The men look and sound like they have never seen a woman before.The staggering crime rates in Delhi, the regular explosions in crowded market areas are enough to play games with the mind. Even when I shop in the so-called upmarket areas of Delhi like GK, I am conscious of my surroundings, I am conscious of myself. I have not wandered and meandered in the streets of Delhi on my own, I do not play Christopher Colombus and prefer being sheltered amongst known faces and places. Sadly, I am a chicken in Delhi and I have been able to pin point the exact reasons why. Hyderabad is safe unless you decide to venture into the old Charminar area in the middle of a riot. I lived in Calcutta many years back and from what I now hear from friends, Calcutta remains by and large a cultured city. Mumbai, cosmopolitan and busy has no time to pester the ordinary, you can do your own thing and the city lets you be. In Chennai I could possibly defend myself with a flourish of Tamil,with a wag of the tongue. Bangalore is a city where I could swiftly transubstantiate myself into karate kid if need be. Yes, they too have their share of crimes but there is some element of trust that manifests amidst the smoky haze of these cities. In comparison, the other metros are a lot more endurable. I can sum up Delhi in three “U”s – unsophisticated, uncultured, uncouth. Not surprisingly, the city also has the highest crime rate against women. It continues to top metro’s in crime rate and it is surely not getting any better. The city continues to have its regular daily lavation of murders, rapes, kidnapping and other forms of crimes. I do not believe I am capricious in my judgement of the capital city.
I do not recall being placid in Delhi.One does not have to wait until midnight to see something evil lurking in the dark, but I stay petrified of shadows ( mine included ) that lurk around. If there is one word that describes me better, it could be frenzied. I sound and look like I have depleted bucket loads of caffeine, and I am most surely on the edge in this city. Delhi does this to me, all the time, every time. I am completely at ease in Mumbai but Delhi is a city where I wear an armor of caution around me, I am more than adequately vigilant and ready to brandish a sword even if someone were to tap me on my shoulder. After living and having lived long enough in relatively safe cities venturing out alone after 7PM in a city like New Delhi is not exactly my cup of tea.
0 kommentar(er)
