Mori Road is busy again. Lights, sound and action. It is Mahalaya, the firstday of Navratri. Durga Puja is round the corner. It is time for celebration once more. I remember as kids we used to look forward to the Pujas and my mother used to march the entire family to the tailor and have us measured up. We used to make for a well-attired family by the time Shasthi (the firstday of Durga Puja) would dawn. From the time I was a kid the Puja grew on me and I became increasingly involved with the Puja. I just liked being therewith the wonderful form of Shakti in Godess Durga. This Mahalaya was a bit of a disappointment as my radio decided not to work and hence I spent mostof the time doing some useless introspecting in the wee hours of the morningwhen the Chandi Path is broadcast.
It had been one helluva of year. A true roller coaster ride. It zoomed past too fast I thought. But I guess in Mumbai every second person doing a bit of'introspection' would think the same. It was 4 am in the morning. I thoughtI meditated for some time and then found myself dozing a little. I was really dejected as this was the first time in many years that I would have missed hearing the chanting of the Chandi on Mahalaya. I decided a breath offresh air would do me a world of good and so strolled onto my balcony. The street was quiet and deserted. But it was lit with rows of little tunibulbs. The Pandal mandap was just across the road. Across the street, there was a small fragile rag picker rummaging the garbage can. I could see tha he had a slight limp. Also it was quite a sight to see him lugging a garbagesack that was bigger than him. A little further down the street the local electrician was working perched high up on his ladder. He was trying to fix a section of the lights that were not working. His ladder was rickety andshaky and he kept looking down tentatively now and then to make sure thatthe ladder would keep holding him up. A lone policeman sat on a stool nearthe pandal and watched the electrician work. He looked quite bored and Iguess was waiting for something more meaningful to happen to him.
As I watched, my mind still kept doing action replays for the year gone by.People, places and oh yes...my marriage!! Useless 'introspection' also brings out the half-baked philosopher in me. It is basically a crude attemptat reassuring myself that I still have some concern left for the world andsociety at large and dedicate a five-minute thought for what I can do with my life for the benefit of society, the downtrodden, the poor and do something more 'meaningful' with my life. Well five minutes must have passedpretty fast as I let out another big yawn and found myself thinking that the next day was a working day.
As I was about to turn back, I saw the electrician sway on his ladder. Something he was using fell from his hand. The policeman jumped up andstood. The rag picker also looked up at the electrician. The electrician at this point was trying his best to maintain his balance. It was rather dangerous. The policeman walked across the street and looked up at the ladder and the man perched on top. He then picked up the tool that had fallen down and gestured to the man on top. In the meantime the rag picker had also limped across. He took the tool from the policeman. As the policeman held the ladder together, the rag picker climbed a few rungs up the ladder and handed the tool to the electrician. He came down and also took hold of the ladder with the policeman. The ladder held steadier now.The electrician took the tool and worked on the wires. In a couple of minutes the entire street lit up. All three of them cheered. The electrician got down and thanked both of them. A lone man on a cycle was passing sellingcoffee/chai. There are a lot of them like that I guess in the city forpeople who need a filler in the night. The electrician stopped the cycle and all three of them had coffee/chai together and chatted. As the three strangers chatted animatedly I felt that they had found something in that lonely night. Was it the lights, or the chai or something else? Am not sure.Then both of them helped the rag picker lug his sack across the street. It was dawn and Mahalaya had begun.
I was happy that Pujo was here once again.It was time to celebrate. Another yawn. It was time to hit the bed again.Mori Road will be busy again for the next nine days.I wish all of you a very happy Durga Puja and as usual, my standing invitation to visit Mori Road and my balcony whenever you want to 'see' astreet. I am going to the tailor with my wife tomorrow to make it forShasthi. See you all.
It had been one helluva of year. A true roller coaster ride. It zoomed past too fast I thought. But I guess in Mumbai every second person doing a bit of'introspection' would think the same. It was 4 am in the morning. I thoughtI meditated for some time and then found myself dozing a little. I was really dejected as this was the first time in many years that I would have missed hearing the chanting of the Chandi on Mahalaya. I decided a breath offresh air would do me a world of good and so strolled onto my balcony. The street was quiet and deserted. But it was lit with rows of little tunibulbs. The Pandal mandap was just across the road. Across the street, there was a small fragile rag picker rummaging the garbage can. I could see tha he had a slight limp. Also it was quite a sight to see him lugging a garbagesack that was bigger than him. A little further down the street the local electrician was working perched high up on his ladder. He was trying to fix a section of the lights that were not working. His ladder was rickety andshaky and he kept looking down tentatively now and then to make sure thatthe ladder would keep holding him up. A lone policeman sat on a stool nearthe pandal and watched the electrician work. He looked quite bored and Iguess was waiting for something more meaningful to happen to him.
As I watched, my mind still kept doing action replays for the year gone by.People, places and oh yes...my marriage!! Useless 'introspection' also brings out the half-baked philosopher in me. It is basically a crude attemptat reassuring myself that I still have some concern left for the world andsociety at large and dedicate a five-minute thought for what I can do with my life for the benefit of society, the downtrodden, the poor and do something more 'meaningful' with my life. Well five minutes must have passedpretty fast as I let out another big yawn and found myself thinking that the next day was a working day.
As I was about to turn back, I saw the electrician sway on his ladder. Something he was using fell from his hand. The policeman jumped up andstood. The rag picker also looked up at the electrician. The electrician at this point was trying his best to maintain his balance. It was rather dangerous. The policeman walked across the street and looked up at the ladder and the man perched on top. He then picked up the tool that had fallen down and gestured to the man on top. In the meantime the rag picker had also limped across. He took the tool from the policeman. As the policeman held the ladder together, the rag picker climbed a few rungs up the ladder and handed the tool to the electrician. He came down and also took hold of the ladder with the policeman. The ladder held steadier now.The electrician took the tool and worked on the wires. In a couple of minutes the entire street lit up. All three of them cheered. The electrician got down and thanked both of them. A lone man on a cycle was passing sellingcoffee/chai. There are a lot of them like that I guess in the city forpeople who need a filler in the night. The electrician stopped the cycle and all three of them had coffee/chai together and chatted. As the three strangers chatted animatedly I felt that they had found something in that lonely night. Was it the lights, or the chai or something else? Am not sure.Then both of them helped the rag picker lug his sack across the street. It was dawn and Mahalaya had begun.
I was happy that Pujo was here once again.It was time to celebrate. Another yawn. It was time to hit the bed again.Mori Road will be busy again for the next nine days.I wish all of you a very happy Durga Puja and as usual, my standing invitation to visit Mori Road and my balcony whenever you want to 'see' astreet. I am going to the tailor with my wife tomorrow to make it forShasthi. See you all.
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