Where's the Party?

Things can be so different in places. Some time ago when I was in Bombay I saw and learnt how different cities have different takes on different things. In Delhi it’s all about going out. You can decide what place to meet, what route to take, where to park; once you are at the designated place you can decide what place to sit, what to drink, what not to drink, what to eat and what not to eat. Whilst you do all that there must also be a consensus about what to talk about. I have noticed that it’s usually everyone talking at the same time about the same thing. To an outsider it may seem like people in Delhi always talk about politics or cricket.

This doesn’t happen in Bombay.

A few days ago while I was there I saw the difference. In Bombay people meet people at their homes. If you were to do this in Delhi you’d be sending out a signal that you have grown up. People drop in, have a quick shower, spray generous quantity of deodorant and then pour a drink or two. By now the traffic outside must have died down, which means it’s time to hit the roads. Of course the place to go would be half way across town or 10 kilometers (which in traffic terms means ‘oh god’). Don’t worry by now you are insulated enough to take it on. You take an auto for it’d be faster than a cab and in any case the second half of the journey would translate into a cab. Some times you’d make a pit stop at some booze shop, concoct your poison by mixing carbonated water with what you pick up and return to the cab- you are going to meet friends and have a nice time and not to pay the skies for a drink. Once you have reached the joint which has been carved out of some dilapidated mill it’s imperative that you enjoy. Bombay night outs are not just about ‘having a good time’ or ‘I don’t mind it’, once you put in so much of effort you need to enjoy. Ain’t no 11pm cut off going to stop you here.

You don’t talk much while partying in Bombay. I mean unless you want to talk shop, network what’s the point of talking. And how can someone hear you if the music is loud enough to wake up the dead. So no cricket and no politics. Cricket talk is usually relegated to Sachin Tendulkar, Zaheer Khan or Rohit Sharma. In case you talking IPL and you are in Bombay then the Mumbai Indians are your team. No they are not scared of Raj Thackeray, they just like Tendulkar in any form so he could be playing for Dhobi Ghat XI and what do you, you could be cheering the Dhobis! As for politics...ah let that be. It's the fools in Delhi that run the country and Maharashtra, remember we are here to have a great time!

Once the night’s been called, usually around 2pm, you take some more time to gather your bearings and if you happen to know the band you take about an hour. By now in case you are wondering what’s next life finds a way and the effort to complete the circle are set into motion. Living it up on a Saturday night can’t end on a Sunday morning- it must go on for a little longer. One of the people would suggest innocuously why not drop in at their place. This place would be mid point between where you are and where you want to go. So the word would spread amongst the remaining people that the party’s moving to so and so’s place. Everyone would scurry around the few taxis that are parked outside the place, make plans who’s going in which one with whom. The taxi ride would be…well the wee hours of morning make every place look surreal. By the time you reach the place you realize that perhaps it’d be best to return to the base. Off you go again. By the time you return it’s almost 7 in the AM and you have partied really long. Me being from Delhi and the so called ‘outside’ here realized it was not all that bad. I had a crazy time. I didn’t mind it; in fact I had a good time.

Wait.

This isn’t enough. Someone partied all night to ensure things were great and me going ga ga over a good time. I had a GREAT time. I must say seeing the sun come up had nothing much to do with it.