Designer Ravi Bajaj salutes the spirit of Mumbai, and raises questions about our sensitivity...
During my less cynical and jaded days, I have sent many a damsel many a rose. For, a red rose holds for me a timeless allure of romance and beauty. But last week, the red rose took another turn altogether for me. It held a very different charm.
As the commandos came out of Nariman House after finishing the enemy, women and children waiting outside presented each of them a red rose! The smiles that these roses brought to the faces of these commandos was worth the entire paradise! It was a small token, but believe you me, our soldiers must have felt even more joy than perhaps Yuvraj Singh did after Lalit [Modi] presented him with a Porsche for hitting the sixes against Pakistan?!
This was an expression of gratitude that came from the bottom of the hearts of Mumbaikars and it is in a city like Mumbai that people can think of gestures like this one. This says a lot about Mumbaikars but unfortunately not much can be said about the people responsible for running this magnificent city.
This attack has shaken the affluent class off its ‘high perch’, for no one is now insulated. I could have been dining at Wasabi or in my room in the heritage wing of the Taj; that’s where I usually am in Bombay. This thought is haunting my friends as well! That our security is too lax is now old news. But what alarms me most is the absolute lack of resolution! In Thailand, the people are protesting as they want a new government. But when did you last see a mass movement after the Satyagraha? We have become immune to a few hundred lives getting wiped out. I called my friend Ashwin Deo in Mumbai, when the firing was still on. He told me rather gravely that he could see traffic resume outside his home, which is between the Oberoi and Taj hotels! Have we all become so numb to the pain of others?
{{/usCountry}}This attack has shaken the affluent class off its ‘high perch’, for no one is now insulated. I could have been dining at Wasabi or in my room in the heritage wing of the Taj; that’s where I usually am in Bombay. This thought is haunting my friends as well! That our security is too lax is now old news. But what alarms me most is the absolute lack of resolution! In Thailand, the people are protesting as they want a new government. But when did you last see a mass movement after the Satyagraha? We have become immune to a few hundred lives getting wiped out. I called my friend Ashwin Deo in Mumbai, when the firing was still on. He told me rather gravely that he could see traffic resume outside his home, which is between the Oberoi and Taj hotels! Have we all become so numb to the pain of others?
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Stay updated with all top Cities including, Bengaluru, Delhi, Mumbai and more across India. Stay informed on the latest happenings in World News along with Delhi Election 2025 and Delhi Election Result 2025 Live, New Delhi Election Result Live, Kalkaji Election Result Live at Hindustan Times.