When I read the fictional novel Eat, Pray, Love, many years back, I was fascinated by the protagonist Elizabeth Gilbert’s penchant for according an adjective to any city she visited, which described its essence. I began doing the same – it’s a gut instinct that has to be followed and not pondered over too much. For me, the one description for Delhi that encompassed the city’s ethos was ‘pretentious’.
To me everyone and everything here seemed in a perpetual struggle to be centre stage of some sorts. The thick layer of “I want to be that and not this…” seemed to shroud every truth, every reality like a cloud. And having spent my formative years in small towns where what-you-see-is-what-you-get, I was attracted to the way the city lights shone in Delhi.
But over the years, I have learnt to look beyond the surface to find a new synonym for Delhi - ‘Conflicted’. There exists a plethora of variables like people, situations, work, entertainment and culture. The stereotypes of those who network fervently at work, home, at the golf course, over coffee or alcohol and everywhere, stand in contrast to an easy camaraderie that exists in social circles.
While largely, people have no time for others’ challenges, the support system kicks in from somewhere, in times of dire need. The love for high life is at its prime in Delhi. The address, the car, personal belongings, the to-be-seen-around-with friends are all feel-good drivers to a certain section of people. Yet, there are those who are content with an old world culture that allows gracious living sans the pressure of a brand-stamped identity.
Over 26 years in the city exposed me to myriad nuances that define and redefine Delhi constantly. The shades of good, bad and ugly change their graph and hammer the senses frequently. My own understanding of life and its code of conduct was sharply aberrated, when I first set my foot here and looked beyond the glamorous facade of the high rises of power centres, of the pulsating beat of movement, of endless opportunities.
Co-existing here is ruthlessness, insensitivity, apathy and aggression that shake the pillars of individual belief systems. And when you understand the method to the madness, the challenge is to retain your equilibrium.
Delhi is a migrant city with so many like me belonging from other states, who choose to live here to also bring in our own perspectives and idiosyncrasies. Like a sponge this city absorbs it all and allows us to create our own space, grow and retire. Entrepreneurs, executives, house proud or anything else, Delhi embraces all. The city is in constant celebration of its people. And conflicting my earlier sentiment, I consent to no conflict in emotion here.