J-zine - And then it Rains

And then it rains...

The cool weather ends with February, and the days gradually become warmer. Actually, it's the night temperatures that increase most. In Bombay the day temperatures don't really vary that much. By the middle of May, though, it definitely feels much hotter, because the humidity starts rising. The sky starts filling up with clouds. First they are cotton wool dots in an ocean of blue, but later they turn grey and menacing.

The newspapers start printing predictions of another normal monsoon this year. Maps show the progress of the weather as it climbs up the West coast. Explanations are always on hand for delays. A cyclone in the Bay of Bengal upset predictions, we read. Outside, the sky is heavy and grey. Inside, it feels unbearably hot and sticky. The humidity has passed 75% and is still climbing. Suddenly the shops are full of umbrellas and rain shoes. The headlines trumpet that it will hit Bombay in just two days.

And then it rains...

Welcome Showers

Everyone must get themselves wet in the first rainfall. The children run around, soaked to the skin, jumping and splashing in every puddle. Pigeons and crows huddle in window ledges. Stray dogs cringe under the lashing of the downpour which grows in ferocity every minute. Cars and rickshaws slow to a crawl, because it is becoming difficult to see through the deluge.

There is water everywhere. Gutters and drains are unable to drain it off fast enough. Roads turn into lakes and rivers. Ladies hitch up their saris with one hand and clutch their umbrellas with the other as they wade through the dirty brown water trying to reach shelter. A double decker bus ploughs through the water leaving behind a wake that sends water way up over the pavements and washes against the house walls. Bombay is awash. As the water finds its way through cracks in the asphalt, it sweeps away the foundations. Unsupported, the road surface caves in. Hidden under the water, the potholes make driving a hazardous adventure. The Times of India reports Motorists fume as rain lashes the city.

It stops like it started. First it eases off to light rain and then it gradually dies away. The monsoon has made its formal entry. The city shows its face again as sun light peeps through the breaks in the clouds. A clean face; the grime and dust have been washed away. Trees are green again. The bright orange flowers of the Gul Mohar trees shine in brilliant contrast to the green leaves. Some trees look rather less resplendent. They have crashed down under the weight of their own wet leaves and branches, blocking footpaths, roads and entrances. Rain gives life and it takes it away.

For the next three months, Bombay will live a hurried life between showers and downpours. It may stay dry for days on end; and then again it may rain non-stop for days too. An average monsoon season will bring nearly a metre and a half of rain (a bit short of 60 inches). Shortly after the rains begin, Bombay is overwhelmed by a plague of flies. Sewers and canal overflow and cause epidemics of dysentery and other water borne diseases. For the poor, life becomes a misery. Their huts and shelters offer little protection against the monsoon rains. Many nights they will be flooded out and have nowhere to sleep. Life becomes a battle for survival as they gather their belongings and desperately try to keep them dry.

And life goes on, despite it all. For the monsoon is part of Bombay life. People grit their teeth, shake the water off their umbrellas and carry on their life no matter how hard it rains. Trains may be cancelled and busses may be late, but people do get to the office; eventually. The power may go off when they get there; the telephones may work erratically, if at all. But Bombayites just shrug their shoulders. "What to do", they ask? Just carry on as best you can, is their unspoken answer. The monsoon is Nature's gift to the people of Bombay. And when nature gives, she gives with that exuberance that characterises Bombay.

What's in a Name?