Mumbai Rains

Day 157 / 366

When I first came to Mumbai, way back in July 2012, as soon as I got down at the Kalyan station it started raining. When I reached IIT Bombay, not only was I seeing this beautiful campus for the first time, I was seeing it in the rain, when it always is at its prettiest.

As a kid, I used to love the rainy season. Sitting in my verandah, drinking tea with my family. It used to put everyone in a good mood. If the rain got heavier, I and other kids from the neighbourhood would go out to get drenched in it. To this day, if it gets cloudy or starts to rain, I lose all interest in doing any work. I just want to grab a cup of tea, sit at the window, and watch the rain.

My attitude towards rain changed soon after I came to Mumbai. Mumbai rains, while romanticized by a lot of people, can make life hell for people who need to move around to get work done and earn a living. Traffic becomes 10x, and so does the estimated time to reach from point A to point B. Google Maps become a joke. You will never be able to find an Ola / Uber in time. And when you do, the surge charge would be horrific. A guy once shared a screenshot of how the cab to his office in Mumbai was costlier than a plane ticket from Mumbai to Goa.

So yes, I have mixed feelings about rain now. But when I woke up and saw the cloudy sky today, I couldn’t help but feel happy. The monsoon is expected to arrive in a few days here in Mumbai, and we might start seeing some light showers today. This summer had been particularly brutal, both from a heat perspective for all Mumbaikars and from a mental health perspective for me personally. I’m craving for something new, and I hope the rains bring the change I need.