A kaleidoscope of men, matters & moments that make the madness & magic of Mumbai
Land it to Khadse
The state government has land in Worli at the starting point of the Worli-Bandra sea link. The land is owned by the revenue department and many members of the land mafia and so-called institutes are eyeing it. The government has got a proposal from the housing societies of the police and state government employees. Simultaneously, the same proposal has been received from one housing society which claims that it will develop the five-acre plot and will also give a share of the land to the state for a staff quarter. Prima facie, the proposal was attractive. But after some time, revenue minister Eknath Khadse came to know that the developer is connected to Dubai and is eyeing the plot for his own purpose. Khadse realised that the developer is not going to give a share to the government. So he immediately shot down the proposal and instructed the department that the land will not be handed over to any developer or society for development.
Work it harder
Your work would be boring if you did not come across any competition. This reporter had gone to meet an official hoping to get an excellent story. However, after reaching his office, she was told that he would reach in an hour. After waiting, she met the officer and asked him if there were any new plans or processes that he is starting. She was told about an important process that was ongoing at that moment and was directed to the ground floor of his office. Hearing this, the reporter was thrilled and headed towards the ground floor along with one of his subordinates. Along with her, there was another reporter who had come for the same story. However, when the other reporter saw her, he was flabbergasted and asked, “Who has sent you here? And which newspaper are you from?” Your reporter smiled and gave him the details, but she saw that he was feeling insecure about something. Following this, he said, “Actually, no one knew about this process apart from me. But now it seems that you have also gotten to know.” The reporter didn’t say anything, but she realised that, unknowingly, she has become competition for someone.
Policing the police
This reporter was stopped by a traffic policeman for not wearing a helmet. She accepted her mistake and was ready to pay the fine, but what irked her was that the cop stopped only her and let a few other culprits go. So to humour herself, she asked him, “I accept my mistake, but it’s not fair that you let those guys go. What is the point of the law then?” She expected a general answer but to her surprise , this is what the cop said: “Arre, just carry a spare helmet along with you, hang it on your bike, and when you see a police barricade, wear it to avoid paying the fine!” The funny part was that his approach towards the helmet drive defeated the whole purpose of the drive. He didn’t get the point of the drive at all — that it was for the safety of riders and not merely a policy that had to be enforced. The reporter thought, if the cop himself doesn’t believe in the policy, how can he expect citizens to understand?
Tail Piece
When the whole world is standing against you, turn around and take a selfie. You will find the whole world behind you.
Contributed by VPandurang Mhaske, Manasi Tahalani and Eeshanpriya MS
Compiled by Iram Siddique.
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learning from children
We often have several preconceived notions, one being that a person doing a minor job would get nowhere in life. This diarist had shifted to a new locality and did not know much about the activities that took place in the vicinity. On a particular Sunday morning, when she stepped out of her house to collect the milk carton, she saw a little boy collecting clothes from her neighbour for ironing. This boy seemed to be in the 5th grade. She immediately felt sorry for the young lad and categorised him as a child labourer. “In a seven-storey building, going up and down the stairs every day must have taken a toll on him,” she thought. Feeling sorry for him, she inquired, “Do you go to school?” To which the boy promptly replied, “Yes, I do go to school.” To get a better perspective, she asked, “How do I get ironing service from you?” He said, “You can talk to my elder sister about it. I will ask her to meet you.” The boy went down the stairs and knocked at another door and spoke confidently to the customers. Around 10 minutes later, there was a knock at the diarist’s door. The boy had brought his elder sister with him this time. The diarist asked the woman why she made such a young child work. She smiled before replying, “He only comes on Sundays to collect the clothes when he doesn’t have school. He likes to help me and the people in this building like him a lot.” It struck the diarist that she had learned as a child to help her elders at home with household work and otherwise. This is one of the major values that one learns as a kid in India. She did not feel sorry for the boy anymore but, instead, was impressed with his confident nature.
– Sneha Salin
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