Maximum City

Bombay is home to 17 million Indians, most of whom have come to the Island City in quest of their livelihood. Being the second most poulated city after Shanghai, Bombay also holds the unique distinction of having the most densely populated metropolitan area in the world. To give you a baseline, NYC has a population density of 26000/sq. mile, whereas Bombay has a density of 117000/sq. mile. The trains in Bombay known as "locals", carry 6 million passengers everyday, making it the most densely packed transport system in the world. At peak hours, there are upto 16 commuters standing in one square meter and the trains are packed upto 3 times their regular capacity. Bombay contributes to 33% of income tax, 60% of customs duty collections, and 40% of India's foreign trade. The people of Bombay come from all over India and even from all over the world. The diversity that splits Bombay is the same that sustains it.

Poets, writers, historians, journalists, film-makers alike have tried to describe Bombay. They have called it a city, a temptress, a power, an addiction. The big bad city, the city that does not sleep, that dreams with its eyes open. The city of hope and despair, of aplenty and scarcity, city of dreams and nightmare city. The city where the towering heights of glamour look upon the filth of poverty. A heartless city whose tales of compassion bring tears to the eyes. A city of infallible spirit, a city that vibrates with each of its million people. A city that is not slowed down by bomb blasts, riots, floods and earthquakes. City of excesses. Maximum City.

But Bombay is all this and much more. I wouldn't dare to describe the essence of this megapolis. The fact is, many have tried to fathom what makes this city and its people tick and have failed. Bombay is a nation unto itself. It allows itself to be ruled by the powers that are, but it rejects any change in its being. It changes the people that come to it and is changed by them. But it shrugs off any effort to change its essence.

I have been following closely the recent floods that hit Bombay. Bombay has never learned succumb, not even to nature. I read stories of the hardships people went through as they fought to keep their chin above the water. The floods brought out the worst in Bombay in terms of governance and disaster management ability. It also brought out the best in Bombay - the innate goodness of the people who do not shy away from extending a helping hand. I read the stories of buses and cars and motor cycles and autorickshaws that plied through the streets, taking stranded Mumbaikars from one place to another. Of people getting out of their cozy homes and wading through waist-high water to bring succour to stranded Mummbaikars. Of people putting their life in danger to save the life of a stranger. I read these stories with an ever tightening gut wrenching longing for my beloved city. Maximum City.

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