A day in Mumbai.. living it up.. life in the fast lane.. heading for disaster !!

Its a typical morning here in Mumbai. Its warm and over crowded, busy with bustling traffic and noisy with the abuse of drivers. Its also fast paced.. very fast !! People here don't have time to divert their pre-occupied minds and even notice a passerby or stranger so to speak. You can easily get engulfed and overshadowed in this big bad city. Ask any of the local residents and they tell you promptly "This is Mumbai. There's way too much good and evil that goes on without attention. 'Idhar Sabh chalta hai', they say with ease." Everybody is busy, doing their own thing, living their own lives and looking out for themselves.

Meet Pooja Mehta. She stands outside 'Not Just Jazz by the Bay' puffing her cigarette. Its almost 11.30 in the morning as she inhales the smoke of expensive American tobacco that she can easily afford. She stares into the sea constantly as if lost in deep thought about her day ahead or maybe even her life ahead. She's 29, very attractive and is well dressed. She sports a Gucci top, hip hugging Levis denims and a trendy CK watch to go with her classy pendant. Its 11.30 am now and shes just finished having breakfast a while ago at a famous restaurant. After all they don't serve food of her taste at 'Paradise Inn', her 'workplace'. She met up with a 'client' last night. Himanshu Jain, a renowned and highly regarded banker among Mumbai circles. He heads the Indian operations of a prime Canadian bank that has its headquarters in Mumbai. He pays her well... very well !! In return he 'borrows' her body for exactly 12 hours as per their mutual agreement and terms. He buys her dinner too, before they occupy their room and embark upon their 'work'. Last night they went over to 'Bade Miya'. Himanshu never takes her to any restaurants as he fears getting noticed or being spotted with her. Its safe at 'Bade Miya'. You just sit in the car, among the dozens of cars and the waiter comes running over, you order your food and the waiters bring it over within minutes.

Pooja has no qualms about her profession. She is a 'call girl', the designation or work title given to high class 'hookers'. It sounds rather crude but Mumbai is home to several thousands of such 'call girls'. Like most of the girls in this line of work, Pooja too was forced into the profession due to financial constraints. She lost her Dad when she was 19. All that her mother receives and has been running the house on was her fathers pension, which the family was entitled to after his sad demise. They live in Borivali, one corner of Mumbai where they own a one bedroom apartment. She has a younger brother who's doing his MBA in Ahmedabad. She calls him once in a while to check on him and find out if he's doing alright. After all she wants to make sure he gets a respectable job and makes money in life... the right way!

She doesn't want her brother to experience what she went through while growing up. She sacrificed alot in college. She lost many friends due to her financial background, because she simply couldn't keep up with their fast paced lives. She had a boyfriend.. Amit, who was well to do, but he ended up using her.. again due to her background. It was a painful bitter saga that she was determined to turn around someday. This so called 'opportunity' came knocking on her door while she took up petty ramp modeling assignments after her graduation. Those days the money she received from modeling was given to her mother in order to run the house and pay the bills. Michelle, one of her colleagues with whom she seemed to interact with alot more than the others, had enlightened her on being a 'call girl' for filthy rich businessmen and professionals in Mumbai. Sadly, Pooja was lured by the sheer thrill and lifestyle apart from the excellent remuneration that the industry has to offer. Today she has seven odd years of work experience in this line of work. Clients know her and she knows the clients. However while venturing into this industry clients were hard to come by but Michelle was always there to guide her, full of advice and tips often persuading Pooja not to give up but hang in there. Pooja would often dress well and stroll into coffee shops and poolside restaurants/bars of some prominent Five Star Hotels in Mumbai. Michelle would tip her off on which Hotel was 'hot' and on which days. All Pooja had to do was take a walk inside and prospective clients would approach her by buying her a drink or asking her out and Pooja would take it from there by laying down her 'terms and conditions' and not to forget most importantly her 'price'. Today its a differrent story. She now has a few clients who call her during the week and fix an appointment. Ultimately whoever is willing to pay the most is the winner, so to speak. Pooja never gets emotionally attached to any of the clients, some she plainly detests but she has to comply.. for the money.. for her family.

Speaking of emotions, she doesn't have any right now. She's numb and cold. She has to be this way she feels. In her life, real emotions only drowned her. Whenever she interacts personally with clients, she modifies her true story.. weaves her way around.. after all the clients aren't actually here to help her out.. they're just killing time.. filling in the gaps.. trying to act like they care and act like they're actually listening. There are few who do listen and care maybe just an ounce.. but then those are the clients Pooja has to be wary of. After all she doesn't want a reputed married man falling in love with her. She's very focused and knows what she wants.. she's just her for the money.. thats all!! Yes, sometimes she wonders and ponders upon the thought of having a real man, having a companion always.. 24/7 .. but then.. its just a dream.. not reality.

"Its just deceit all around.. my life is full of deceit.. plain deceit! Nothing is real in this life".. these are the famous and constant words that rebound within the walls of her mind. She doesn't want to think about her future.. as a matter of fact she refuses to.. she just lives for today.. Shes 29 now, soon to be 30.. her family doesn't know of her actual profession. Her mother is still under the impression that she undertakes modeling assignments. On weekends when she has to spend the night away from home, she simply tells her mother that she's leaving for Pune where the assignment is. Her mother believes her.. simply because she trusts her and most importantly because it would bring income for the family. Pooja is happy and satisfied with her life.. at least thats what she thinks and assumes.. and thats what she keeps telling herself. 'Denial' can be a good friend in life, there are times when denial will be your only friend, but then if you don't mend your ways by first being true to yourself.. your simply heading for disaster !!

Its almost 12.00 now.. Pooja hailed a cab a while ago and is heading towards Bandra to meet a friend.. Mark Dsouza.. a collegemate who has known Pooja for several years now. He knows her very well.. in and out.. she confides in him as hes always been a good and patient listener to her. Whenever shes bored or stressed out she goes over to Marks apartment on Hill Road. Hes always been hospitable and also does a great deal in making Pooja laugh and forget about her misery. When I say he does a great deal in doing so, I mean it... literally !! He supplies Pooja with a few drugs and supplies it for free.. Mark is a rather well known peddler in Bandra. Hes famous among mumbai circles too when it comes to supply of 'pure stash' and MDMA. He simply abides by the 'live and let live' motto. Afcourse his idea of 'live' is 'live life to the fullest'.. sex, drugs and rock n roll.. Over the years Mark has evolved into living just 'drugs and psychedelic trance'. Sex and Rock n roll, both seem like things of the past. Prolonged use of drugs have caused a massive decrease in his libido and also affected his performance. As a result he lost many hot chicks on the way.. he doesnt mind.. women are just 'sluts and skanks' he tells himself time and again.

He wakes up every morning with a monkey around his neck, nagging him right from the time he was asleep. These days he keeps his 'morning doobie' rolled and ready just before he falls asleep. He prefers just waking up and killing the awful turks and urges by just lighting up.. pronto !! He seems to believe that he cant live without it.. not on a daily basis but on an hourly basis.

As Pooja steps in to his messy and murky apartment, he welcomes her.. not with a handshake or hug but a lit joint.. His apartment has that aroma of pure 'charas' all over alongwith the music of the psychedelic age that he lives in today. Mark is a drummer.. well he used to be.. He was part of a metal band 'Khatarnak' in Mumbai that were coming up decently until their lead guitarist Dale migrated to Australia. They just never managed to find a decent replacement for Dale and the vocalist Arjun joined another band in due course of time.

Mark has had his own share of personal tragedies in life. He lost his mother while he was in college and his father gave up thereafter drowning himself in alcohol abuse. He too kicked the bucket a few years after his wife left them. Mark was left stranded as the only child and with so called relatives in Goa who didn't offer much help to him. He couldn't afford his engineering studies anymore and thus moved to Goa where a new life awaited him. He moved in with his relatives who weren't very hospitable and caring. They kept pressurising him to sell the apartment in Mumbai and give them the money to look after him. Mark simply didn't succumb to the pressure and eventually they asked him to fend for himself. He moved out and took up a job with a Five Star Hotel in Panjim where he worked at the front desk. They gave him food and accommodation as well. During his stint here, he made friends with many Foreigners and Indian tourists who checked into the hotel. In due course of time he was supplying these tourists with drugs as per their requests. He was enjoying himself and having a ball. He would charge the foreigners and indians a hefty price for the drugs that he brought in. There was loads of money, alcohol, the best food and several women. This helped him forget about his own sorrows and move on.

In Bandra whilst in college he was an occasional smoker. He would take a few drags now and then from his friends who would smoke weed or charas. However, here in Goa he grew to become a 'hardcore' heavy user of the same drugs and also indulged in LSD and MDMA. While attending raves in Goa alongwith some Israeli's and Russians, Mark began interacting with them and they imparted the knowledge they had of the 'psychedelic experience'. It was a life changing experience that! It was also special as he grew really close emotionally and spiritually with a Russian girl, Anna. Anna really liked him and enjoyed his company. Moreover she loved Goa and enjoyed the fact that Mark being a local could show her around easily. Anna stayed back in Goa for about 16 months living with Mark. Mark had quit his job by then as he was now pushing drugs on a larger scale. He couldn't afford to work and meet customers at the same time. He was losing customers and eventually losing big money. He also had his link at the front desk of the hotel where he maintained his supply. Moreover, he had more time to spend with Anna now. They smoked, tripped, partied and painted Goa red until disaster struck.

Anna was a link between Mark and the Russian tourists whom she knew personally at times. She would convince them to buy their drugs from Mark as he never adulterated or cheated. This was a big thing for the Russians who on many occasions had been duped by local peddlers in most of their previous dealings. The local peddlers slowly began to realise that Mark was cutting them out slowly and steadily, especially in commercial beaches like calangute, baga anjuna and vagator. In envy and frustration they gave the local cops a 'tip-off'. Mark was well versed with handling the cops so these peddlers bribed the cops and mis-informed them that his Russian girlfriend was carrying huge amounts of drugs for him time and again. The cops setup a trap with a fiduciary customer who posed as a buyer of a large amount of MDMA and seized both Mark and Anna who were arrested for possession of narcotic substances.

Mark eventually had to bribe himself and Anna out of jail while Anna had to be deported back to Russia. It was painful and agonising but Mark sadly realised the power and influence of the local drug cartel in Goa. Anna chose never to return as her family back in Russia begged her not to do so but get married and start her life afresh. Mark too decided to move on with the little money that he had left after bribing his way out of trouble. He moved to Manali where he spent six months mingling with the locals in solang and manikaran establishing his new supply of 'charas'. He was amazed at the purity of the charas there and was overjoyed with the cheap price at which it could be supplied. He setup an agreement for a carrier to bring in 100 tolas of stash and a dozen small containers of pure 'hash oil' into Mumbai once every two months.
He moved back into his bandra apartment and began reviving all of his previous 'stoner contacts'. He also began making trips to the slums where they would pick up stash from during his college days. Raju the cobbler in Bandra recognised him instantly, so did some of the mawshi's and bhabhi's of the slums who peddled charas for many years now. His favourite however was the old lady in Saki Naka, Andheri. She was old enough to be his granny. He would fondly refer to her as 'Mary Jane' or 'Aunty Mary'. Mark gave them samples of the charas he was about to supply to all of them, indicating that it was pure and that they could adulterate it if they so desired. They were happy with the price and eventually the charas did well on the streets of Mumbai.

During this period Mark would make several trips to Pune to catch up with old friends. One fine morning while eating his breakfast at 'German Bakery', he interacted with Liam Montgomery, a Britisher who was settled in Pune and a disciple at the Osho Ashram. It turned out that Liam aka Swami Anand was an active part of the pune party circuit that involved many of the disciples of the Ashram and a few locals. He invited Mark to a rave that weekend in Mulshi, on the outskirts of Pune where Mark did some LSD and MDMA together. It turned out that Swami Anand had made the drops himself and so also the MDMA. Mark bonded well with him that weekend and made an agreement with Swami Anand to supply him with LSD and MDMA. With this pure 'A' and 'E', Mark was aggressively peddling big time once again, only this time round.. in Mumbai.

The Mumbai party scene is basically rich kids.. college kids and some young working professionals from Call Centers, Airlines and very few from the media industry. Mark was everywhere.. Karjat, Madh Island, Gorai, Club Renaissance, Sea Rock Sheraton.. He was a prominent figure who had good relations with the organisers. He was living it up again and he was back with a bang! Kindzadza, Infected Mushroom, Hocus Pocus, Iron Madness, Paranormal Attack, GMS, Vibe Tribe, Goa Gill.. Mumbai was hosting parties of such big and prominent acts on a large scale and Mark was just tapping in and making the most of it.. making big money that is. This is where he bumped into Pooja, at one of the parties. He had known her from college as He and Amit (Pooja's ex) were best friends back in the day. They've kept in touch ever since.

Pooja likes to do some MDMA once a while at parties. She likes the euphoria and the energy that is generated by doing her MDMA. She feels the need to let her hair down and just keep buzzing for hours once in a while. She likes the vibe that comes forth. She's had some bad trips too, thats the reason why she doesn't do any LSD. Amit had once 'spiked' her while they were at a rave in Karjat around the time when they were seeing each other. It still is an unforgettable experience for her.. the hallucinations, the loud noises amidst the screams, the darkness all around in the valley and constant attempts from Amit to take her to his car where he tried to take advantage of her while she was under the influence of the drug. She just had absolutely no idea of what was going on that night!

Shes much better now. More experienced and afcourse much more wise. She's one of the many who believe that if it doesn't kill you, it only makes you stronger. Shes learned and taught herself to be a tough cookie. But just like everybody else, the drugs have made her think more clearly and helped her analyse alot. There's a flipside to the drugs too. One minute it helps you think straight.. the other minute it warps your thinking and reasoning and then later it just distorts your perceptions to the extent that in your illogical reasoning you feel that your alright.

Even now, she's just staring blankly at Mark. Shes 'stoned to the bone' as some people say. Shes just been observing him for 10 minutes now and he afcourse hasn't even realised and is the least bit bothered. Hes busy packing and sealing his charas pieces. Theres stash all around.. some broken, some powdered and some whole large blocks. Theres plastic pouches all over the floor and theres the sealer which Mark uses to seal the pouches. The digital weighing scale lies in the corner just beside Mark. She must be observing him.. must be wondering.. "when will all of this end" ?? "is there an end to this madness" ?? "does he even know what a bad state he is in" ?? In the background theres a trance song by 'Atomic Pulse' playing and suddenly the beats and bass line is cut off and a voice says " get a normal life.. start a normal life " and the beats and bass line come back all at once. Shes thinking to herself now " what is a normal life " ?? "isnt this a normal life" ?? Then her mind takes off.. mixed with anger, hurt and hatred for the world.. " all that the world sees as normal is getting married, having kids and sacrificing everything" !!
Right then the doorbell rings and Marks bloodshot eyes open up in alarm.. a little more than they normally would. He looks at his wrist to check the time but his wrist is bare.. hes not even wearing a watch. He looks up at the clock on the wall and the hands show that its 15 minutes past ten. He's bewildered !! At this point she starts laughing because she knows hes still hasnt changed the batteries of the clock. Pooja looks at her own watch and says "its 2.25 pm.. gonna be 2.30 soon" Mark pauses.. looks at her for few seconds as if he still hasnt understood what she just said and "Oh Shit!" he blurts out. Pooja starts cracking up at that sight.. just now he wasn't even concerned about any damn thing in the world and now to see his stoned face look alarmed mixed with caution. He picks himself up slowly as he heads towards the hall while shes still chuckling away and rather amused.

When he opens the door hes not the least bit surprised anymore. Its Shinde.. the Inspector from the Hill Road Chowky. He called Mark the night before informing him that he would be paying him a visit to collect his 'hafta' and it obviously slipped Marks mind. Shinde asks him "Kya yaar Mark.. kitna time leta kholneko" ?? Mark replies "Nahin yaar Shinde.. andar tha.. room mein.. packing chaalu hain.. sorry yaar".

As Shinde steps into the apartment Mark directs him towards the bedroom and both of them carry on with their small talk. Pooja eagerly awaits this 'Shinde'.. all she can hear is another voice conversing with Mark in Hindi.. the voices grow louder as they near the bedroom and as they finally enter Mark introduces her to Shinde. She smiles and thrusts her hand forward while Shinde too leans forward and introduces himself, "Inspector Shinde" he says with a booming resonance. Her smile immediately shrinks a little as she turns to look at Mark. Shinde promptly assures her, "don't worry Pooja.. Marks a good friend.. Im not here to make any arrests.." and both Mark and himself burst out laughing. Pooja slowly puts up a brave smile again but looks skeptically towards Mark first and then Shinde again. Mark offers him a seat next to him so that they can carry on their small talk. Shinde inquisitively looks around and says " so much charas but not a joint to smoke". Mark laughs and pacifies him by showing him his 'ready mix' in a newspaper neatly folded and tucked away. "Rizla mein marega ya chillum banao " ?? Shinde responds quickly.. "Rizla Rizla.. I have to go back to the chowky yaar.. just came to meet you for a short while."

Pooja is astounded with the fluent english this 'Inspector' speaks with. Unlike most Policemen she has had to interact with in the past, Shinde speaks with a very comfortable ease and control over the language. She starts observing the man and his attire. He looks to be well into his 40's.. maybe even early 50's. Greying hair and beard.. wrinkled poker face alongwith a dark wheatish complexion.. hes wearing a decent formal shirt which is tucked tight into his pair of jeans. She likes his sneakers and keeps staring at them for a while as she's still trying to digest the fact that there is a Police Inspector sitting with them and about to spark a joint. She looks away as she realised she must be staring quite blatantly. Immediately she feels eyes on her.. slyly from the corner of her vision she can notice Shinde checking her out as her carries on conversation with Mark. It makes her a tad bit uneasy and her stoned mind kinda gets paranoid as she mentally makes plans for leaving. Shes trying to come up with an excuse to tell Mark but then she doesn't want him to feel awkward and make it rather obvious as well so she decides to stay a little longer.. maybe this Shinde will leave soon, she tells herself.

She can hear the clicking of a lighter and turns towards both of them. Shinde's sparking the joint finally as mark is trying to convince him about something. He keeps responding with verbal nods as he puffs away, not even looking at Mark.

"I havent sold much this month yaar.." Mark says.. "Theres no problem as such.. just that exams were on.. many kids reduce their daily consumption.. its not been a great month as far as business is concerned". Shinde looks down at the floor as if he's still soaking in what Mark is saying. After about 10 seconds he responds.. " So whats your plan of action now ??.. How do you intend to make up for the losses ??.. After all you know I'm answerable to someone.. I cannot in any way whatsoever reduce the hafta." Mark blurts out instantaneously.. "Haan yaar.. but Ive got some prospective big buyers in the pipeline.. been sending them samples personally during the course of the month." Shinde looks at him slowly and questions "big buyers ??.. which big buyers ??" Without any hesitance Mark exclaims " Arre woh Mahim durgah mein aur Powai durgah mein kuch log hain.. they normally push 'kasmiri maal' on the streets but they like the manali stash I have and they like the price too.. and then theres Maharaj at Parvati temple as well." Shinde chuckles and simply says "maharaj" with a smile. "He just got out of jail.. does he want to make a quick return or what ??." "yea I know Shinde" Mark says.. "but he can lift a good 50 tolas at a time."
Shinde guffaws and says "He'll lift the 50 tolas no doubt.. the cops who are on his tail will lift him and you also eventually! Stay away from the guy Mark.. He's a stinking rat today.. every narcotics officer is on his case as they simply know hes desperate to get back in business and make up for his losses." At that point Mark is just silent.. left pondering.. calculating.. Mark is desperate to make up for his own losses too but doesn't want to end up busted and he trusts Shinde.. he has always been a good and reliable source. Mark sinks his face in his hands and murmurs "50 tolas yaar.. 40,000 rupees!" he whines. Shinde looks at Mark again and smirks as if to say he knows what Marks feeling right now. "Be careful Mark.. thats all.. if you really want to work with him then when you deliver don't go to his place.. there could easily be a raid.. call him somewhere far away and take all your money when you deliver.. theres a good chance of him trying to cheat you of even a few thousand rupees. Be firm with him.. Maharaj is vulnerable right now and he will agree to these terms.." Mark listens carefully and attentively.. hes visualising the whole deal in his mind.. thinking of a suitable place to call Maharaj.. he really needs to sell his stash and recover his money.

Shinde passes the joint to Pooja in the ashtray and stretches a little and leans back on the bean bag, making himself comfortable as he stares at the ceiling.. his foot swaying and tapping in the air as the music plays softly.. hes stoned.. hes set.. he likes this mild pure buzz and looks at mark again " Good maal yaar.. nice stuff.. remind me to take a 'T' on my way out.." mark nods and bounces his head to the trance.. Hes mentally occupied now.. on a trip.. he has lots of homework to do.. mentally! He has to deliver the stash to Maharaj and make a good buck on it.

Pooja's done with the joint and passes it to Mark now. Shes rather impressed with what she just witnessed but doesn't dare to utter a word. Shinde is euphoric about the 'gyaan' he just gave Mark.. he has alot of useful info but its all within him.. hence he doesn't mind sharing it with a guy like Mark who's been very co-operative and clean in his dealings with him. Shinde starts reminiscing of his own younger days as a notorious cop. His stoned mind races to and fro within the walls of the memory in his brain.. there are so many instances.. so many incidents.. but theres one which he never chooses to think of. The time when he was caught hand in glove with a big time carrier of heroin from Delhi. The CBI nailed him and stripped him of his uniform for a year.. they suspended him for that period. He wasn't worried about the loss of income during that time. It was just shameful and really painful for him and his family. The arrest and suspension was all over the papers. The people who were above him and were part of the scandal just refused to help and threatened him with dire consequences if he opened his mouth and spilled the beans. He vowed to his wife back then that he wouldn't indulge in such dealings from now on. But then hes a victim.. one of the many in India who succumb under pressure and tread a path of danger and dirt.. only to improve their family's finances. Only to make their loved ones smile and be filled with joy.. while they are empty themselves.

Shinde has a daughter.. Kavita. He made enough money during his career to afford decent education for her. He put her in a Convent school and then Xaviers college where she did her B.A. and then later sent her to Kolkatta where she did her M.SW. Today Kavitha runs her own NGO in Mumbai. She works among the destitute and homeless on the streets of Mumbai, providing shelter and relief through the various orphanages and homes that are owned and run by other NGO's. Ironically, she also lends a helping hand to badly messed up drug addicts on the streets of Mumbai. She has a 'de-tox' plan for them and tries her best to make sure these poor slum kids stay off the drugs. Inspector Shinde is the one who finances her NGO.. unofficially! After all hes been through with the police force and especially after being abandoned by his seniors during his arrest.. he decided to mend is ways.. at least a little. This 'Robin Hood' deed of stealing from the rich to help the poor gives him a feeling of well being. His daughter doesn't know about the sources of her fathers income but shes grateful to him and never ever questions his integrity.

As a matter of fact, the money Shinde will receive from Mark today is badly needed by Kavitha for a new expansion of her work in south mumbai. Its beautiful isnt it ?? On the one hand drug dealers are expanding their work and business incomes on the streets and then on the other hand an NGO is benefiting from that same income and expanding their own work on the streets as well. Well.. its only possible because of Shinde and his maturity cum experience.. so he feels.. but yes its true to an extent.. not more than that!

I wonder that when these three are at home and lying in bed, 'trying' to get sleep which is hard to come by.. Im sure in their case... what would they be thinking ?? regret and remorse ?? or plain analysis on a daily basis... maybe just distorted self righteousness at times...