Mumbai Needs

He’s been the ramp’s favourite for almost six years now and will soon make his debut either in Moksha or Jadh. Movies and marriage to ramp model Mehr Jessia have kept this Delhiite in the news constantly. Arjun Rampal who migrated to Mumbai almost seven years ago, refuses to compare Mumbai to another city. Not even Delhi. “It is unfair to compare any two cities actually. But Mumbai is different. It is a typical melting pot with an amazingly large variety of cultures and religions co-existing here. Like any other city, it has its drawbacks too. "But one can never hate Mumbai.” He marks it out for its successful standard, the vibrancy of cultures living here and most importantly, the buzz about the place. “It is a fast-paced life. Almost as slow as it is to reach one point in the city from another.

If it takes hour-and-a-half by road to make 20 kilometres, it is just not happening. “Not for a hardworking, successful city of dreams like Mumbai.” The roads and traffic, as much as they annoy Arjun,he is one of those strongly environmental-friendly types also. “Let’s get to the very basics. We need parks here. Big, beautiful parks and gardens. Pramod Navalkar’s nana-nani park is a great idea. There’s Jogger’s park, but it is so tiny. We are so cramped up in this city. And we desperately need greenery around the place.” He’s got a slightly different opinion of the flyovers though.

“Build sidewalks for the people instead. Do something about the slums. I can’t understand the concept of slums in a rich city like Mumbai that too on the brink of the 21st century. And I blame the government for all this poverty. Just think of the space we would have had, if it were not for these slums.” Another thing that he has noted about the city is the drastic change that has occurred over the past five-six years. “Traffic was never this bad. It is getting worse by the day. The problem is, there is no system. The class divide is so bad, a certain class turns its head up at travelling by trains. That is stupid. Butthen, the services too are bad, so who is to blame? Mumbai needs to have underground travel-ways like other metros the world over. And we need them fast.”

— As told to SUBA VASUDEVAN