First of July 2019 began as any ordinary day. It would have ended so too, but for the floods.
I was to leave for Patiala the next day and had some last minute shopping to do.
And of course the film buffs that we both are, we didn't want to miss Ayushmann Khurana and his Article 15.
So off we went to Phoenix Market City in the evening.
And as we came out discussing the movie , we realised it was raining.
One auto rickshaw driver agreed to take us to Kalina after a dozen of them fled away.
We had crossed two signals when suddenly the water levels began to rise. It looked like a river had engulfed the other side of the road and the water from the other side had begun to overflow into the side we were on.
Gopal and the auto driver pushed the auto for sometime before it broke down in front of a kebab shop.
The shop was at a slightly higher level than the road. One of the guys asked me to step out of the auto and sit in the shop. He immediately set up two chairs for us and made us comfortable.
Suddenly a huge garbage bin was floating in front of the shop. The boys ran to get it back. It was their prized possession. They couldn't let the floods claim it.
Soon the water level began increasing even more. The shopkeeper began winding up his shop. He came up to me and said, 'Madam, go from this side to the tea shop. There is a bench there. You will be safe there.
I moved to the bench all scared and worried whether we would get home safely.
The rains were lashing. The entire road was now a powerful river. Cars had stopped moving and more people were getting on to this safe place.
A rat or two also scampered to safety. A man descending into the tea shop from the chawl above was pretty pleased with himself. He told Gopal, 'Sirji, maine aaj dopahar mein hi bol diya tha ki shaam ko paani bharega. Meri bhavishyavaani sach hui!'
Wish he worked with the MET department!
The tea shop also slowly began to flood.
So the tea seller, Raju, sent us to a truck weighing office.
There were two guys there trying to get all their stuff on top of the cupboards to keep them safe. They offered us two chairs.
Even as I was just settling in , a lady walked in , all in tears. Her daughter came in behind her asking her why she was crying
The poor lady was obviously in panic and yelled at her girl, 'I told you not to come out in this rain. But you won't listen.'
A family of eight , they had parked their car outside and were fervently discussing further course of action. The mother obviously was still perturbed and suddenly screeched ,' Can you guys stop the discussion and pray? We are trapped all thanks to your plans.'
The family chose to ignore her ofcourse and continued with their discussions. They finally decided to move out and go to a relative's home.
A few minutes after they left three men came into the room and they were joking about how each one reached there.
I couldn't do nothing but admire how they stood so strong even in this situation , while I was all down to bits and pieces.
One of them, Majid bhai( yes by now I knew their names too) suddenly got a call. And then he panicked. The building where his house was had caught fire! There had been a short circuit and all his family members has rushed to the terrace as they couldn't run down because of the rising water.
The man screamed in pain. I saw the transformation of a man who was able to laugh at his own pain into someone who was scared at the pain of others. Along with two more people he ran to save his family.
Even as he went out in came the tea seller and asked 'bada danda hain kya?' Apparently a manhole was open and he almost slipped into it. He had saved himself and now had to do something to save others. He pushed in a plastic stool to block the manhole and tied an iron rod on the stool as a warning.
The water level inside the office was steadily rising. I was offered one more chair . The officer, a balding middle aged guy, told me, 'Madam pair upar rakhhke baitiye.Paani badh raha hain.' He had marked out a spot on the cupboard and was constantly checking the level of the rising waters.
He then began hunting for a slipper. He narrated how he always kept an extra pair because people would steal his from the masjid. But he never wore anyone elses as he felt that then his prayers had no values.
Soon he and Gopal settled down on the existing seats and were narrating stories to each other. The waters were rising. The rains were incessant and relentless. I was tired and soon was lulled into a dull sleep. I drifted in and out of sleep hearing bits and pieces of different stories. And then someone announced ' Barish Ruk gayi'. I looked at my watch . It was 4 a.m.
I checked my phone . It had two missed calls from my son. I couldn't call back as there was very little charge . Both me and the phone were drained.
The tea shop had opened. Gopal told me there were BEST buses stuck on the road. The staff and the passengers had spent the night in the buses. The water level had started reducing.
The cigarette shop also opened for business. Now people began to walk down to buy cigarettes and tea.
The officer who helped us out , Anwar miyan was glad he found his missing chappal and was now worried about a missing broom !
He had to clean the place, he told me before all the water went away. After a whole nighy of being awake, he was more worried about his office than himself.
A few friends of Majid bhai came back. Majid bhai almost fell into a manhole while running home to save his family. The others pulled him out. When the reached the building , the inmates had figured out a way to reach the terrace of the adjoining building. The family was safe after fighting a night of fire and water.
Gopal and me began walking down the watery street to see if we could get an auto. School children were out on their way to school , unaware that the government had in the middle of the storm updated on Twitter that's educational institutions would be closed.
Finally we got an auto rickshaw. As we moved towards Kalina, it looked like a different world. No water logging. No floods. People out on their morning walks.
Did we just come from a different world altogether?
Well , for me , it was a night I will never forget. For Gopal it was a milder version of 26 July!
Did anyone think if they were Hindus , Muslims or Christians? No! All people thought was about how to keep each other up and floating.
This is the India I believe in and I am glad that though it was a fearful night, it was a reassuring one that the world still knows peace. Atleast this one night in Mumbai was about standing up for each other ! It didn't matter whether you said Allah or Jesus or Ram!
All that mattered was being together and being safe.
I was to leave for Patiala the next day and had some last minute shopping to do.
And of course the film buffs that we both are, we didn't want to miss Ayushmann Khurana and his Article 15.
So off we went to Phoenix Market City in the evening.
And as we came out discussing the movie , we realised it was raining.
One auto rickshaw driver agreed to take us to Kalina after a dozen of them fled away.
We had crossed two signals when suddenly the water levels began to rise. It looked like a river had engulfed the other side of the road and the water from the other side had begun to overflow into the side we were on.
Gopal and the auto driver pushed the auto for sometime before it broke down in front of a kebab shop.
The shop was at a slightly higher level than the road. One of the guys asked me to step out of the auto and sit in the shop. He immediately set up two chairs for us and made us comfortable.
Suddenly a huge garbage bin was floating in front of the shop. The boys ran to get it back. It was their prized possession. They couldn't let the floods claim it.
Soon the water level began increasing even more. The shopkeeper began winding up his shop. He came up to me and said, 'Madam, go from this side to the tea shop. There is a bench there. You will be safe there.
I moved to the bench all scared and worried whether we would get home safely.
The rains were lashing. The entire road was now a powerful river. Cars had stopped moving and more people were getting on to this safe place.
A rat or two also scampered to safety. A man descending into the tea shop from the chawl above was pretty pleased with himself. He told Gopal, 'Sirji, maine aaj dopahar mein hi bol diya tha ki shaam ko paani bharega. Meri bhavishyavaani sach hui!'
Wish he worked with the MET department!
The tea shop also slowly began to flood.
So the tea seller, Raju, sent us to a truck weighing office.
There were two guys there trying to get all their stuff on top of the cupboards to keep them safe. They offered us two chairs.
Even as I was just settling in , a lady walked in , all in tears. Her daughter came in behind her asking her why she was crying
The poor lady was obviously in panic and yelled at her girl, 'I told you not to come out in this rain. But you won't listen.'
A family of eight , they had parked their car outside and were fervently discussing further course of action. The mother obviously was still perturbed and suddenly screeched ,' Can you guys stop the discussion and pray? We are trapped all thanks to your plans.'
The family chose to ignore her ofcourse and continued with their discussions. They finally decided to move out and go to a relative's home.
A few minutes after they left three men came into the room and they were joking about how each one reached there.
I couldn't do nothing but admire how they stood so strong even in this situation , while I was all down to bits and pieces.
One of them, Majid bhai( yes by now I knew their names too) suddenly got a call. And then he panicked. The building where his house was had caught fire! There had been a short circuit and all his family members has rushed to the terrace as they couldn't run down because of the rising water.
The man screamed in pain. I saw the transformation of a man who was able to laugh at his own pain into someone who was scared at the pain of others. Along with two more people he ran to save his family.
Even as he went out in came the tea seller and asked 'bada danda hain kya?' Apparently a manhole was open and he almost slipped into it. He had saved himself and now had to do something to save others. He pushed in a plastic stool to block the manhole and tied an iron rod on the stool as a warning.
The water level inside the office was steadily rising. I was offered one more chair . The officer, a balding middle aged guy, told me, 'Madam pair upar rakhhke baitiye.Paani badh raha hain.' He had marked out a spot on the cupboard and was constantly checking the level of the rising waters.
He then began hunting for a slipper. He narrated how he always kept an extra pair because people would steal his from the masjid. But he never wore anyone elses as he felt that then his prayers had no values.
Soon he and Gopal settled down on the existing seats and were narrating stories to each other. The waters were rising. The rains were incessant and relentless. I was tired and soon was lulled into a dull sleep. I drifted in and out of sleep hearing bits and pieces of different stories. And then someone announced ' Barish Ruk gayi'. I looked at my watch . It was 4 a.m.
I checked my phone . It had two missed calls from my son. I couldn't call back as there was very little charge . Both me and the phone were drained.
The tea shop had opened. Gopal told me there were BEST buses stuck on the road. The staff and the passengers had spent the night in the buses. The water level had started reducing.
The cigarette shop also opened for business. Now people began to walk down to buy cigarettes and tea.
The officer who helped us out , Anwar miyan was glad he found his missing chappal and was now worried about a missing broom !
He had to clean the place, he told me before all the water went away. After a whole nighy of being awake, he was more worried about his office than himself.
A few friends of Majid bhai came back. Majid bhai almost fell into a manhole while running home to save his family. The others pulled him out. When the reached the building , the inmates had figured out a way to reach the terrace of the adjoining building. The family was safe after fighting a night of fire and water.
Gopal and me began walking down the watery street to see if we could get an auto. School children were out on their way to school , unaware that the government had in the middle of the storm updated on Twitter that's educational institutions would be closed.
Finally we got an auto rickshaw. As we moved towards Kalina, it looked like a different world. No water logging. No floods. People out on their morning walks.
Did we just come from a different world altogether?
Well , for me , it was a night I will never forget. For Gopal it was a milder version of 26 July!
Did anyone think if they were Hindus , Muslims or Christians? No! All people thought was about how to keep each other up and floating.
This is the India I believe in and I am glad that though it was a fearful night, it was a reassuring one that the world still knows peace. Atleast this one night in Mumbai was about standing up for each other ! It didn't matter whether you said Allah or Jesus or Ram!
All that mattered was being together and being safe.
