My weird experience of Mumbai

Like most of us, everything I knew about this city was from Bollywood. I knew that it is very crowded and costly but seeing or experiencing that personally is an entirely different thing. So, here comes the perspective of a Delhite (Noida se hun, Delhi se nhi; pr Noida waale bahar apne aap ko delhi se batate hain) who visited this place for the first time. I boarded my flight on the 11 August 2019 from IGI Airport, Delhi. As my flight was about to land, I looked outside the window and what I saw was quite unique, entire mountain ranges of bright blue color just like an ocean but as my flight moved further down, I saw entire mountain peaks covered with small huts covered with blue plastic sheets. It was a huge slum and it was depressing to look at with skyscrapers on the other side of the city. I landed there and waited for half an hour to get my luggage, just for the fact Mumbai airport is far better than Delhi's. 

I moved out of the airport, booked a prepaid taxi (Non-AC) and it charged me 710 rupees for the travel of 30 km. Booking the cab made me realize how expensive Mumbai really is. Few days before coming to Mumbai, I was talking to a friend of mine who was recently shifted there and jokingly he said to me that Mumbai is India's own New York. Paying 710 made me realize what he actually meant the other day. The next day, my roommate had a similar experience where he also paid 950 rupees for a mere distance of 30 km. Coming back to my taxi ride, I rolled out of the airport, and within a few hundred meters, I was shocked to see myself in a really densely populated area. Generally, airports are designed away from residential places but not in Mumbai. Moving through the heavy traffic, I reached near Powai lake, it was filled with buildings that looked like the old Roman empire but much taller than those. I always wanted to go there as I had heard quite a lot about Powai lake from my brother and friends. For those who don't know about Powai lake, it is just beside IIT Bombay, the holiest place for every engineering aspirant in India.

Another thing which I found quite abnormal was people drying their clothes on the side rails of highways. Mumbai is famous for its rains, and I witnessed it on the very first day, the unusual thing which I noticed was the parking of bikes under the highway and that too on the right side of it. Who the hell designs the footpath on the right side of the road?
The biggest celebration of any festival that you'll see in India is probably the 'Ganapati visarjan' that is celebrated for weeks in entire Maharashtra. I liked it first, there were DJ's everywhere blasting Bollywood music but soon I realized that it is becoming a nuisance. I can't listen to loud music for 10 continuous days and especially after 10 PM. I had work to finish but peace was not to be found in those 10 days. After a few weeks, the celebration of 'Krishna Janmashtmi' starts, and all the music is making you deaf again, I wondered, how come Mumbaikars are so free to celebrate these festivals for such an extended period of time?

There are so many things that happened in the last 4-5 months and it is almost impossible to write all those down but your first Local train experience is something that you won't forget ever. I was ready to face the crowd but as soon as I entered the station, chaos was prevailing everywhere. People were shouting something in Marathi ( I guess it was something 'aage bado'), it literally felt like a war, something similar to the 'Infinity War' sequence when the final battle begins and everyone does a war cry. A few moments later, I find one of my friends stuck in the crowd, I grabbed his hand and literally pulled him out of the gate. The next time in Local was no better, a lady around the age of 40 just fell off in front of me as she was hanging from the door, not by choice though. People here have got this weird habit of hanging out of the doors even if the train is empty, just like auto drivers who always occupies the right side of their seat even when no one is sitting in front seats beside them.

Food (Dine-out) is way costly here and the street food options are also limited. Who the fuck eats a samosa with a Pao, its a shame for all the samosa lovers. If you ask people for a roti they'll give you tandoori roti and if asked for a chapati they'll bring a maida roti (the one which is generally used in rolls). You pay 400 bucks for a salad at an average cafe. God knows whether this is costly or I've been raised in a poor family thus finding all this a little too much.

Rent is something that is actually comparable to cities like Manhattan and others. At Hiranandani, you'll be paying 1.5-2 lakhs rent per month for 1000 sq. ft apartment. My single room in Airoli, Navi Mumbai costs me 21000 (without food and electricity) which is shared by three people. Half of the Mumbaikars haven't seen what a balcony is, there is just a window, that'll be covered by a net. You literally feel like a caged bird in your own house (Below picture is taken from my room window). Commuting for 5 hours daily is fairly common here because people can't afford to rent out in the main city.

Not everything is bad here though, few perks of living in Mumbai is that you have a  lot of old cafes and bars to chill out. Nightlife is good, but of no use to people like me, who doesn't drink. It is easy to pick girls in bars and pubs as compared to any other city. People don't judge you even if you are seen kissing publicly, not because people are good here, only because they are so busy that they just want to reach their home and relax. It's much safer for girls to get out even at 2 AM. All and all there isn't a city like this, if you are rich it's a very enjoyable place otherwise you'll have to compromise a lot on your living conditions.  

Do know that 'auto walas' are bosses here.