By Jonny Klynkramer (ArtSci ‘14)
Contributor
Mumbai has forced me to reevaluate my most basic principles of self.For the most part, I’m a very chilled out person. For a long time I wholeheartedly believed in the saying “smile, breathe and go slowly”, but I feel as though I’m starting to lose this side of myself living in Mumbai. This “re-evaluation” has been mostly a slow, subconscious process; however this past week brought these thoughts to the forefront.
It all began the previous weekend with the arrival of the Bandra community fair that was being set up on the street outside my flat. At first I was excited about the festivities and celebratory vibes — the streets lined with vendors, an abundance of food aromas drifting through the air, and laughs and shouts of children on rides.
As the days passed, the crowds grew, the energy increased and I found myself growing impatient and resentful. Walking down the street for groceries turned into a mission, and finding a rickshaw, let alone for a fair price, was nearly impossible. The noises and the crowds were incessant; vendors’ shouts mixed with children blowing mini-vuvuzelas — it started to get to me.
To complicate matters, we had agreed to host four Canadian exchange students from Pune, a city a few hours away from Mumbai. . We took the group out clubbing, and the next day made our way through the fair and toured the city. We rode on crowded local trains and visited various landmarks and other interesting spots. We had a good time, but it was taxing. I spent the day leading the group, hustling them along and trying to safely navigate them through the chaos. There was a noticeable difference between their pace and mine. I longed for their ability to go slow and take in the city with wide-eyed wonder, something that I found quickly faded into wired annoyance since spending time in Mumbai.
By Sunday I was more burnt out and cynical than ever, envying their child-like wonder and innocence while mourning the loss of mine. Sometimes I’m afraid that Mumbai is doing irreparable damage to this part of my psyche, a sense that has defined a large part of who I am for most of my life.
On Tuesday night, after our friends had left and the fair crowd had moved on, I finally had some peace and quiet to sit and reflect. Just as I began to write out my thoughts, a barrage of drumming, singing and fireworks rang outside my window. “Not again” I thought to myself, remembering that this was the beginning of the week-long Ganesh festival. There was no way I could keep trying to fight it. Perhaps it’s time for another re-evaluation of my basic principles of self?
Jonny will be blogging for QJBlogs again on Oct. 4.
Twitter: @jklynk
Blog: jonnyinmumbai.tumblr.com
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