What is your Reason?

 Nowadays, Restaurants make us happy.  We are not happy with good food but with a great ambience. Cafes are the next in thing. Everyone wants to meet in a cafe. All Cafes have similar food which is totally Non Indian. In restaurants in South East Asia, all can have any cuisine , but they will have a few local dishes. Not so in India. We are so busy aping the Western Cuisine and leaving aside Indian food. Indian meals are far more nutritious but we want to look chic and that's why we d rather be seen hanging around these Cafes. I can't take my parents to most of these places as they don't eat this food like bland pizzas, pastas and Sourdough sandwiches. I can barely eat this food and I don't expect my parents to like it. 

I do not drink Coffees and almond milk from a Tetra pack is not my idea of healthy food. In the name of Veganism, a whole new market of packaged food has come up on the shelves of supermarkets. Same in the name of Keto diets. The new generation is getting fooled by these marketing gimmicks of the food industry. We cannot just blame the Pharma industry for all our woes. Everywhere in South East Asia, if you can for vegetarian, they want to serve Mock Meat and Mushrooms . Both the things, I don't eat. If you want to eat Mock Meats, then what kind of a vegetarian or vegan are you. You are craving for the taste of meat. Then let's not have these pretences of love for animals and blah blah. 

Food is a sour topic for me, today. Some Cafes are so small and yet they are full . Actually, they are full because they are so small. I mean crammed places do well. We Mumbaikars are so okay not to have space in our homes and in our cafes. We are just happy that we got the fourth seat in a First class compartment of a local train. Yes the same compartment, where people won't budge an inch as it is first class and rightfully the fourth passenger is not liked or wanted and hence made to sit on the edge. Living on the edge is an experience Mumbai Locals can give you everyday. 

Travelled by a Ladies Special train to Borivali last week during the evening peak hours. All were glued to their phones. No one was knitting or talking or whispering sweet nothings on the phone. No fights either. In fact, all very cordial and checking where the other person is getting off so they can get the seat. Most were happy when I said that I will get off at Borivali as their stop was much further. It also meant, they will get to sit for the last 30 minutes of their journey. Actually it takes so little to make someone happy- a seat which will get vacated in Borivali for a person going to Vasai and who has taken the train at Santacruz. My sentences become long winded just like their daily journey of life. Most were watching mindless reels on Instagram and some had movies downloaded - serious drama. No one had Comedy shows on and no one was reading a book. I am referring to all the people I peeped at. In the end, when I had to get off, a fight broke out and normalcy was restored for me. Till then I was in La La Land thinking of our beautiful trains and the awesome Roads and Railway network in India. I was thinking of the huge number of new airports added in the country. I was feeling happy that I now have 3 airports other than Kolkata to reach Dhanbad. I could never in my wildest dreams think of BabaDham having an airport. Even when we were kids, Deoghar was so eeew, a crowded town. Dhanbad was like smooth and suave, in comparison. Alas, it lost out in getting an airport. Now with 3 airports at a distance of 2-3 hours from Dhanbad, our hopes of getting one have gone for ever. How can I say 'our' while talking of present day Dhanbad, because I still belong to Jharia Dhanbad and it still belongs to me. The new generation is disconnected , they want to move to the cities. They are dazzled by the city lights and greener pastures. Little do they know that there is nothing green about the city life. Koi Chhaon nahi hai ( there is no shade of the tree) I am translating and the translation doesn't sit well. Similarly, the city doesn't sit well. It is a matter of choosing Return on Investment or Return on Ego. Some people are so fond of criticising the towns they are born in and say there is no scope there. People just want reasons to move on. Reasons may not be valid. It is just a reason.