Defining Mangalore

Mangalore is not a frank city.That's how PE looks at Mangalore. Now, Bangalore is not like that. It shows when Bangalore is bitchy. It shows when Bangalore is bad. It shows when Bangalore is up to anything. That's not the case with Mangalore, she says. You never know, she says. Mangalore is not as innocent, decent and sensible as it looks, she says. Real Mangalore lives in its shadows, she says.

Talking about Mangalore, it's one place in India I know where Auto Rickshaw Drivers don't take you round and round the city and then charge you one and a half of what you actually see on the meter. It is one city in India where there are more colleges and schools than you can possibly count. It is the only place in India I know where Giant Malls and Petty Grocery Shops equally survive.

Now, how is all this possible? Why are auto-drivers not so cut-throats? How come there are more schools and colleges in Mangalore than human beings? How do the Gullivers and Lilliputs of the Money Making Wheel survive without any of the adjustment issues they have in other cities? the answer is very simple - all because of a group of people who constitute the majority of population in Mangalore: Students.

Yes, they make Mangalore a place worth living. They come in all sizes, colours and types. You may find all sorts of people among them. You may find freaks, junkies, voyeurs, exhibitionists, zombies, hippies, call girls, addicts, drunkards, teetotalers, nerds, geeks, geniuses, all sorts of stuff. The only thing in common about them is that most of them live on strictly rationed pocket money, unlike their counterparts in Bangalore. They can't spend like those in Bangalore. They bargain like all hell broke lose. They tender exact change. They just don't leave without taking their changes, even if it means a one rupee coin.

They are too different from the young people in Bangalore. Young people in Bangalore work. They are corporates, most of them. And spend two months with the corporates and you start stinking. The youngsters in Mangalore don't smell of corporate air conditioning. Then, the youngsters in Bangalore do not know each other well. so, it's okay what ever they do. But youngsters in Mangalore have their classmates to whom they are accountable. so you just can't live as you please. If you want to live as you please in Mangalore, you better find somebody with your tastes.

And these guys in Mangalore are sensible. Bangalore Guys are like Americans - they appear to be sensible, but they are not. Ask the Bharat Mall guys and they will tell you. Mangalore tries out everything that's new. But marketing gimmicks don't sell the way they do in Bangalore. Saibeen Complex and Empire Mall are full on any given day, even when Bharat Mall Guys struggle to do business. People in Mangalore don't buy all that crap. They know what you get where. They know when the shirt you sold yesterday for Rs.150/- shoots to Rs. 300/- on a buy one get one free offer.

Now, I have only one complaint about Mangalore. It's not a place if you have a romantically inclined lover in you. You can take your girlfriend for a film. You can take her to eat out. But never ever dream of having some peaceful time with her in a park. Mangalore doesn't entertain the concept of a park. The good park you have is as small as your palm. The big park you have is as bad as a desert. Now, drop the idea of being romantic if you want to be happy in Mangalore. Be happy hanging out with your girl in Malls, in Pubs and in dirty Udupi Hotels.

Otherwise, I love Mangalore compared to any other city in India. Now, I hate Bangalore. I'm scared of Mumbai. Chennai confuses me. Hyderabad freaks me out. Delhi turns me off. Cochin is snobbish. Trivandrum is out of fashion. Kolkata is dirty. But Mangalore is like a good old friend. It gives you back what you give it. It understand you, it recognizes you. It's like a mirror- you get to see what you are. You can't blame the mirror if you look ugly, can you?