#Mumbai Dairies

Being at the country's largest metro itself is a great feeling for a lad from "Gods Own Country" for "n" no. of reasons. The journey as of now has been exciting, crazy and for sure exhaustive. I never thought of seeing my self stranded in the busy life of Mumbai but I guess certain things in life would happen for a good reason. If it wasn't, who would have thought that I would be part of the same organization which rejected me at the first place. I never did !

To be in the same office that you were once denied itself is a great feeling. To top that to see the man everyday who said "no" to you. Life sure is a roller-coaster you never know what's on the next turn. I still remember the 22 hrs of train journey from my home town to Mumbai. The first welcome treat that I had from Mumbai was the iconic salty "Vada Paav" from #Ratnagiri Station which I filled my tummy with.

Even with the passion that i have for train journey the long 22hrs did made me hit the bed for a long 5 hrs after i reached my room.

This article carries the learning that got from Mumbai and her irresistible life !

#Idli anna

After being in Mumbai the one thing i missed the most was my hometown food. Luckily that got cleared from the day me and #pramod bhai met the Idili anna on our PG street.When i started my Mumbai days i used to spend at least 100 rs for a breakfast from restaurants. But when you hit the belly of your piggy bank that's when reality check happens. The sheer reality of not able to survive in Mumbai became more clear. That's how the revolutionary decision was made eat idili's from #thaatha and #Anna.

The learning was simple cost cutting and tasty home made food would save your life !

#local train_"Thooda Space Dheejiye Bhaisabh"

One thing is for sure i have never been to any city where everything is connected via railways , with just 5rs in your hand you can start your journey. If you have 10 rs you can just roam around.When i used to travel in the busy local trains of Mumbai, one of the most common thing that i used to say with whatever little hindi i had with me was "thooda space dhejiye Bhaisabh . since almost every time the local train is crowded. It's so hard to at least get a chance to sit and it becomes tough during peak hours in the morning and evening where i had to literally go out for meetings.The take away from those journeys where simple :

Grab your opportunity if you wait for the right one mate , it's never coming !

#Metroexperience

Coming from "Gods Own country " it was an exciting sight to see the metro lines spread across Mumbai. The journey in the metro is once in a lifetime experience. No wonder Mumbai is the largest metropolitan and the sophistication this city encompasses is incomparable with any other in the country.This city has so much to offer for a new comer. Everyone who travels in metro are so busy that ones the train reaches each station you can literally see a huge bunch of people getting down and in and this happen in split second.What metro journey made me realize:

Everyone is busy and no one has time for you!

#Baarish - it never stops!

Being a kerala kid i'm not new to rain. I love rain , but the rain over here it never ends! Once it starts off you never know when its gonna end and golly if its rainy season have a pair of chappals with you always. Trust me you need them! But the interesting thing about this rain in Mumbai is that it never stops the people in the city to do their job. Regardless of the rain you can see the busy , messy local train, the crowded streets , the vendors on the street ready to sell of their goods , the rakshawalas in search of the right person , the garam chaiwala's ready with #masalatea.

Life @mumbai never stops ever if it rains heavy !

#no hindi #no worries

I should say this its high time that "Hindi" should be introduced in the curriculum in kerala schools from kinder-garden itself. Just like English, Hindi should be taught, after all its our national language. The toughest part of me being in Mumbai would be the ability to understand and converse in Hindi which was always running in the back of my mind. I still remember my first induction day at Jaro , Mayank sir asked who doesn't know Hindi in this batch ? and i was the only one who raised the hand. From that day i made one thing sure that i will one day learn this language. Regardless of the lack of Hindi knowledge i had still i didn't face any problem in Mumbai.Probably it might be because Mumbai is place where everyone from India comes to survive and to build a life.

When you have people who are down to earth, in the country's largest metro who needs Hindi ?leave your worries and start living your life

#18rs fare

The best part of Mumbai is that the cheapest transportation cost is similar to the railways the rickshaw's are also cheap with a min charge of 18 rs. This gives you a leverage to roam around the city since there is a lot to see in this city and the best part is that the #rickshawala's know English!

For a malayalee who doesn't know Hindi that's a blessing!

Fair and square you get a journey which is economic !

#Eternal love for Vadapaav and Paavbhaji

The love for these two delicacies by the local people is eternal from 8 rs version to the 12 rs one you get the tummy filling vadapaav. If you are hitting marine drive you will get "n " number of stalls selling #paavbhaji. I gotta tell you something these food are so good that you become addicted to them.

Cheap and satisfying

#Partyanimal_ no way !

After my first team party i realized one thing that i'm not a party animal! if you wanna have a successful business in Mumbai try running a Pub it would be the most successful one because here people "love" to party. Its an addictive life to have but sometimes certain things are not for you, realize that and move on. But that's a life that i'm yet to perfect.

Everything is not your cup of tea _ move on and enjoy what you've got !

#Techsavvy you sure ?

The best part of Mumbai is that regardless of your age everyone over here is connected via technology. The best eg : is the M-Indicator app what more do you want? Local train, bus , raksha, metero , mono rail , maps , charges everything you need is just a "touch" away. For a complete new comer this app is literally a "lifesaver".

Accepting the reality if every state was like this city no one would ever dare to say "you are still developing"

#No city is perfect

Even with all the excitement which Mumbai has installed for you, you really need to accept the fact that life isn't all colorful for everybody even in the largest metro. If i was not a marketer i would not ever have got the opportunity to see the grey life of a Mumbaikar. The daunting view in Mumbai would be the skyscapers accompanied by slums. This view is something that everyone should witness for one reason :

Life isn't fair for everyone so if you have more don't hesitate to share it to the world around you

This exciting busy life and the stress from your job what more can you ask to keep your mind busy? I guess this is something which i'm learning and accepting. When someone from a small town like me coming to a city of dreams for survival the possible end results are either you fail, you learn or you succeed.

Probably the reality to accept the fact that SMART work is ruling the corporate life was the toughest. But i still believe that without a heart to work HARD what can SMART work bring to the table. The corporate life in Mumbai itself is a great opportunity to learn new skills and improvise the ones in my sleeves.

As much as the malayalee payyan who wants to hit home and have a great time with his family. The hungry marketer in me just wants to grab opportunities and is so eager to climb the ladder and wants to make his thoughts and dreams into reality.

I guess this is what "Life" is all about balancing the everyday survival with the ability to explore and evolve.