I was born in what was then known as Bombay. “Bombay” is an Anglicization of the Portuguese name “Bombaim,” which is believed to derive from the phrase “Bom Bahia,” or “Good Bay.” (Portugal held territories in western India until 1961). It was what the city was called, internationally and by the local residents alike. It is now Mumbai. That is Marathi named after the famous local deity, Mumbadevi.
I have been living just 180 kms away from Mumbai for the past 26 years. I used to visit Mumbai often till the traffic in Mumbai became too much for me to cope with. I now go near it but do not cross the creek to enter the island. Mumbai is the city where I have spent maximum number of years of my working life after Pune where I currently live.
It is said that you can take a Mumbaikar out of Mumbai but you cannot take Mumbai away from a Mumbaikar. I am nostalgic for the city. I still have a great many friends there with whom I am in regular touch and in fact will be participating in a reunion on the 28th.
Please spend three minutes watching this youtube clip on the city that never sleeps to understand why I still have affectionate memories about it.
“I found Bombay and opium, the drug and the city, the city of opium and the drug Bombay” – Jeet Thayil
Jeet’s Necropolis, A Novel is one of the more realistic depictions of Bombay’s underbelly. But every city/town/village in the world has such underbellies. Bombay is in many respects not as bad as some of the other places that I know of.
Great video, but I will pass on the crowds. 🙂
Cheerful Monk recently posted..Performance Reviews
So will I. Age has spoiled us.
I think the hardest thing for me and probably others – would be the human mass, that seems to be just everywhere. But I guess as you become to be part of the city, you become part of the people yourself and you find your way…
Yes, in India, they will come out of every nook and corner and you will never be away from people anywhere.
a beautifully made little film. i like his voice. and i like what he said.
it’s a beautiful city. but like all cities everywhere… crowded and loud and busy!
i’m sure the energy it generates is contagious. just too much for me now.
like you said in your reply to monk. i agree!
tammy j recently posted..blowing the bugle
I am content in Pune which too is rapidly becoming like Mumbai but I am quite safe with enough space where I live and loaf about.
Hi Rummy,
Beautiful people in Mumbai, eh? It does seem chaotic but at the same time there’s a beauty to it, isn’t there?
Thank you for you sharing the Bom BaÃa 🙂
Cheers
Max Coutinho recently posted..The Brazilian President’s UNGA 2016 Speech: Nuclear Threats
Yes, you have articulated it well. There is indeed a beauty there which can be heartwarming or breaking depending on the context.