The Eternal Battle Between Delhi and Mumbai

If anybody has ever moved from Delhi to Mumbai or vice-versa, this has definitely happened.

You are new to the city. You don't know anybody. The first question people ask (after they know your name, age and occupaion) is where you're from. In my case, when I moved to Navi Mumbai, my answer was "Delhi". I now realize I should have just said 'Iceland' or 'Kenya' or 'Cuba' and I would have met with a more favourable response.



Delhi



Almost immediately after the D-word escaped my lips, the taunts began. "Isn't that the place where all the Blueline bus accidents took place? I saw it on the news. Are the roads really that unsafe. They yelled out from the TV that a kid died when he got hit by a bus". This was followed by a demonic laugh that still gives me the chills.

It didn't end there. People who have never been to Delhi have said to me- "I hear people there are very arrogant. I hear everyone just cares about money. Isn't it the capital for crimes against women?" Their basic question is- "Isn't Mumbai, like, fifty million times better than Delhi?"

I have lost count of how many times I have been in this situation. The moment the Delhi-Mumbai war begins, all is forgotten, including myself. Nobody cars that I spent my childhood there, had tons of friends, have millions of memories and that the city is not just the national capital but also my first home. I take the liberty to point out that to insult somebody's origin like this based on very little logic is not just ridiculous but also a little cruel. Just imagine- if I were to tell you the people you spent your childhood with, the people who helped you before I even came into your life, are mean, arrogant and greedy, how would you feel?

The opposite is also true. People in Delhi are quick to point out how people don't have time for each other in Mumbai. Even if they are being accused of being rude, they'll say "At least we're talking to each other". They'll talk of how seven people die every week in railway accidents, how the crowds are unbearable, how the seasons beasically never change, how the underworld rules (Ram Gopal Verma films have done quite a lot to promote the last notion). They will also say Mumbai is unjust in accusing Delhiites of discrimination, becuase a lot of housing societies where only people from one religion/dietary preference/ linguistic or religious sect are allowed. And it doesn't help the whole Maratha agaist UP/Bihar situation is on TV all the time. I myself have seen incidents related to it in buses lots of times, something I choose to hide from friends in Delhi because I know they will jump to the conclusion that all people in Maharashtra are against North Indians.

Mumbai

But amidst all this, nobody takes a neutral side or admits that cities like Bangalore and Hyderabad are fast leaving both Delhi and Mumbai behind in terms of living standards, plus the fact that they don't have th ebad reputation of arrogant/ignorant people. railways accidents. molestation cases or extreme regionalism.

Let us assume for the sake of argument that both sides are correct. But what astounds me is how eager each city is to think badly about the other. For example, my friend from Navi Mumbai lives in an area whose infrastructure mimics Delhi's. Besides, Navi Mumbai is Mumbai minus the flaws, so nobody from Navi Mumbai gets to judge anyways. My friends from Navi Mumbai are privileged, they don't know what common people in Mumbai face. Also, most of my Delhi friends who hated Mumbai didn't know anything about Mumbai, so I don't know who gave them the right to talk.

Secondly, how come we don't see logic in these arguments? Logically speaking, it's impossible that people in Delhi yell and slur all the time and money is the only thing that's important and I know this because I went to a school where children of the biggest of businessmen studied with students from LIG apartments (apartments for the lower income group, with only one or two really small rooms). I never saw the latter face any discrimination. In times of sickness, our neighbours have stayed up nights for us so that the sick member of our family could be taken to the hospital. If a posh area like Sainik Farms thrives so does a 'middle-class' locality like Janakpuri.

On the other hand, nobody has ignored me in Mumbai. I see the safety risks associated with trains, I also acknowledge their position as the lifeline of commerce. If Mumbai is busy, it's also active and living life. There is nothing wrong with Mubai just because it's fast.

The fact is that Mumbaikars are programmed to hate Delhi and Delhiites are genetically obliged to hate Mumbai. I hear it's the same with LA and New York, the American counterparts od Delhi and Mumbai respectively. I now understand there's no side I can take because no side is the right one. So next times someone says Delhi is the city of dilwallas and Mumbai is the heartbeat of the nation, I'll just go ahead and say Delhi has the heart which beats in Mumbai.