Salaam Mumbai.....

Around 6 in the evening, my friend shouted..."dude bomb blast in Mumbai man" I just turned to my system, logging into the web news... with just one prayer in my mind.. "god this should be one of those hoax news that come in the web" but that was not to be..
The news headlined... "Series of bomb blasts rocks Mumbai" Ohh No, why...... God why?

It took a while for the news to sink in... a sense of hatred crept into my mind against all those who would have been behind this gruesome act of terror.

Someone's Dad returning home to his infant... is lying there in the wreckage... someone's husband getting back to his newly wed wife....is no more.... a kid who had jus started living his life is up there complaining to God, Asking him why did this happen to him. A young man.... getting back home to his old folks.. doesn't make it.

Spent the whole night browsing the news channels in the television, every channel using this as a business opportunity to show their calibre in getting to the news first. The world has become so materialistic; every thing is measured in terms of money.

Donna when I fell asleep...got up in the morning, with a severe headache, still the television on. ” A new day a new start..." Not at all, these are just words. Didn't help me at all, still my heart was out there feeling for the innocent ones... who just didn't deserve to die in that manner. They never entered into any one else’s land, they never demanded for anything more, they were just normal human beings... living their life, working that bit harder just to make their tomorrow a bit more happier....but for many there was no tomorrow, for many
others today is a start to endless days of pain.

I just hope every drop of tear that fell, God keeps an account of that..... Didn't dare to open the paper, didn't want to see yet another scene of a bloody body lying there... as if the soul is still around near by... trying to make its way back into the body...... it doesn't want to die, it doesn't want to leave. coz it never deserved that kinda death ..... but who can defy death...

The television channels were still onto their task.... In a way they were doing a great job, showing the world, the ugly face of terror. I knew today is not gonna b that nice a day for me, somehow couldn't get over it. But then, as the great saying goes... "THE SHOW MUST GO ON".... and so it has to. Getting ready for office a thought came up.... it can be my cab that would go up in flames today,...but then life has to go on... and so did I.

All the way to the office was thinking, searching for answers...not even a single one found. Went to my desk... could see the dismay and disappointment in the faces of my colleagues too. I appreciate the oneness that comes into this entire nation when something like this happens.... May be that’s why this great nation is still running as a single unit... no matter how much the economy is corrupted, no matter how much the system is outdated, no matter how much the common man is harassed...still every one... from the corrupt politician to a rowdy in the road... has a feeling in his heart...of being an Indian. We carry our nation in our heart.

The day went on... with the usual chores of work... but the smile in everyone's face was absent. Back home.... got in front of the television... hoping that the police has caught the culprits... wanted to see the face of the Satan... but as usual... nothing great, the search is on... that’s all....

A feature in one of the news channel caught my eyes....
It read "Mumbai up and Running".... first time in the whole day, a smile flashed in my face. I felt proud of the guys out there...... They showed the world that our nation wouldn't crumble to such inhuman acts imposed upon our society... we are way tougher than that to crack.

A kid was holding a placard... the wording in it read....
"Your crackers.. Don’t scare us..." Those two lines were enough for me to get up and salute Mumbai.. for its spirit. The whole nation was down... and Mumbai just got the nation back to its feet.... it just told us....not to worry and that she is fine.....

What a city....What a nation....What a feeling... Proud to be an INDIAN