Sometimes it’s bliss, just to be able to schmooze around, have extended phone conversations with friends, catch up on one’s reading and scroll through all the ‘poppycock’ and balderdash that one encounters on Instagram. Apparently, the ‘gospel-truth’ is generated there! So, in between reels of aged women (and men) shaking their sagging ‘tushies’ vigorously and passing it off as dance, one also allegedly hears snippets of ‘breaking news’! Yes, the world is agog with the developments in the mighty US of A, what with their penchant for ‘orange’ now turning to brown and different sects either extolling or warning us mere mortals of what is in store for us. Right now, the normal tax-paying folks are ‘browned off’ and jaded when it comes to their leaders and their empty promises and hollow agendas. We all know who runs the countries worldwide, and they don’t call them ‘billionaires’ for nothing!
Bengaluru, according to (highly reliable) Instagram reports, is supposed to be one of the three fastest-developing cities in the world. Apparently, everyone wants to move here! The traffic and the infrastructure suck, and according to one powerful man in white, ‘if you don’t like it, leave’! Well, I must admit, wherever there is an exploding two wheeler population, the traffic situation becomes haywire. The traffic situation is imploding in bigger cities like Mumbai and Delhi too, but the only difference is their leaders are doing something about the upkeep of roads, building new flyovers and underpasses (the new ocean-link road in Mumbai is a dream), but in ‘Namma Ooru’… we have fabulous weather to bank on, right?
Many OG Bengalureans are quite miffed about the ‘nothernisation’ of Namma Ooru. One famous actor and playwright was strongly opposed to the caricature that the Bengalureans have been attached to. Phrases like ‘swalpa adjust madi’ and ‘good weather’! But we can’t and must not escape the way we are perceived. As laidback and adjusting individuals. Whereas it speaks volumes for our temperament, we have top Fortune 500 companies investing in our city and without doubt, we are the leading tech-hub for the world. But not getting our act together and concentrating more on who is speaking in the native language better is going to be ultimately disastrous for our beautiful city. We need to hold our leaders and ourselves accountable. Let us not forget ‘we are a city of immigrants’ (hint, hint!).
Talking about ‘immigrants’, there are a lot of us who have adopted this charming city as home. Along with the bad (speaking loudly and not learning the local language), we bring our charm, intellect and customs to this city. Now, our ’luru is multi-cultural, noisy and vibrant! A multi-cultural gaggle of ladies met at Rosamarino, a beautiful new Italian pizzeria set up by the uber-talented Abhijit and Shruti Saha (also immigrants), and a whole bunch of multicultural ladies, teachers, technocrats, entrepreneurs, home chefs and sportswomen spent a wonderful afternoon, eating a fantastic array of Italian food, discussing politics, food, children and a variety of interesting topics. It was fantastic and soul-lifting to be surrounded by so much goodwill and laughter. For me, at this stage in my life, this is what I want: true friendships, meaningful conversations and genuine bonding. As Michael Jackson would have said, ‘It doesn’t matter if you’re black or white’!
(The writer’s views are personal)