Tuesday, March 14, 2006

Thoughts on Rain

Of all the kinds of rain in the world, gentle rain is the saddest. Uncertain, nostalgia-inducing - umbrellas lying crumpled up inside school bags; the sudden wetness on the head as a raindrop wanders in; dark-leaved trees against grey grey sky; squelching through mud and ruining shoes.

Of all the kinds of gentle rain in the world, early morning gentle rain is the saddest. Who is it raining for? The streets are almost deserted. It reminds one of a theatre performance before an empty room - row upon row of empty seats; perhaps a few friends in the front row, looking uncomfortable.

Delhi as a city gets transformed by rain. Overnight, it becomes green and lovely and cold and nice and well-behaved and romantic. And then overnight it changes back into its hot hellish self. Everyone knows this. Everyone feels this. This city is different when it rains.

I offer you proof: every Delhi blogger has, at one time or the other, blogged about the rain. When it rains in Delhi, you will know, because you will read about it in some blog or the other. Have you noticed this with bloggers of any other Indian city? Do any of them say this? Or this? Would any of them even think of posting, "Oh, it rained today. Wow, it's so awesome. I love rain. I love rain in this city. I love this city." Mind you, they can only say that they "love this city" when it's raining. Otherwise it doesn't count.

I love rain. I love rain in Delhi. I love Delhi. On days such as this.
• • •

16 comments:

Dreamcatcher said...

Oh but they do. I dont think getting sentimental about the rain is limited to just one city ;-) you're biased which is but natural. I am crazy about Calcutta too.
very nice post btw - nostalgia meets eloquence.

ss said...

beautifully written..and btw Delhi is very beautiful..when it rains and otherwise

Anonymous said...

jasmine

rains...ohh yea...its raining here too...

also, we in bangalore too write abt rains..here when it rains..the whole city gets flooded...but still i love the rains...

PS: my city is beautiful even if it doesnt rain !!!

Cheers,
tECHJ

zypsy said...

I love the rains, and i think everyone does. The city doesn't matter.

Ever seen and felt the rain on the highways of himachal, the snow-capped mountains all around? Or on the red hills of the north-east, the dark forest and the gushing streams adding something that can't be defined?

Btw, I love the rain in Delhi:-)

scout said...

Talking about templates - yours is gorgeous.

And Delhi rains... that's what I miss the most. The smells and the new green of the trees and the car rides with the air-con off and the windows rolled down.

Damn I miss Delhi. When it rains here, it gets hotter. And they always have the heating/cooling on.

Nishant Ramachandran said...

My heart feels light and my mind starts singing....

Ode to the rain

Poetry in motion, thou falls so steep, the barren earth sings for thee with its smell so sweet, thou awakens a song so green, joyous to behold and joyous to feel, blooming flowers carpet the earth so neat, spreading their fragrence and spreading their joy, joining all, the young and old, for what heart is it that bounds not with love, when thy caress evokes such eternal passion.

There is nothing more beautiful and welcome than rain when the sun is at its scorching best. To feel the cold air, smell the fresh scent of wet earth, these are the simple joys of life. I remember as a kid going for rain baths. The monsoon showers beating with tremendous force and me with a towel wrapped around my middle running and jumping around, having the time of my life.....

Life is a movement that builds from moment to moment, such moments are forever etched in my mind, it is for such moments that I live my life, so I can see in my future the joys of my past.

Thinking of rain usually brings out the romantic in a person.

You have penned a truly memorable post. I deeply appreciate it.

Regards

Jade said...

Dreamcatcher: Thank you. But what I meant was that rain is more of a phenomenon here in Delhi than in any other city. Because it happens so seldom and when it does, it changes the whole city.

ss: I'm not sure I agree with the 'otherwise'. :)

tECHJ: Hehe. Thankfully, the flooding doesn't happen too much here.

zypsy: No, I know people who hate rains - think it ruins their shoes or something. Wierd people!

scout: Is it possible to miss Delhi? Well, perhaps the rains. And the foggy winters. The summers, now - nobody could miss those.

Nishant: I guess most of us have some memory or the other attached to rains. Which is why we love them. Unlike the above-mentioned shoe-lovers. :D

Mistral Noir said...

i miss delhi when i'm in delhi and it rains, because i stand in my balcony and try to soak it all up, and sometimes i go down when it drizzles to watch ladybirds float in small redorangegreen leaves in chai puddles, and a creepy man hides in a building with a pink umbrella.
gentle rain is the saddest. truly.

Kaala Kavva said...

every Delhi blogger has, at one time or the other, blogged about the rain
Input Statement Incorrect. Access Denied.

And ya, I love rain. Esp the surprise one.

Anonymous said...

Nice blog, chanced by it thought i should leave a comment and let ya know i've been here!

have a nice day
regards
g
--
http://g-thisisme.blogspirit.com

Anjaan said...

ur on the verge of starting and intercity blog war! Beware where u tread my child! :)

And take a look Here
and Here and especially HERE
for what bangalore has to say!

the Monk said...

seriously, nice post...as DC said, very eloquent...Bangalore's pretty nice too, when it rains...but Kerala's the best I've seen, though, as far as rain-drenched natural beauty goes...

Jade said...

Madhur: Yeah, I do that too - the standing in the balcony and soaking in the rain bit.

Mr.X: Man, I love your profile pics! Where do you find 'em?

g: Umm. Thank you. Yours isn't so bad either. :)

Anjaan: Ah.. but one of those posts was complaining about rain in Bangalore, while another was about the first rain of the season rather than about rain in Bangalore. So too bad - my statement stays. :P

the Monk: Thank you. I so agree. It's one of the many reasons I love visiting Kerala.

One in a Billion said...

>>It reminds one of a theatre performance before an empty room - row upon row of empty seats; perhaps a few friends in the front row, looking uncomfortable.

But slowly the streets fill with people, as empty seats might, and when the performance is over, their smiles say it all.


P.S. Like your writing. And the post on introversion rocked!

Kaala Kavva said...

Haha!
Trade Secret!

Scoot said...

man!it's so hot out here.i really could use some rain right now