RUDE CITIES
When we shifted to Mumbai in 2006, there was a
huge media uproar about the recent Reader’s Digest survey which had branded
Mumbai as one of the rudest cities in the world. Many media columnists
vehemently registered their protests against the totally undeserved sobriquet
of a rude city for Aamchi Mumbai. I tended to agree with them till I became a
Mumbaikar myself. Then slowly my opinion started changing. When I settled on a
tiny 3BHK flat in the swanky SOBO, I was told I will be interviewed by the
building society committee members. I thought it will be a mere formality. It turned
out like an inquisition. When they started asking how many brothers and sisters
I have, I asked them the reason for such personal enquiries. Their answer was
quite revealing. They said, we want to make sure that they do not join you once
you acquire a shelter here. Anyway, what
swung the wise men in my favour must be the reassurance that I had only one car
and no intention of buying another one. (Every flat had at least three cars).
When my luggage arrived, I was stopped at the gate and
told by the security that the truck cannot be taken inside without the
permission of the Chairman himself. I met the great man after crashing into his
penthouse flat. After telling me pointedly that he is making an exception by
allowing me an audience so early, he gave his permission as willingly as giving
permission to Shakti Kapoor to take his teenage daughter out. The permission to
carry the luggage by the lift was however denied as it was against society
rules. That was the time I understood why Mumbai was considered a rude city and
I told him so.
Having read so many jokes on Punekars and their Puneri
ways, I was prepared for rudeness when I landed here last week after retiring
from SBI at Chennai. I was not
disappointed. When we landed, it was raining heavily. While we were unloading
our luggage in the parking lot of the building which housed the SBI guest house
where I had wangled a room after several fervent calls, two people came at an
interval of 4 minutes and fought with the driver for bringing the car into
restricted area. Pleas of heavy rain fell on deaf and insensitive ears. When my
luggage arrived from Chennai, I had forewarned the society people to avoid a
repeat of the Mumbai experience. But a crackpot
employee going by the unlikely name of Nazuk(delicate) started acting coy and
refused to open the rear gate unless he was requested by the society manager himself.
When I located the manager, Nazuk had managed to make himself scarce. Finally the
manager had to break open the lock to avoid further embarrassment.
Our neighbours never thought it necessary to even offer
us a glass of water while the luggage was getting downloaded and unpacked. But they
did manage to pick up a few scraps with the unloaders for blocking the passage,
keeping things in their doorway for a few seconds etc. We have recently returned from a trip to the USA. So it is really amazing that the people of Pune have obliterated all polite expressions like please, thank you, sorry, welcome etc from everyday conversation. not offering a chair, a glass of water or god forbid! a cup of tea, during business dealings is par for the course. The trauma continues
unabated. At this rate, by the time we settle down fully, Pune would have
overtaken Mumbai in being the rudest city in the world.
