Mumbai and Apartheid

Soon after the 1993 riots, we had shifted from maharashtrian populated area to gujarati majority place in Mumbai. It was low profile, distant locality of suburban mumbai called Bhayander. Our brand new abode was smelling with the virginity of fresh wall paint. None of my neighbors worked for somebody, they all were gujjus and they all hated service. Despite they earned small, they did business. I spend 11 years of my life at dingy chawl in Bhandup but I felt as though, I lived one lifetime over there. When I was pursuing my graduation in engineering course, I decided to visit that place once again, may be the last time for me. All gullies looked same. All shopkeepers were same. I had talk with few known shopkeepers. But they didn't show much interest and busy dealing with their customers. Nawab chacha had sold his house and shifted to his native place in uttar pradesh. Charan works in Dubai with his Mamu-jaan. Nothing had changed except one enormous banyan tree, which was no more. I inquired about it to local people, they said the banyan tree was unlucky for the owner, the childless bihari couple. So it was dropped down. The Banyan tree is quite sacred entity in Hinduism. Various festivals and fasts are incomplete without giving water to Banyan tree.Its motifs are used as offering in various pujas and yagnyas. Banyan tree is also called Kalpa-Vriksha that means it fulfills all the wishes of the worshiper. According to Agni Purana, It should especially be worshiped by infertile women. I wondered why would such an old and magnificent tree was cut. That place looked bizarre to me, as never was I used to looking at that place without the shadow of mammoth tree. Later on, I learned from my grand mother that shadow of Banyan tree on any house is considered unlucky and does result infertility to the family living in such house. She even went on tell me that we have forsaken a big house of her father in Ayodhya because of this reason. Some shastri from nearby temple captured that house upon death of her father.

While I stared at the dead roots of an incised tree, a known voice impinged my ears. I turned back, trying to recognize but he blurted further out, 'Babbu, you have grown up to Man'. A dark, short and mottled faced guy.. Ramashish Yadav. He couldn't pronounce his own name. I correct him always,'its Ramashish and not Ramasees'. But he couldn't distinguish. This was a typical rustic north indian syndrome. Many were inflicted with it. So I forgave him.

'So what are you doing these days?', He enquired.

I answered with confidence,'Graduation in computer Engineering'.

He said,'What a coincidence? I am pursuing engineering as well'.

I awed, 'Is it? From which college?'.

He answered,'No No I dropped out of school. I am learning computer hardware from Gupta Electricians shop behind my house'.

I wanted to snicker at his innocence and lack of information but I flinched back, letting him enjoy his ignorance.

There were plethora of Biharis in that locality, who enjoyed their lives in ignorance. They didn't live in today, they lived in tomorrow. They saved lot of money in mumbai and used it economically back home for purchasing house, shops, agricultural land, cattle,vehicle and tracters. They always dreamed of going back home and living with dignity among their own people. But no one could go back and if they did, they never enjoyed because their children lived back in Mumbai, in that same penury and the vicious cycle goes on & on. However, this could be seen as great economic balancing factor. Mumbai will be unimaginable without rickshaw-wala bhaiyas mushroomed all over the city & suburb. They are available 24X7 and any place you name to any place you would know in the city. Their mode of earning and investment depicts flow of economy from Maharashtra to Bihar. But there is no derogatory connotation in this economy flux as both belong to same country. Even Fidel castro and Lenin, with their extreme communist policies cannot bring down the level of regional economic disbalance between Maharashtra and Bihar, which is happening involuntarily by Biharis, all over mumbai.