Bandra – 922

The Balcony Story

The house that I grew up in Delhi, we have this fairly large balcony. Fairly large by Mumbai standards. Smallish by Delhi. But there was a balcony. And that meant that I grew up with this habit of waking up and going to the balcony to stretch and breathe in the “fresh” air. I did it every day for like 30 years at the subconscious level that it became second nature!

When I moved to Mumbai, I was lucky to have started living in Nahar. That meant that I had a 2-feet wide thing for a balcony. Of course that was a luxury in Mumbai and I loved it! I was there for close to three years. The habit that I grew up with stayed on.

Then the move to Bandra happened – the worse house I’ve ever lived in. If you are reading this, the house could have the best location ever but do NOT live in an old, crumbling house. So in Bandra house, leave alone a balcony, I did not even have a window. And I hated it.

I was there for a year or so and then I ran back to open spaces that Ghatkopar had. This house, where I was for two years had a balcony as well. Though it was designed more like a room without a wall, it still gave the feeling of being in a balcony. And that meant I was back to my habit that I had grown up with. And then bad times started hitting. Moved to a small house without a balcony. And now, in Andheri, of course, there’s no balcony.

The point of this mile-long prologue?

That, today when I woke up, I for some reason yearned to have this ability to walk around in a balcony and stretch and breathe in. Still better I would love to have a beach that I could just step in. Or a large expanse that I can step out in and soak in the infinite and breathe in the fresh air that is up there close to the mountains!

I dont know what brought this feeling back to the surface. But it bubbled up somehow. And it is strong and powerful. To a point that I can distinctly feel it. And it was strong and powerful. To a point that I am ready to kill for it. You know, like, really!

Maybe someday.

Till then, over and out!

400050 to 400079

Day 5 / 100 of the 1000WADv3. I am writing this a day late. Last night a combination of factors made is tough for me to post it. All of those will sound like whines from an old man but I’d rather focus on “create” than “crib.” So here goes. Also, read this as a continuation post to the one I made when I moved from Nahar to Bandra.

So, about a fortnight back, I moved from Bandra to Vikhroli. And everyone I tell this to, they are ~~surprised~~ shocked. One of my colleagues says and I quote, “the dumbest idea I’ve ever had”

Of course it is a dumb idea. Of course they are shocked. Bandra is where all the hipsters are. Vikhroli is where all the lukhkhas are. Bandra is cool. Vikhroli doesn’t even qualify to be included on the continuum of cool to drab.

Unless, you are BUYing yourself a home in one of the new high-rises that are dotting this side of the town. In fact lot of friends from MDI have made homes on this belt. And since these folks and others buying a house here are the rich ones, the area is “upgrading” with new fancier restaurants, salons, cinema halls et al coming up. Of course its getting expensive. Ok, I am digressing and trying to sort of defend Vikhroli. Cut. Back to the move.

So, why did I move? One simple reason. Money. I have a limited budget in terms of rental that I want to pay. And I have unlimited expectation from the house I want to live in. Marrying the two is impossible in a city like Mumbai, especially when there are greater fools around. So I had to look for a place where I compromise a tad on both (pay a tad extra and get a tad less amenities).

My list of expectations include (and is not limited to), a gated compound, a place with enough space that the two people living there dont bump into each other while walking, an ample view of sky, a newish building free of pests, access to public transport, proximity to a Starbucks (and a Starbucks only), home delivery of groceries, minimal interference from neighbours. There is more but these are like SUPER essential. To give context, Nahar offers you all these things. Think of Bandra – it offers transport, Starbucks and groceries at best. Rest, well…

My budget, lesser said about it, better. I am doing great financially but I am still far from a car and I cant even think of a house. Chasing your dreams and treading your own path is the worst thing that you could ever do, if you want to make it big. Digressing again. Back to move.

So, I had to move away from Bandra because I found it too claustrophobic – there was the sea and the old world charm and cute women and fancy restaurants and clubs and restaurants and performance venues and celebrity spotting and Shameem’s studio and Jai Jawan and all that – and I had to move away. Its an amazing place but not for me. May be once I have made enough money to afford the kind of house I want to live in, I will reconsider Bandra.

After a ton of permutations and combinations, I realised that it had to be either Kandivali (Thakur Village etc.) or Vikhroli. Both are far from the places where I chill at – office (which is close to Andheri Station). And no, I dont want to travel in train (or metro) on an average day. And since Vikhroli is close to two or three friends I have in Mumbai and to Powai (the best part of Mumbai after the queen’s necklace), it made sense to choose Vikhroli.

So I moved here a couple of weeks back. And like each time I have moved around in Mumbai, the experience with brokers was far less from pleasant (there is SUCH a BIG need for a professional brokerage services that it’s not funny – more on this sometime later). In fact I am still sleeping on the floor and the AC’s dont work and… No, I shall not crib. Back to the move, Mr. Garg.

Now that I am here, let me look to the future. Life has been kind in the last few months. Work has more or less fell into a rhythm (I still am a part of two growing organizations), I have saved some money and I can now take time off to think on a wider canvas.

So, here’s the offer. Wait. Lemme copy-paste from the old post.

… if you live in / around ~~Bandra~~ Powai / Ghatkopar / Vikhroli and would want to catch up for coffee / drinks / something, please do let me know. While I have varied interests, I can hold interesting conversations on startups, marketing, branding, poker, travel, writing and self-improvement. Up for it? I am @saurabh on twitter.

The focus is on media and entertainment business, especially live events. And of course starting up. I dont have an expertise to offer, but I am pretty handy with seeing the larger picture, working on communication / marketing / brand-building et al. After all that’s what I’ve done for the last 10 or so years! I am on saurabhgarg.com/contact.

That’s it. Do let me know next time you are at 400079. Till then, over and out.

P.S.: Apologies for the delay on post and I know that this is not 1000 words but I dont have anything else to add. And I stand by my words. The kitty is 1000 bucks. And there will be a post for 21st

400072 to 400050

About a fortnight back, I moved from 400072 to 400050. And I have mixed emotions about it.

From – 400072

To start with, I am going out of my comfort zone. I lived there for close to three years. Life at Nahar was really awesome. Apart from a REALLY bad experience with a broker (Naveen / Anju Sharma from Good Homes Real Estate – if you are looking for a place in Nahar / Chandivali, please do NOT use their services. They WILL rip you), life was sorted while I was there. In fact, if I had all the money in the world and I had to live in Mumbai, I will not live anywhere else. May be I need to add this to my ever growing list of things to acquire.

Anyhow, thing with Nahar is that its like a cocoon in a big merciless city. It takes some effort to reach there and when you reach, it is so brilliant that you feel as if you’ve entered a wrap zone and teleported to a new world. Its green. Its quite. Its spacious. Its airy. Its clean. Its everything that you ever want from a place where you’d want to live. In fact, from my place, I could see a hillock and when it rained, I could see waterfalls. Oh, and I had a balcony, which in Mumbai is a blessing.

I could go on and on and on. It was a brilliant place! I will someday go back there.

To – 400050

At Bandra, on the other hand, life would be far tougher. Things will be unfamiliar and I wont be able to nod at people. I will have to find new comforts. I will have to re-create my life around how things are in Bandra.

But, the larger issue is that on a day to day basis, I will bump into people who are far richer, cooler, smarter, ambitious-er, hard-working-er than I. I would look at them and secretly compare myself to their toys and cringe about my inability to get my hands on them. Case in point? After working for almost 10 years after my MBA, I still havent been able to buy a car. And everyone else I know of has a more than two houses, 5 cars for a house that has like 2 and a half members. And since #in2016, I dont want to crib, I shall leave this rant here.

Also Bandra is far from clean. There are nice little pockets that look great. There is that occasional celeb spotting that happens. But on a day to to day basis, its not a place where I would want to live.

However now that I have made a decision to live here, I will have to live with it. And I need to make the most of my time while I here. So… if you live in / around Bandra and would want to catch up for coffee / drinks / something please do let me know. While I have varied interests, I can hold interesting conversations on startups, marketing, branding, poker, travel, writing and self-improvement.

Up for it? I am @saurabh on twitter.