbai. And boy, has it been another ride. I really did not expect it to be, considering the challenges and experiences I shared in the first blog. But here I am. Writing again. And solely because I want you guys to appreciate the lives of the people from here, people living here, people wanting to live here. What’s the big deal? Why another post? This isn’t anything like a Sacred Games or a Gully Boy, glorifying and fantasising life in Mumbai. This is just more of the same. Hard facts, engagements in real life. And I guess some of you would be interested in it. I got comments and suggestions from people like me, who moved in, about how true I was about whatever I was saying. I had people from here tell me, how they had forgotten about these little things in their process of growing. I had people, who wanted to come here, get freaked about the ways of living and surviving in this city. So, let me go further into narration and tel...

Number of smiles per day You know you see people at work. Everyday. Some people you have come to know for a while. And whenever you see them, you smile at them. Nothing too fancy. Just smile at each other and walk about your business. Then one day, you meet a new person. You talk for some time and inevitably reach a level where enough acquaintance has been made. Now you have to smile at them in addition to the many number of people you were already smiling at. I hate that shit. Almost seen Have you ever tried reading a message when it's still unread on your notification bar? Sometimes you can get away with it. Sometimes, as you're about to read a message, another message pops up and you cannot possibly see what is written in either of these messages. Now, you're online. And you have to answer both these messages. Music video life When I put my headphones on while I'm travelling in a public transport, I imagine my own music video to the parti...

Look… If you had… One short… One really puny… To bring everything you ever wanted… In one moment. Would you choose it? Or just get a grip? Yo… His palms are small, knee-high, his arms are steady There's service in this weather already, tom’s machete He's frivolous, but like a surfer he looks calm and ready To drop you home, but he keeps on forgettin' What he brought down, the whole crowd goes so loud He opens his bag, but the gifts won't come out He's jokin', how, everybody's freakin' now The clocks run out, times up, over, ciao! Snap back to reality, oh there goes clarity, oh, there goes habit, you know, you’re so bad, but you won't, give up that easy, no, you won't have it, you knows the whole city's lost hope, it don't matter, you’re broke, he knows that, but he's forced, he's so scared that he knows, when he goes back to north pole, that's when its back to the dad again, yo, this whole custody. Yo...

'Saab, aap Bumbai mein kaam kar liya toh akkha world mein kidhar bhi kaam kar sakta hai...’ When I had first come to Mumbai as a kid in the mid 1990s, it was called Bombay. I instantly loved the name. It had a bay attached to it. Funny how other port cities did not follow suit. But Bombay in those times was more of a tourist destination than the hardcore industrial hub it is now. I remember people visiting the Gateway of India. Going to beaches for picnics. Enjoying rides in Essel World. They filled movie halls to the brim. At least that’s what I can recollect now. As I grew up, I forgot all about it. Life moved from here to there and I ultimately ended up in the media industry. A few years into work, Mumbai came into conversation and I was psyched to know what the city had become through my growing years. It had become important. Last year, I got a job offer from Mumbai. I was elated. I took it up almost instantly and started making plans for this massive shift. ...

Why do I see a flashlight today? Someone fair is not bright today. Why ain’t the balance white today? Polaroid’s all I got left. I don't know who pressed it first Or how the picture was red. But I know just what the reel’s like That’s lying in the sack instead. Like a face held out in pride. A face that makes you somewhat cry. A face that matches with the colour of pie. A face that mocks everyone that’s tall. (It searches everything) So I know now it's a crime to wink or grin That the face is no more fearing me In spite of being in the recycle bin… It's like my polaroid is cooking a snack It's like the webcam is thoroughly dead It's like I can't let this gearing begin It's like the face on the selfie-stick is, our biggest sin. I know you’ve bought that face for free Points for all the takes you need You've fought a face on the flipside too Your polaroid's probably worse I don't know who set it off first but I ...

Seldom do we wake up late at night from sleep. It might usually stem out of a worry, a fear, a reservation, a secret, an anxiety, a dilemma, a problem, an obstruction, a memory, an illness, or probably a fight.  Sometimes though, we find our eyes following tiny lights and sounds in the room. Here we aren't worried. We're inquisitive. We want answers to questions beyond the scope of our understanding. Like, what if one day we wake up and everything disappears? The guy tailoring our multi-dimensional worlds suddenly leaves a strand running and all just falls apart.  What if then he just stops caring and starts inventing a new universe with more, enhanced planets and life?  What if our world's dilapidation is a step towards its extinction? What if our world is already dead and we are put in this cheap simulation? Go on, ask these questions. But don't expect straight answers. Will we ever find aliens? Or mermaids? Or Red Rakham's treasure?  Are we even l...