Mumbai Diaries: The Second Coming

The thing with titles is that they are ridiculously difficult to justify, or is it just me? I have sat and thought and thought and finally it struck me that I’m at my wit’s end, that I, who is regularly complimented on my literary prowess (though it is mediocre at best (please please please disagree with me and tell me I’m better than average) and insipid at the worst) am at a loss of how to tie 3 divergent stories connected only by 2 threads, Me and Mumbai, HEY! That sounds like a good title…but is a bit broad to cover this particular tryst, so let’s just say that it is Me and Mumbai: Shots

So, abstract title done…on to the meat of the bone.

Me and Mumbai: Shots

The intrepid recruiter (shouldn’t this be the Inept Recruiter??) was on the move, and his first assignment was the land of Maratha pride, Maharashtra. Recruitment aside this was a most tough land to compete in and the availability of good human capital always comes at a premium, a premium I could not afford to pay, but these details belong in a business/HR mag and not in a blog about three classy ladies that are in my life, anywho getting back to Maharashtra and the first lady whom I know, this lady “A” is a jovial if somewhat absent minded and is a great working professional, I meeting her goes back to the start of my second professional life and it was a short tryst then, but in her brilliant way she turned that short tryst into a great experience. Sadly, I asked her to take me to Mumbai and subsequently made her miss her own very comfortable air conditioned bus for the favour of a glorified inter-city local bus, but, and I say this gladly, she was really sweet about it even though she might’ve been cursing me under her breath but she never showed an instant of anything but sheer poise, another reason for that behavior maybe because it was my birthday but that would be taking something away from her and this lady, ladies and gentlemen, is a class act.

After being safely saddled in the bus and with directions of where to go and how, I met the second of my classy ladies, and trust me I was not really prepared for a meeting like this. Imagine 11:30 pm in a city that never sleeps and which you are visiting for only the 3^rd or 4th time, add to this the fact that you have a very vague and inaccurate idea of how the local trains operate, add to this that you are carrying about 35 kilograms of baggage and you are not looking remotely like your best. Now that you have imagined that, add the fact that it’s your birthday and you are going to meet someone you have been talking to for 2 and half years but have never met her and this is the first meeting, EVER. And thus I met “Z” the second classy lady; we met at my favourite place in Mumbai i.e. marine drive at night (the clock was ticking away at 12:30 am) and she was lovely, we spoke for the first time, face to face and not through some marvel of modern technology and it was an experience that makes a Birthday absolutely grand. We sat, we chatted and even at 2:30 in the night she was a vision of poise and grace. Offered to drop me home as well, very very classy that.

At 2:30 in the night I took my leave from “Z” and headed to my final destination and the3^rd classy lady of Mumbai, “N” now she works her hands tothe bone and after an 18 hour workday was sleeping intently when I woke her requesting for a placeto crash, tired and grumpy as she was, she still gave me a place to sleep and asked me if I wanted to eat or drink, you see ladies and gentleman class like this is almost non-existent, and for the record I very politely declined her generosity for the comfort of sleep on the makeshift bed she had prepared for me.

I salute you ladies; my life is a little better and a little brighter for having known you on that fateful day.

PS: I and my jaanemann Kava spoke for 2 hours that night, uski shaadi hone waali hai….ab wo meri hone waali bhabi ko kyaa hi samjhaayega.