On Top of Mumbai

Sunset at Juhu Beach

Rooftops always relax me. During the early years of 11^th, 12^th and then college, it was the home rooftop with a picture perfect view of Himalayas. Then in Hyderabad, it was the view of the far away buildings of IT giants - glittering no matter at what hour you see them. In Mysore too there were terrific views of greenery and sunsets at my second house. The romance with rooftop continues here in Mumbai. But the views are entirely different here. The two sides are covered with buildings higher, so as soon as you climb on, you see an array of windows hardly 30 meters away. The one on the right side is a bit far away but as you turn around there is an endless expanse of lights in front of you. As you sit in the slight drizzle of the monsoon shower, earphones plugged, you start seeing different lives – all together. There is a person sitting on his PC, a lonely old lady watching saas bahu soaps, another person praying before going to sleep, a lady preparing food in the kitchen, a girl talking animatedly on her mobile, children playing in their stylish 2 storey beds. The closeness to the Airport ensures a flight rising just in front of you every 5 minutes. Nothing specific I am trying to get to here but just the fact that it was pretty amazing and a new rooftop view for me in this city of dreams – a city which they say runs very fast. Strangely when I see the traffic, the people, the city - all running, I feel that all the while it is trying to run fast, it is getting slowed down.