Monsoon Season in Mumbai

               What I'm about to say might cause some visitors of India to balk, shake their head, or possibly scoff without even taking a moment to let my words sink in.  I think, while acknowledging my limited experience with India, that Mumbai could possibly be the soul of India.  This is a wide claim, I understand that, but hear me out.

               I don't mean to omply that the many vast cultural sites dotting India take precedence over the fancy designer label Mumbai crowd, but it's not India's classical soul I'm talking about.  What I mean is that Mumbai is soulful.  I can't think of another word for it but one night time tour of the city and you'll get an idea of what I mean.

               It's the tongue and cheek array of graffiti that covers the city walls.  It flows from references of Bollywood movies (Wake up Sid, anyone?), to political messages, and finally the skulls that peek out proclaiming 'stick no bills or I kill you'.  You immediately get a sense for the young scene here and that these aren't just passive students with time to kill.  Mumbai is full of people trying to make a statement with their city and there's no way you can leave without feeling that. 

               I can't remember how many times I would turn a corner only to fall down a street that was lined with tea stalls, snack bars, and just to round out this holy trinity, there would always be a tarp lying somewhere covered in novels for sale.  And everywhere businessmen, students, families, and shoppers would be hanging out for a cup of hot tea and a quick chat. 

               Then there were the street artists.  And I'm not talking about the guys do their best to talk up wooden elephant dolls that were probably made in China.  I met one man who was selling his drawings for the hefty sum of 700 Rps, all done with ball-point pen.   And while all of them were portraits the impressive thing he did was combine classic elements of Indian art with his own personal style.  They were everything I knew I had been saving my rupees for when I walked away from a crafts fair empty handed.  I didn't want the kitschy souvenirs that invariably all have similar counterparts waiting to be bought in the U.S., I wanted the original pieces of art done by hand that reflected the imagination and soul of a country embodied within an individual.  That was exactly what I found at a busy downtown intersection that could have been any urine-drenched cobble sidewalk in India. 

               And that's exactly what I mean when I say I found Mumbai to be soulful.  I'm not denying that Madurai doesn't hold a piece to India's heart and soul, if anything Meenakshi temple is the trump card that nobody else can beat.  But I hadn't been able to find anything unique for sell that not a million tourists before me hadn't already been properly fleeced for.  Something that could connect me to a specific person, something that could create the bond that a single meeting can't. 

               This isn't all there is to Mumbai of course.  There is obviously the glitzier side, the money, the bars, the shiny buildings that want to leave all temple towers behind.  It's hard to ignore that and perhaps there are traveler's out there who would very much like to ignore the bright malls scattered throughout the suburbs.  But personally I can't believe that's a good enough reason to right off a city nor is it our right to scoff at that.  Are we admitting that we only travel here because we want our India to stay all dusty bazaars so that we can run away from our many array of superficial malls?  Obviously there is a demand here for them and who are we to say where consumerism should be allowed. 

              Of course that's just one side.  Turn around and you'll think you've fallen into Turkey somehow.  Walk another mile or so and you'll swear you must be in Paris with the Eiffel Tower not far away.  The architecture in Mumbai is both breathtaking and whimsical; there are so many different influences and creators from far-away corners of Europe and elsewhere.  I still can't decide if I'll ever see another city quite like that; it was like a Snowglobe in constant motion with different people, different styles, and different backgrounds constantly colliding together.   I think this speaks volumes about why I enjoy cities such as Mumbai and Bangalore so much; people from different corners of India and beyond have been drawn to these places.  And this is evident not just in the city's faces but in their very attitude.  Perhaps this is where my American side comes out, I can't help but be drawn to a certain level of diversity and I can't help but think that diversity is beautiful. 

                Then again there will be many who bemoan this type of integration simply because it's often working tandem with modernization.  Some might even say that it's modernization that has taken away the true spirits of many rich heritages across the globe and it is a common critique of most major cities.  For example amongst Japan-enthusiasts there is the age old argument of whether Tokyo is the "real" Japan.  Since when did Tokyo jump ship and secede from Japan, would be my question to those people.  The same can be said of Mumbai.  But I don't think there's anyone so arrogant willing to say there is only one true India.  Surely by now it has become obvious that India's heart and soul has spread to the U.S. the U.K., anywhere you find Indian communities.

               But how can I make any strike against modernization?  Aren't I, too, a product of that modernization?  I'm a Mexican-American teaching Japanese in South India, nothing about that statement has any type of cohesion.  I'm as scattered as a person can be.  At least that's one way to look at it.  I choose to see this as a reminder that while I might have been born within the man-made borders of the U.S.A. that holds no sway over my true origins.  After all, aren't we all just children of the earth? 

               I suppose what I'm trying to say, dear travelers, is that you shouldn't count out this rather unique city.  Sure you will run into more than a fair share of other foreigners but that's not Mumbai's fault; it's merely proof that this world is getting smaller every day.  Hopefully you can put aside your own ideas of what India should be and remember that the only constant we have is change.  And the only way you can truly get to know a country is to listen to those who not only live in it but listen to those who mold it.   

P.S. Dear Readers who may or may not exist, I apologize for becoming so philosophical all of a sudden.  Looks as though my blog is just as scattered as I am.