Wednesday, April 13, 2005

A City you just might fall in love with

There are very few cities that I love like I love my hometown of Calcutta. A huge part of it is simply because I spent 18 long years here before moving out in search of greener pastures a lot is also because of the city itself. This city has a heart that beats, and an endearing nature unparalleled in most cities at least in this country.

Unlike Delhi it simply couldn’t care less who you were in terms of status, power or money but is more bothered about the value systems and character that you are made up of.

Unlike Bombay it has time for itself and others and is not lost in a mad rush having no idea where it’s going. It does not move fast simply for the thrill of it but rather savours every moment of this journey we call life.

Unlike Chennai it doesn’t make outsiders feel out of place at every given opportunity but welcomes them and in its genial nature makes everyone a part of one big whole.

This is also not a city where you can come as a tourist for even a week and feel u know something about the city. You could have seen it but you wouldn’t have known it. As Tagore once puts it aptly “Tate chena shuno hoy, jana shuno hoy na”

Anyway so it has always been a dream of mine to take this one amazing lady I will meet, around my city, following which she will fall in love with both me and my city and then we ll make movies about us!

Since, “I dream about movies they won’t make of me when I’m dead” I ll be very glad to take any friend of mine around this city on a totally platonic platform (absolutely non romantic for me if that’s what u want but I can’t guarantee u won’t fall in love with the city) and make u experience if possible what makes this city to difficult to forget.

Insensitivity?

I have always marvelled at our insensitivity. Whenever we hear of some pain, suffering or sadness we get considerably moved but after some time when the moment is gone we return to my normal life and do nothing much about those things which barely some time ago had moved me so much. This continues till the next tingle comes along but after that the cycle just repeats itself. I wonder if its plain laziness or inertia but whatever it may be it restricts us as human beings and lowers us if nowhere else then in our own eyes. What do we do about it? Guess the best thing is “Start Me Up”