Spirit of Mumbai 1

I woke up after a long sleep of around ten hours. When I got up my head was aching and I could feel some heaviness in my head. I remembered that I was having some dream in the sleep and probably that caused the headache. I got up from the bed, trying to remember what it was about. Certainly there were two friends involved in it. One was my school friend Satish and the other of course me as it was my dream and I love to see myself in dreams. I saw I was in my hometown, Ara in Bihar.I was waiting on the railway station, not for some guest or relative but for the train coming from Mumbai. There were many others like me waiting there for the same train. All had the same purpose, the purpose of harassing and beating the passengers of the train coming from Mumbai as an act of revenge against some Bihari's having been beaten in Mumbai.
I remember I was holding a hockey stick in my one hand and a cup of tea in the other. The announcement of the arrival of the train was made and everybody got ready. I too drank the last sip of tea from my cup and headed towards the platform number 2. The train arrived and the gates opened. People started getting of the train and found to their surprise the sight of hundreds of youths holding hockey sticks in their hands, anger in their eyes. From the AC 1 teir an old man aged around 70 years got off. He was alone and was dressed in western style and one could easily tell that he was a permanent residence of Mumbai. Some youths approached towards him, the man was unmoved. It was strange he didn't panic in such a situation. He approached them and told that he was from Mumbai. One of the youth moved forward and held him by his collar and aid,"We know this bastard, and we know what to do with you". The old man smiled and said,"You do whatever you want to do to me but first I want to tell you something".
I asked," Who are you, first tell me this or be prepared to lose your life, you see the anger in the eyes of the youths here, if you can silence them somehow you will survive otherwise you are gone , you old man".
The old man replied," I am the spirit of Mumbai. It was due to me that Mumbai was alive, due to me that the Bollywood was set up there, it was due to me that Bombay developed into the industrial capital of India, and it was due to me that it was progressing towards becoming the cultural capital of India too. But now they have killed me. They have killed the 'spirit of Mumbai'. By committing attacks on north Indians and especially people from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, they have told me that they don't want me anymore. So I have left Mumbai in search of a new place and I found that Bihar is one place where people will accept me. So it's all up to you. You can either kill me, or accept me. "
"Why have you come here", I asked.

"Well son, let me explain. For any country to succeed two things are most important, the two P's, I mean the PEOPLE and the PLACE itself. A place is made by the people and conversely place makes people. Bombay was a place which was made of hybrids of people. People from all over India came here, made fortunes and settled here. Nobody cared where you came from, what mattered was what you did there. Such was the spirit of Bombay. But now while the place remains the same, people have changed. Those who pride themselves by saying that Bombay belongs to them have forgot that instead it is they who belong to Bombay and Bombay belongs to everyone. They kicked me out of Bombay, they told me they don't need me anymore. So here I am searching for a new place to settle into."

I was feeling ashamed of my act which I was going to committ had I not met this old man.
I asked,"Why Bihar, why not any other place ?"

He replied,"Look dear, I have already said that it is PEOPLE and the PLACE who make the future of a country. So when I lost my place I have started looking towards the people. I know if I can transform myself from the spirit of Bombay to the spirit of the People, my job is done."


What happened next in the dream I don't quite remember. Perhaps I would have to take a nap again to complete it .