Published in HT Cafe on March 9, 2010. Page 20 Buying milk in Mumbai is so asy, it’s absurd. The `kirana’ shop only has Amul Shakti when you prefer Taaza? No problem, the shopkeeper can probably source your preferred milk from a nearby store. Don’t feel like making the long 200-metre trek to the shop? [...]
Archive for the ‘Mumbai’ Category
What makes Mumbai special…
Posted in Mumbai, Published articles, tagged Hindustan Times, Micro-moneylending, Mumbai, Street vendors on March 11, 2010 | 1 Comment »
A lesson in humanity, or something like that
Posted in Mumbai, Uncategorized, tagged Class, Life, Mumbai, Public transportation on September 22, 2009 | 6 Comments »
So, I got in an accident today. It was one of those stupid, extremely avoidable ones that left an (equally avoidable) bad taste in everyone’s mouths. My friend and I were on a motorcycle, driving very responsibly for the most part. We were less than five minutes from our destination when my friend decided to [...]
This Ganesh Chaturthi, please think: “What would Tilak do?”
Posted in Environment, Mumbai, Religion, tagged Ganesh Chaturthi, India, Mumbai, Religion, Sanitation, Urban on August 28, 2009 | 4 Comments »
After ten long days of prayer and celebration, of dancing on the streets and recklessly blocking traffic, of beating drums and reciting devotional bhajans, it will be time to bid farewell to Lord Ganesh. Ganesh, widely regarded as the bringer of prosperity and remover of obstacles, will not slip away unnoticed. Rather, devotees will make [...]
Voyeurism 2.0: If you can’t beat ‘em, make ‘em socially responsible
Posted in Mumbai, tagged Dharavi, Mumbai, Slum tourism, Slumdog Millionaire, Urban on March 12, 2009 | 6 Comments »
Three times in the past week, I’ve unexpectedly been a participant in conversations regarding Mumbai’s hottest new tourist spot: Dharavi. In case any of you missed the Slumdog Millionaire bus (er, bulldozer?), Dharavi has the dubious honor of being Asia’s largest slum. It houses upwards of 1 million people over a 175 hectare expanse of [...]
An ode to Mumbai’s local trains
Posted in Infrastructure, Mumbai, tagged Class, India, Mumbai, Public transportation, Street vendors, Train, Urban on February 27, 2009 | 8 Comments »
The Mumbai Suburban Railway. Mumbai’s arteries, veins, and capillaries rolled into one functional hunk of steel. Even after living in this bulging metropolis for so long, I am continually amazed by the efficiency of its semi-antiquated local rail network. This is not a network built to help, say, a quaint German hamlet go about its [...]
