“Where are you from?”

Typically in any social interaction, there is a query about where I am from. The other person wants to build my story in their mind, they want to place me, better understand my cultural context and so on.

Fair enough. Where am I from?

For those of us who have travelled intensely there is a point beyond which our ‘feeling of home’ shifts. I delved into this feeling and the various places where I have felt at home in my earlier blog post – ‘feeling of home’.

These thoughts can be written out in detail in a blog post. But when people ask me casually, ‘where are you from?’,

Mumbai, is the answer.

I could go with an ephemeral, “I am a global citizen” or some such. But, I get why they are asking me. They want to understand where my thoughts, upbringing et al is coming from. Definitely the places we spend most of our time in, shape us. So that way it is Mumbai.

But I usually add a line about, “but I travel a lot and don’t particularly identify with the Mumbai lifestyle”.

It is important for me to make this differentiation, because simply saying ‘Mumbai’ would be misleading.

Many a times in the past few years, I have wondered about it. Am I really a ‘Mumbaikar’?

When I look deeper into my heart, I find a familiarity with my Mumbai locality, which also happens to be one of the prime real estates in the country. When I return from my travels and sit at Marine Drive, I appreciate the ensuing familiarity. I may travel a lot around the world, but no place will have this familiarity for me unless I spent this much time there. So it is a meaningful place for me.

Many a personal turbulences, endeavours, friendships, comic books and walks have happened at the Marine Drive. Similarly, the connections with a few people, buildings, shops and other spaces.

But at the end of the day Mumbai is also a crowded cosmopolitan city. And metro cities have a way of reducing one to insignificance. Just one amongst the many. A great leveller in many ways. I have absorbed this. In smaller towns, the conspicuousness of every act makes me very uncomfortable.

My time in Mumbai has been a significant contributor in the kind of person I have shaped up to be currently. But I have had some very impactful experiences elsewhere too. And hence, my identification with being a ‘Mumbaikar’ seems to be more factual than emotional.

In a few days, I plan to shift my home base to a different city. Will write on that later. Today, I want to write a piece on Mumbai.

Will I miss this area?

This was a question that came up recently when my relatives came home to bid me farewell (kind of).

Parsi Fire temple at the end of a random lane as I go about my chores in Mumbai.

For a lot of people, the area I live in, is a dream. As I mentioned before it is one of the prime real estates in the country. The poshest corner of Mumbai – old town and probably one of the most sorted areas with pedestrian signals and some kind of footpaths. Relatively wide roads. And a beautiful, many kilometres long seaside promenade. Iconic beaches, heritage buildings and slightly slower life than the bustling suburbs. Police officers and other government servants generally treat us well, as many people are influential. Commuting in the city is usually not a hassle, more often than not we are moving in the opposite direction to the traffic.

So will I miss this area?

I don’t know. I haven’t missed it in all my travels.

Though it does build some habits. For example, I like to go watch the sunset. Sitting on the Marine Drive parapet and gazing into the horizons is something I totally relax into. So if the new place doesn’t have any place to watch the sunset it will be weird. But in most places if you search properly, usually you can find a place to watch the sunset. From a building terrace or a park or a temple.

here’s a twitter thread I started to share my various marine drive observations…

I have also done a fair bit of exploration of the city. From Mumbai’s Kashi – Banganga and Bhuleshwar to East Indian village of Khotachiwadi. Bandra Fort and its small villages with interesting houses. Heritage walks in Byculla and Fort to long strolls down random lanes around my house. Though surprisingly few blog posts got written.

This kind of exploration will continue where ever I am.

And definitely the new place will have to offer me some good perks. 🙂

Let’s see how that is.

Also, note, I will have my house in Mumbai cause my parents stay here. So it is not like I have left Mumbai for good. Technically, all my options are open. I could simply come back and stay in Mumbai after a few months if I want. Because work is anyway remote – I can do it from Mumbai or from anywhere else. And I will ensure that my work remains remote.

But in the heart this shift feels like a bit more than the usual 3 month trip.

Is ‘home’ simply the place we spend a lot of time in? Or is it the place where all our stuff is?