Bits and pieces

Gurgaon is a world class city - but in bits and pieces.

The world class metro and the 28km Expressway connects Gurgaon to Delhi. At one moment you are relishing the swanky coaches of metro or the low-floor DTC bus, and the next moment you are precariously hanging off an auto taking a roller-coaster ride through the pot-holed streets to your office/home! If you are in your own vehicle, good luck finding your way out through the choked, pot-holed streets.

The skyline of Gurgaon is dotted with some of the best housing projects of India ( at least the advertisements say so!). But the grandeur of these ivy league apartments end with their gates. Grand apartments surrounded with slums are a common sight.

Of course there is a lot of money in Gurgaon, a natural consequence of which, is that, a lot of people have SUV's ( likes of Land Rover, Endeavour,  Fortuner, Pajero ...). And thanks to the roads here, the owners need not go off-roads for testing out there prized possessions.

One of the fastest growing cities of India has grown without a public transport system. Good luck if you miss your office's cab/bus in the morning. There is no other way than traveling by auto in the way mentioned above. And it has also grown without a drainage system. Please stay at your homes if it has been raining for more than half-an-hour. You wouldn't like to be drowned. Would you? ( and yes, the water logged streets are good enough to even overpower the SUVs! so the tini-tiny car stands no chance at all!)

Enough of roaming on the streets, lets enter into an office or a mall. The global Gurgaon exists here. Entering the door of an office/mall takes you to a different world. I dare say that these are as good as their counterparts in developed countries. Now who needs a tele-porting machine! Inside you will find global Indians - in bits and pieces. People trying to balance tradition with modernism. People trying to un-learn Hindi and learn English but caught in the middle. Girls matching western dress with traditional shringaar. Bachelors enjoying movies in a PVR while still missing the crowd. Parents enjoying there time with children in the swanky malls but uncomfortable with lovebirds. Families enjoying dinner but uncomfortable with whiskey being served on next table.

Gurgaon is a reflection of the balancing act of our country and our society. Time will tell wether we can become complete before it all crumbles down.