Tryst with A City
27th Semptember 2012,
Karnal
"Woke up at 8.30 and prepared to leave. I am sad because I am in love. For those people who wrongly infer that I already am and cite my shares and retweets to support it, may utter 'ooooh's and 'aaaah's, but not me. For a person who is hypercritical of himself and everything around him almost to the brink of a disorder, this is no ordinary thing. He is a true libran whose mind analyzes love and gives a thumbs up to heart before proceeding. And especially, when the subject of interest is inanimate.
I have fallen in love with the city of Delhi, with its broad roads and traffic jams, with its shining malls and crowded markets, with its greenbelt and concrete jungle, with its super rich and the vendors who risk their lives daily to earn their daily bread. Yes, I haven't yet got the chance to explore the city inside out because most of my interactions have been with the planned subcity of New Delhi or the smartly managed Delhi Cantt. I have had quite some trips on the roads leading to them, but a glimpse of Shahadara and Old Delhi on my way to ISBT silenced that analytic part of me which said that I am attracted only to the glamour of the place.
Love isn't perfect. Its never meant to be. I am very well aware that Delhi has its own share of major flaws that are evident only when you settle down at the place. But tell me, do you love a person solely for the purpose of uniting with him/her? Is love nothing more than a tool which is limited to its utility? No, you just love. Sometimes, its consummate, otherwise it just falls apart.
In the meanwhile, I shoot a glance at the reminiscence of past. The ruins of Feroz Shah Kotla and the stadium named after it; the magnificent Red Fort with the national flag proudly hoisted on it and the Yamuna which was once the lifeline of Shahajahanabad, as Delhi was called during the Mughal era. I gaze dreamily at all of them, almost as if I want to lap all of it and remember this tryst for a lifetime Isn't this a natural feeling that comes to you when you are meeting your lover for what might possibly the last time?
And then, the Shahadara slums suddenly mar the horizon, as if Delhi is trying to convince me that there is a dark place to it. That it doesnt deserve to be loved. I am reminded of the old song-
'Itna na mujhse tu pyaar badha, ki main ek badal aawara'.
But love is blind, or at least for a while. As I reach ISBT, Kashmere Gate, the train of thoughts break off. I realize that this romance will never happen. Me a marathi speaker, hailing from M.P and almost no chance of settling at this place.
Love doesn't die so easily. I am enamored by this place and will try to come back someday. To pick up this affair from where I left. I hope Delhi will still welcome me with her arms wide open, to take me into a warm & loving embrace.
I hope, I hope."
Karnal
"Woke up at 8.30 and prepared to leave. I am sad because I am in love. For those people who wrongly infer that I already am and cite my shares and retweets to support it, may utter 'ooooh's and 'aaaah's, but not me. For a person who is hypercritical of himself and everything around him almost to the brink of a disorder, this is no ordinary thing. He is a true libran whose mind analyzes love and gives a thumbs up to heart before proceeding. And especially, when the subject of interest is inanimate.
I have fallen in love with the city of Delhi, with its broad roads and traffic jams, with its shining malls and crowded markets, with its greenbelt and concrete jungle, with its super rich and the vendors who risk their lives daily to earn their daily bread. Yes, I haven't yet got the chance to explore the city inside out because most of my interactions have been with the planned subcity of New Delhi or the smartly managed Delhi Cantt. I have had quite some trips on the roads leading to them, but a glimpse of Shahadara and Old Delhi on my way to ISBT silenced that analytic part of me which said that I am attracted only to the glamour of the place.
Love isn't perfect. Its never meant to be. I am very well aware that Delhi has its own share of major flaws that are evident only when you settle down at the place. But tell me, do you love a person solely for the purpose of uniting with him/her? Is love nothing more than a tool which is limited to its utility? No, you just love. Sometimes, its consummate, otherwise it just falls apart.
In the meanwhile, I shoot a glance at the reminiscence of past. The ruins of Feroz Shah Kotla and the stadium named after it; the magnificent Red Fort with the national flag proudly hoisted on it and the Yamuna which was once the lifeline of Shahajahanabad, as Delhi was called during the Mughal era. I gaze dreamily at all of them, almost as if I want to lap all of it and remember this tryst for a lifetime Isn't this a natural feeling that comes to you when you are meeting your lover for what might possibly the last time?
And then, the Shahadara slums suddenly mar the horizon, as if Delhi is trying to convince me that there is a dark place to it. That it doesnt deserve to be loved. I am reminded of the old song-
'Itna na mujhse tu pyaar badha, ki main ek badal aawara'.
But love is blind, or at least for a while. As I reach ISBT, Kashmere Gate, the train of thoughts break off. I realize that this romance will never happen. Me a marathi speaker, hailing from M.P and almost no chance of settling at this place.
Love doesn't die so easily. I am enamored by this place and will try to come back someday. To pick up this affair from where I left. I hope Delhi will still welcome me with her arms wide open, to take me into a warm & loving embrace.
I hope, I hope."
Such is Delhi. :)
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