FOR OTHERS IT IS A CITY, FOR SOME AN EMOTION…
My true-blue Bengali father though residing outside Bengal for the past 50 odd years can never really forget reminiscing his days in Shibpur University and his days in Kolkata. Since I was little, I have heard stories of his college and childhood so many times, sometimes reminding him that “Baba, we have heard it before!”
I got married and came to Mumbai in 2002 and this city of dreams has had a huge impact on me and now I cannot fathom myself residing anywhere else. I fondly talk about Mumbai with my family and friends who don’t reside here, and I can see them getting bored after a while. After all, they won’t relate to the passion that I feel for this city.
My Bong husband was born and brought up in a small town called Sundernagar near Mandi in Himachal Pradesh. Every time we visit Sundernagar my adult husband becomes a child. He goes back to his childhood days and animatedly describes where he played, the temple, his school, those adventures!
A village, town or city is an emotion. It becomes part of us. Thanks to my father’s various job changes, I grew up in different towns but couldn’t feel the same way for each place. What makes a certain place so special? It’s the fond memories, the people, the events..
My husband’s childhood in Himachal, my father’s youth in Kolkata and my memories of blooming from a hapless new bride from a small town to a smart woman in a big city are the reasons for the places being so close to the heart.
Now I can understand why my father speaks so fondly of his days in Shibpur, which sometimes we can’t relate to or get bored of! It’s exactly the same what my non-Mumbaikar friends or relatives feel when I go on and on about aamchi Mumbai.
For some it’s just a city, for others it’s an emotion…
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