From last Friday, it has become very hot in Amsterdam. The temperature varies between 25-35 degree Celsius. The skirts are getting shorter and the neckline deeper. A real treat for our eyes. The situation has reversed in Mumbai.
I talked to mom today and she said that it was raining heavily in Mumbai. The news on all the Internet portals confirms the news. Even CNN showed it as news yesterday. So its really pouring cats and dog in Mumbai.
I am talking to my friends in Mumbai and the city hasn’t come to a standstill yet. The trains are late but running. The BEST buses wade through knee-deep water. I bet the attendance in the office would be not that bad. I assume it is more than 85%.
One of the best things about Mumbai is the monsoon when after a hot summer, rains tend to cool everything. The summers in Mumbai are hot and humid. The fans and the ACs never shut down.
Then the rains arrive. For some strange reason, the first rain was always supposed to be on 8th June. No particular reason. Even if it was the first drizzle, it had to be 8th June. This year the monsoons are late.
When it rains, it rains like anything in Mumbai. The nallas become full. The gutters overflow. The trees fall and there are potholes on the road. The start of monsoon coincides with the start of school. I remember buying raincoats with new books and bags and ofcourse the rainy shoes. I used to use the raincoat until the fourth standard. However, it was too much effort to wear and carry the raincoat. It was always the umbrella for me from then on even though it could not protect me from heavy rains.
It was always difficult for me to choose between sandals and shoes in rainy season. The socks use to get wet and soggy in the shoes and while walking would make the funny sound of water in the shoes. Once I had bought gumboots too. They hurt my feet. Removing water from the boots was another daunting task. The feet used to get wrinkled up. Once in the classroom, off went the shoes and socks. It use to feel wonderful with cold feet and cold air and raindrops falling on the glass windows of the classroom. Weekends was fun too with everybody in the house sleeping and we children use to make tents of the umbrellas left for drying.
There was a gutter near our school and in heavy rainwater use to flow toward the sea. My friends and me would make small boats and watch the race of the boats as the rushing water carried the boats until it disappeared under the road. Sometimes this paper boats would be replaced by small sticks.
Mumbai monsoon is funny. When it pours, it pours like its going to submerge everything and then follows it by long dry spells which looks like it never would rain again. And when it pours, the water level rises. The BMC (Brihinmumbai Municipal Corporation) every year promises a flood-free monsoon and every year water floods road and drains.
Heavy rains hit the lifeline of Mumbai, the Local trains and the BEST buses. The western line is the most stable of the three routes in Mumbai. The Harbor line goes down first during every monsoon. It’s a common joke about harbor line that it will stop even if somebody pisses on the tracks. I use to travel on the route and once during heavy rains the tracks was filled with water that I couldn’t see the tracks. It looked like the train was floating on water.
When the rain pours and the cold wind blows and everything becomes wet, that is the time when you make your trip to the near-by Vada Pao stall. A hot Vada pao with a cutting chai is the menu to be. If you can get onion bhajias and hot chilly chatni, then its real heaven. Its fun when you stand under the tarpaulin fluttering in the wind trying hard to save your vada pao and chai from the rainwater. I remember how many vada paos and chai I have relished in the cold Mumbai monsoon.
Rain also brings the memories of playing football in the rain. We stay near a creek and there was this vast flat land. So every Sunday after a good rain, we use to play football in the muddy ground. Just two teams and no rules. Many would fall but that would not hurt much because of the mud. The only person who didn’t like rainy football was my mom. She had a hard time finding the real color of my muddy clothes.
One of my favorite pastimes during heavy rain when going out is restricted was listening to music. The old Kishore Kumar songs are my favorite. Not many songs have been able to portray Mumbai rain with all its beauty. I can remember two best picturised song in Mumbai rain and surprisingly both are directed by Basu Chatterjee.
The first one is from Jitendra/Neetu Singh starrer “Priyatama”. A drenched Neetu Singh is shown going to meet Jitendra in the opening credits of the movie. I don’t remember the song but the Mumbai monsoon mood was captured beautifully.
Another song with Mumbai rains is from Amitabh Bachchan and Moushumi Chatterjee starrer “Manzil”. The movie again by Basu Chatterjee shows Amitabh and Moushumi roaming around in Mumbai. Both are wet and Kishore Kumar sings in the background
Rimjhim Gire Sawan
Sulag Sulag Jaaye Mann
Bheege Aaj Is Mausam Mein
Lagi Kaisi Yeh Agan
A song where love and rains meet to create magic. Hats off to RD for the wonderful song and Basu Chatterjee for making the Mumbai rains memorable.
Nice post..Check out my blog ChutneySpears for a post on how Mumbai can be made into Shanghai
Another lovely one, Punds.
Does the monsoon coincide with the start of school? Interesting!
More Vada Paos and now Onion Bhajias! 😛
I’ll try to listen to those songs…
Monica
Monica
You can listen to the song here
http://www.raaga.com/channels/hindi/movie/H000186.html
Punds
Lovely. Thanks, Punds!
Monica
oh yes – lovely post. Even tho I’m not a fan of the rains in Bombay, for the sheer relief its a welcome thing. And totally touche on the vada pavs and kanda bhajiyas..hai, hai..
You said it …. Mumbai rains are one of the most romantic / memorable things.
And I agree again … no Hindi movie song has caught the magic of Mumbai Rains the way it has been shown in the song “Rim Jhim Gire Saawan”.
Here, I would like to add another thing about film songs & Mumbai … the song which has best captured the lovely life in BEST buses … “Jaaneman jaaneman tere 2 nayan .. chori chori leke gaye dekho mera man” … where part of the song is in an actual, normal passenger filled BEST Bus.
great posts my friend ….. you keep reminding me of all the things in that wonderful city which I have been missing since so long.
Thank U.
Taks