Young dating couples (in most places), sit opposite each other at a table for four, hold hands, and look into each others eyes. In Bombay they slide into the same side, share earphones and watch a show, Thereby saving space, data, battery life, and time. +

They have no problem at all if another couple sits opposite them, doing the same thing. In fact, they may not even acknowledge them. That's the amazing thing about this city. Live and let live comes naturally to people here. +

So it's a bit disconcerting when one steps out of this non-judgemental, pragmatic world, to places where waiters will size you up and restaurant capacity will not be optimised. Just as it was when I first came to Bombay from outside. +

On my first trip here, I walked into an Udupi establishment. Hoping to enjoy a masala dosa in solitude, and hopefully a decent cup of filter coffee. I chose a quiet corner. The solitude lasted 3 minutes. A young couple giggled into the seats opposite me. Like I was invisible +

I looked at the waiter in protest. He asked me, very matter-of-factly, "Sambar?"
I looked around. There was no other vacant table. And the young couple were no bother really. And easy on the eye. So I said, "Nahin. Chutney." I was going to like this place. +

Bombay minds its own business. Every evening, a young MT will stumble out of his office building, sit between a man wearing eye make-up and a woman wearing a power suit, and enjoy a stunning sunset. And he'll never want to leave this city again. (pic by Rohit Dubey).

He will see a taxi driver from Bihar making a call to his wife after a long day on the road. And an old Parsi couple walking their labrador, discussing the concert they saw at NCPA. And two dudes from Haryana discussing how their auditions for the day went. +

He will loosen his tie, his mind, and his heart. And make room for a young couple in love, to watch the sunset. He will not even notice that anywhere else in the country they would have seemed utterly mismatched for each other.

As I sit here, randomly reminiscing in this coffee shop, a long way in time and distance from Hotel Raj Mahal, where my privacy was first intruded, I realise why Bombay wasn't just a pit stop for me.