Yeh hai Bombay meri Jaan..

An ode to the city, which thought me everything in life…….the lyrics of this song capture the true essence of the city..

Aye Dil Hai Mushkil Jeena Yahan

Zara Hat Ke Zara Bach Ke, Yeh Hai Bombay Meri Jaan

Ha Haa, Ha Ho Ho, Ho Hi Haa Ha Haa

Hm Hm Hm Hm, Hm Hm Hm , Hm Hm Hm Hm Hm

Aye Dil Hai..

(Kahin Building Kahin Traame, Kahin Motor Kahin Mill

Milta Hai Yahan Sab Kuchh Ik Milta Nahin Dil)

Insaan Ka Nahin Kahin Naam-o-nishaan

Zara Hat Ke Zara Bach Ke, Yeh Hai Bombay Meri Jaan

Aye Dil Hai..

(Kahin Satta, Kahin Patta Kahin Chori Kahin Res

Kahin Daaka, Kahin Phaaka Kahin Thokar Kahin Thes)

Bekaaro Ke Hain Kai Kaam Yahan

Zara Hat Ke Zara Bach Ke, Yeh Hai Bombay Meri Jaan

Aye Dil Hai..

(Beghar Ko Aawara Yahan Kehte Has Has

Khud Kaate Gale Sabke Kahe Isko Business)

Ik Cheez Ke Hain Kai Naam Yahan

Zara Hat Ke Zara Bach Ke, Yeh Hai Bombay Meri Jaan

Aye Dil Hai..

 (Bura Duniya Woh Hai Kehta Aisa Bhola Tu Na Ban

Jo Hai Karta Woh Hai Bharta Hai Yahan Ka Yeh Chalan)

Tadbeer Nahin Chalne Ki Yahan

Yeh Hai Bombay, Yeh Hai Bombay, Yeh Hai Bombay Meri Jaan

Aye Dil Hai Mushkil Jeena Yahan

Zara Hat Ke Zara Bach Ke, Yeh Hai Bombay Meri Jaan

Aye Dil Hai Aasaa Jeena Yahan

Suno Mister, Suno Bandhu, Yeh Hai Bombay Meri Jaan

Aye Dil Hai Mushkil Jeena Yahan

Zara Hat Ke Zara Bach Ke, Yeh Hai Bombay Meri Jaan….

I miss you Bombay!

From Periphery to infinity.....

After the bumpy and visually appealing ride to “Chor bazaar”, I am back with another interesting aspect of Bombay, the place I am now taking you to be popular in the world as the largest slum and is known as “Dharavi”. My title signifies Dharavi if one were to trace the history of Dharavi. Dharavi is an area sandwiched between Sion and Bandra. Sion or sheev in Marathi literally means the outermost area. Bombay back than had Sion at its outer tip though today it has become the central part of Bombay and so has Dharavi grown from being the periphery of Bombay to reaching the stage of infinity. Some quick facts about dharavi-

• It’s a perfect blend of different cultures, with people of different origins setting the place up.
• Migrants from Gujarat established potter’s colony, and Maharashtrian tanners of the Charmarkar caste built the leather tanning industry. Artisans, from Uttar Pradesh, started the ready-made garments trade. The other large influx was of the Tamil Muslims and Nadars.
• A majority of the residents of Dharavi today belong to the dalit caste but various other castes and tribes are also present. Minorities include Christians, Muslims and Buddhists.
• Apart from traditional pottery and textile industries in Dharavi, there is an increasingly large recycling industry, processing recyclable waste from other parts of Mumbai. Financial services are significant; the district has an estimated 15,000 single-room factories.
• World’s best quality leather bags and goods are stitched or made in Dharavi as it provides skilled and cheap labour, this bags or goods are then labeled and branded in the respective countries, but they are born and nurtured in Dharavi.
• The inhabitants who lived in Dharavi have generations of their ancestors living in Dharavi, so it’s not just the poor but the rich inhabitants also want to live in the same place for the love they have for the place.
•  Dharavi has always been very popular in all the blockbuster bollywood films from the cult Deewar to Mira Nair's Salaam Bombay! . Where several child actors were from the Dharavi slum.  
• Other famous movies were Parinda ,Black Friday ,Traffic Signal , Rajeev Khandelwal's Aamir (2008), and various other films based on the Mumbai underworld. Several films by Mani Ratnam based on the experiences of Tamil immigrants to Mumbai have depicted the Dharavi slum, including Nayagan (1987) and Bombay (1995).
• Dharavi features prominently in Danny Boyle's Oscar winning 2008 film Slumdog Millionaire, where several of the child actors in the film are from the Dharavi slum.
• Dharavi has severe problems with public health, due to the scarcity of toilet facilities, compounded by the flooding during the monsoon season.
• As of November 2006 there was only one toilet per 1,440 residents in Dharavi. Mahim Creek, a local river, is widely used by local residents for urination and defecation, leading to the spread of contagious disease. The area also suffers from problems with inadequate water supply.Nevertheless Dharavi is still an integral part of Mumbai......                                                                                          

Midnight Madness @ Chor Bazaar…

Here I come back with the most exciting city, Bombay. After the dark lanes of Kamathipura, I now take you back to the seductive metropolis with its perpetual jammed roads and lanes and in one of this busy lanes resides the famous bazzar called as Chor Bazzar. It is one of the largest flea markets in India. Though officially it is known as Mohamed Ali Road it is popularly known as “Chor Bazaar”. It is of great interest to many tourists as well as localities as it offers a host of things and is a visual treat to the travel junkies like me.

 One can find Chor bazzar full of bargain-hungry tourists rummage the market for Ming vases and Muranos, which are available at throwaway prices. The main avenue of Chor bazzar is Mutton Street, which is flanked by rows of little antique shops that look like musty attics and sell just about anything at bargain prices from old ship parts, grandfather clocks, gramophones, to crystal chandeliers and old English tea sets antiques at throwaway prices, including colonial-era lamps, Art Deco clocks and trinkets of every kind. A store called Mini Market also offers old Bollywood posters for sale; the shop has old and rare posters of many bollywood movies, which again is a visual treat to movie lovers like me.

 The other shops of this lane offers authentic Victorian furniture, wonderful for browsers, antiquarians and restorers and also filmmakers, one can find many set designers scouting Chor bazaar in and out for artifacts to beautify the film sets. Apparently lots of artifacts seen in Devdas were actually taken in from this bazaar as suggested by the shop owners. Although bargains are sometimes staggering, most of the shop owners are pretty street smart and haggling is considered mandatory otherwise the shopkeepers could easily take the unsavvy art collector for a ride, so brush up on your art before you go!.

Talking about the midnight madness of this place, the bazaar 'opens' every Friday and the 'timings' are from 4am to 7 am. Anything anyone that has ever lost in India can be found there. The most expensive watches, and even the cheapest ones are displayed together, CDs, games, electronic stuff, and clothes anything at all. The bazaar is basically a series of 'galli's' intertwined and with several openings onto the main roads. One of the interesting aspects of these lanes is “Red Galli”, which is a shoe lover’s paradise. All shoes that have ever sinned are sent here. One can find branded to really expensive looking shoes being taken out from old gunny bags and rucksacks the twist to the story is you can’t really differentiate if they are real or fake. This midnight bazaar has practically all the things you would want to buy or you dream to buy at throwaway prices. And this fanfare closes by 8.30 am in the morning for the obvious reasons. Such is the mad and chaotic world of Chor Bazaar.

I would like to conclude by a popular saying about this area,

 “If you lose anything in Mumbai you can buy it back from the "chor bazaar". So next time if you are in Mumbai Go explore this mad world of Chor bazaar but be cautious about your own pockets while you are in the market. After all it Chor Bazaar…

Mumbai’s Underbelly

I dedicate my first blog to the city I crave, long and desire to be with Bombay…I like to call it Bombay…because fell in love with Bombay as a kid. Changing it into Mumbai makes me feel as though some body is changing the entity of the city that I treasure as mine. But what do I say about this city that hasn’t been told before …one can find several books and movies on Bombay. Each depicting a new flavour and a new side to the city. But I bring out this blog to you talking about the underbelly of Bombay-the forbidden areas which though have all the politically incorrect  things happening in them but are still a part of the bigger picture called Bombay. Bombay has always been associated with Glamour, Underworld, Power and money…So in my upcoming blogs I will take you to the forbidden lanes of Bombay….So tighten your seat belts and be ready to zoom into this lanes……Watch out this space…more updates coming your way…