The Open Window

No, I do not intend to narrate Saki’s story once again. No one is going to walk through this window. It’s just one of the many things I noticed soon after coming to Mumbai and which has been strengthened further over years of observation.

We normally associate a window as our link with the outside world. We can see patches of the sky in its myriad moods…..the brilliant blue, the dark clouds gathering on a stormy day, and  ,may be ,if you are very lucky ,you may even catch a fleeting glimpse of the sunrise or the sunset against the city’s silhouette. Many a times we have sat with a book in our hands, watching the rain falling against the window pane, and let our minds wander. We watch the streets, the goings and comings of a multitude of men on an idle afternoon from this vantage point. The window has often let us catch the first glimpse of a much awaited friend walking towards the house or even an unwanted guest finding his way cautiously to the front door.

The window is the most chosen place to go and stand near when you are feeling down or lost in your thoughts. It has often helped to clear the overburdened mind or lighten the heavy heart. Ideas have trickled in, tears rolled down, inspirations flooded in while uneasy thoughts have floated out of the favourite window.

For many a pervert a conveniently located window may have even satisfied his voyeuristic desires. But that’s not what caught my attention in Mumbai.

It is in Mumbai that I first learnt that the window is not just for fresh air or the first rays of sun to filter through. It has a higher purpose for its existence. All credit goes to the ingenious Mumbaikar’s mind which is forever calculating the length, breadth and height in a 10x10X10 ft room, which knows how the 5.57pm Borivali is better than the 5.59pm Borivali local, which is never wrong in calculating the exact point to stand on the railway platform and at what angle to hold the head and catch the rod before jumping into the train as it pulls into Churchgate Platform No.3.

For a Mumbaikar the window is what the terrace or courtyard is to a Calcuttan (should I say Kolkatan) or a Delhi-ite. All clothes are put out to dry there! Look up any multistoried building in Mumbai and you will see the most colourful patchwork. The wall followed by the multi-coloured patchwork…again wall..patchwork. They cover up the windows completely using glass shutters or intricate grilles to hang out towels, bed sheets, shirts, sarees  and even Dollar, Lux and VIPs! In monsoon, a blue plastic hangs in front of the window protecting all wares on display from the onslaught of the heavy showers. Who cares for air or light!

In Mumbai the most sought after is the box type window whose grille you can further extend. No, not to sit and admire the view…. or watch the monsoon clouds as they float by. No one in Mumbai can afford the luxury of standing or rather sitting and staring! The extended window grille is used to hold all your unwanted stuff…like a compact store-room. No one knows the value of space better than the man who has to shell out a phenomenal amount to just cover his head in a 1 BHK house. This “storeroom’ can accommodate anything…from extra gas cylinders to bicycles, from old perambulators to ironing boards, from the aluminum ladder to the discarded toy car. Oh how could I forget the pickle jars and the papads which are left on the window sills to soak the sunlight! At times you may find that some have decorated the side panels of these extensions with special bricks and enameled paints to utilize the space for housing the family deities or even the child’s study table.

If a Delhiite can afford a garden with small lawn whose view he enjoys from his French window or a Calcuttan can afford a bonsai garden in his terrace, can the Mumbaikar be far behind! No way! He has his little window which also doubles up as his little garden. Look up and you will notice an array of brown and black plastic pots in various shapes and sizes holding crotons, cacti and at times even roses and bougainvillea. No one can beat the Mumbaikar in his innovativeness! He never complains, never says I do not have the space to have a garden of my own.

For the uninitiated, if you do not know where to put up your hammock in your recently acquired tiny apartment or the huge plastic container your mother sent to hold 20 kg of grain, ask the man from Mumbai. He knows the magic of creating space! He is our space-man!!!

DS