I am writing after long time, not because I have stopped thinking or writing; just was busy with other 'not so important' stuff. :) But I do have my writing, just needs some editing when I will get them down here. For now I have something that I thought to get down asap.
Today I had experience of traveling in a Mumbai Local Train. Just for the record, its not the first time I was boarding Mumbai Local; once before I've been in Mumbai Local from Dadar to Mumbai Central station, about 7 years back when I was in Pune. I had to get back to Delhi urgently for some reason and only train I got confirmed was from Mumbai to Delhi. But this experience was definitely very different from my previous one. This experience was after knowing about the 11 July 2006 Mumbai train serial bombing when seven bomb-blasts were executed in just 11 minutes. This experience was after watching movies like "A Wednesday" and "Mumbai Meri Jaan". This experience was after watching the huge crowd on platforms and in trains, people crushing in like in a concentration camp and hanging out of the bogies (compartment) and not a single place for security checks.
All the time I was in the train, scenes of movie "Mumbai Meri Jaan" was running in my mind; in which Nikhil Agarwal (played by R. Madhavan), an executive who got luckily saved from being a victim of Mumbai train bombings, made him too scared to take train again and later diagnosed with acute stress disorder. Also running in my mind were the dialogues of the movie "A Wednesday", where "A Common Man" (played by Naseeruddin Shah) talks about his fear of boarding train or to travel in a bus after the blasts. And I was wondering if I should be concerned as well; but interestingly I saw such a large crowd, none seemed to be bothered by any such thoughts. Probably because that's their everyday life.
This brings another thought; why after the blasts (not just the Mumbai train serial blast, Mumbai has big list of them), we hear so many times in media, praising the spirit of Mumbai and Mumbaikars who soon are back to their everyday work, being not intimidated by any such terror attacks. Or probably the "Common Man" of "A Wednesday" is right - 'We common man just thanks the God that we are saved being victim, and soon forget everything'. And the media, do they intend to sympathize with unfortunate ones or to fend off the seriousness of the issue.
Only two types can avail the luxury of being unconcerned about anything like this - those who think they are never going to be in any such place which can be target of terror attacks; and I can't think of any such place when we have 2001 Indian Parliament attack and Sept 2011 Delhi High Court attack. Second kind are those who are dead.
Its so strange and unfortunate that even after all these attacks, there is hardly any security. I mean forget about any security, hardly I have seen any cops around the place. It reminds me of a real wise answer to question - why to put locks when you know that there is always someone who can break it. Or in IT terms, why to have security when we know that there is always someone out there who can break it. Well the answer is quite simple and obvious, security needs to be placed to get 'not so skilled ones' out. With no security, its becomes so easy for anyone to get along with their mischievous acts without any doubts of being caught.
I am not sure what I can do about, or any of the guys who board these local trains everyday; but one thing I am sure now, the media claims of spirit of Mumbai or Mumbaikars is a pun played with us. When such a crowd traveling everyday in Mumbai Local trains, that clearly shows its role like the backbone of the city. Thousands if not millions travel everyday through these local trains. Even when there is an attack like these, they can't sit in their houses or stop doing their job. It may seem cynical, but it is not the much applauded 'courage' that defines the so-called 'spirit' of Mumbai. It is simply the 'survival instinct', which we all have. [1]
Its not the spirit of Mumbaikars, its their only option.
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Hey Vineet..
ReplyDeletegreat writing...
Thanks Indrajit.
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