Fast and Slow Mumbai

Mumbai was fast and now its superfast and the life is ultra fast for those who want it that way and also for those who do not !

The in and out of local, peak time, fast train, The fast moving line of mumbaikars outside VT station during morning is a sight that I can never forget.

so much so that people are mechanically tuned to be fast and furious (I guess its fitting to say so).
In this fast pace, city people rarely have the time to stop and smell the flowers. As much as I love the city and its fast pace many times, I like to take it slow and steady.

A long chat at marine drive with your close friends, A lazy afternoon outside sterling theater, waiting for the Hindi/English/Marathi show at Nehru Planetarium, are some suggested time pass from those who are in city.. But do not want to run...... go for the last train or the last bus... And if you miss it... Just hang around for two hours.. You will be in the first train or the first bus...

If you can afford to ... taxi and auto are available 24x7. of course food also available 24x7. Daru also.
What about Iranian cafes?

Iranian cafes are one such other places where life can be experienced in slow motion even now. Some dingy and some well-maintained, almost all of them have marble-top tables with black wooden chairs.

They serve steaming glasses of chai and melting maska (butter) with a sprinkling of sugar on the brun (bun). At the counter is the keen gaze of the cotton-shirted Irani owner. Nearby are glass-fronted shelves of Salted biscuits, cakes and bun pav that you are supposed to dip in your tea for that fond flavor.

The ummmm kheema pav with a thick layer of fat floating over it sure beats the sophisticated five star buffets where I literally spend a small fortune of my monthly income. These cafes not only get me a bit nostalgic about the good old days when I was new to the city but also are very cost effective and go easy on the pocket.

There are times when I literally have a craving for that tea with the distinctive taste/flavor which can only be found in Iranian chais, and I make no efforts to fight it. Unfortunately these Iranian Cafes are going through a silent death and soon they will be extinct. With the new generations’ craze for coffee shops and fine dining, today there are just a handful of them left in the city.

Sadly Iranian cafes are on their way to become something of the past which will only be mentioned in articles about the good old days of the city.