Under Water City

Mumbai was at the mercy of rain gods yesterday with one of the highest rainfalls (around 400mm in 12 hours in central Mumbai).
Some of the moments early(around 9 AM) on this day, when things had just started to get bad..

Frozen...

Some years ago, one December night, I had gone to attend a marriage. It was very cold. The next day, it came in newspapers that the temperature the previous night had fallen to a new low for Chandigarh - 1 degree Celsius. Last night also a similar feeling was there. 5 layers of good protective clothing couldn’t stop the shivering. It was extraordinarily cold. It was proved this morning. The temperature had fallen to a new low – where it had not gone for the past 33 years – ZERO degree Celsius. Many of my friends, in US may argue that the temperatures there fall well below zero. But here, unlike US, there are no central heating systems installed in every car and every house, to make you comfortable where ever you are. You need to have quilt, add another one on top, then snug under it and just hope that time freezes there and then like everything else around.
It is fruitless to even wait for the morning sun to come up and heat things a bit. As I am writing these words, the sun is shining full and bright. But it still feels cold to sit in the open. I am sitting inside the greenhouse heated car and the thought of even rolling down the windows is chilling. And strange are the ways of nature - around 4 - 5 months from now, the same green house warmth of the car will be burning you down and you will be sitting in 80% less clothing and contemplating whether the air conditioner’s temperature need to be lowered further.
As of now, it is time to enjoy a lazy Sunday afternoon and doze off in the warmth of ‘naturally’ heated car.