Mumbai Coffee House

I thought that all those of years of automotive market research, listening to folks refer to their cars as wife, lover, girlfriend, mistress (the married ones), would have prepared me for today. But no, it is not easy to see your first car go. We had him for more than six years. The time by which most people are onto their third car these days. He was jumpy and would rattle us in the rear seat. An attention seeker if there ever was one. He had the family appetite and would need a refill much earlier than others. He liked being pampered, car window washes, polishes, scrubs, metrosexual's the term I am looking for. Hot headed at times, he would blow hot air though the AC in the sun. Much to my embarrassment if I was with colleagues. Tall, gawky. Chubby. Black as the night. He would get scratched up and covered with mud like a frisky poodle. He would greet me with the biggest smile in car land. Waited patiently while I learnt to drive. And then again when he and I got lost time after

I was walking at Carter Road last evening. Yes , I occasionally do exercise more than my digestive system. I came across a candle march/ forum with Milind Soman standing there. Every girl I knew in college had a crush on him As do most women I know now. Turned out that the gathering was organised by NDTV . A Celebrate Bandra rock show was going on five feet away. It was close to nine o clock and they stopped the band for a few minutes to observe silence. The band joined Soman for a TV grab. A few teens clicking it all on their mobile were asked to join in by the anchor. I resisted the urge to jump in, come on TV and wave at my mom. I marched on, instead, in my war against cholesterol. Without a candle. I have got nothing against candle marches. As Rahul Bose said on CNN IBN yesterday everyone has their own way of coping. Nor am I belittling the attacks because they happened in the 'First World' of South Mumbai . The point that I am trying to make is that there is a lot

Coldly put, Mumbai and Sobo five stars would be the media planner's equivalent of a Times Of India, front page, full page ad. Since then Maoists have gone on a rampage. The Chinese have put on boots and are walking all over Arunachal. Terrorists at Guwahati are competing with those at Peshawar for the most number of bomb blasts in a day. And Qasab does biriyani reviews in Mumbai. Our polity fights over what language to swear in. And over who leaked the report of a seventeen year old study. And for three days news channel programmers don't have to think of new themes to cover. Well at least candle manufacturers will be better off a year after 2611.

I read a very nice link on Facebook today on 2611. The author, someone who has come to Mumbai from Calcutta to work, vented her anguish on the year gone by. Here's the link . It's that time of the year when we have all become cynical again. But why not. Nothing has changed since then has it? There was an interesting reader comment on the same Facebook post which referred to the 'silly debate on Mumbai versus Bombay'. So here, at the risk of getting stoned and tarred, are my two bits on the subject. Mumbai will always be Bombay in my heart. That's because I grew up in an era when Mumbai was Bombay, Chennai was Madras, CST was VT, and Myanmar was Burma. And, in case you are wondering, Kolkata is Calcutta to me. The truth is that Bombay doesn't officially exist anymore. Like it or not, it is Mumbai . And it has been renamed by those who belong to the city. So one can cry for Bombay. Ridicule the change. But Bombay will remain Mumbai . Till it changes again.

I came upon a very well packaged feature on last year's 2611 terror attacks in Times Now today. It's called 'Those who fought for us'. I got hooked onto Times Now during those horrible days when we were all shaken up.The earnest and passionate coverage of Arnab Goswami and his team struck a chord. Watching the programme set me thinking. Qasab's still alive. The Arthur Road Jail road block to keep him safe means that he is till a thorn in the flesh of Mumbaikars . As if reading about his giddiness and pleas for biriyani were not enough to make our blood boil The ministers who were sacked after the attacks are back. One in the same post The government has been re-elected at the Centre and the State While the opposition goes about whacking people for calling Mumbai , Bombay. Pity they didn't try beating up the terrorists who were immigrants to Mumbai too Retired cops are probably trying to get book deals by raking up controversy While the SRPF Jawans who are pr