Feeling Wet Wet Wet: The monsoons are here

The monsoons have arrived in India. And with a bang, as usual. The rains in India never arrive with a whimper. The pre-monsoon symptoms begin a few days before their actual arrival, the weather becomes sultry and there is something different in the air. We will not go into the marketing blitz that follows each season — as companies extol the virtues of their raincoats, special school bags, shoes, and umbrellas. Of course in today’s age it is appropriate that the television announces the monsoons rather than the forces of nature. Its as though life — birds, animals, trees and man — is waiting with a baited breath for the waters of life. Water to soothe parched lands, to give a breather from the scorching summer.

And then the rains arrive, with a flash of lightening and the cackle of thunder followed by showers. It’s almost as if the rain sends its messengers — lightening and thunder — before it makes its grand entrance.

Monsoons have always been associated with romance, with love. The earthy smell of fresh wet earth, the mist of falling rain, the green leaves looking squeaky clean, thanks to the bath they have just received.

Clean? Smell of fresh earth. The disgruntled Amdavadi takes a second look at the much-awaited monsoons. I like rains or rather I used to. Now, somehow the charm one used to associate with rains is not there anymore," says Shruti Patel, a housewife. "The drains get clogged up, the telephones cease to function and the city somehow looks dirtier," she adds.

Looking away from the seamier side of megharitu (rainy season for the ignoramus), there are some gastronomic delights that one can indulge in this season. For some people rains mean sitting in his verandah, sipping hot, sweet tea and eating spicy bhajiyas. "It’s a simple pleasure but it is something I look forward to all the year."

And then there are some who like about the monsoon is getting wet. The first drop of rain and they are up on the terrace with friends. It's exhilarating!

For others it's more than just an inconvenience, the arrival of monsoons heralds the arrival of yet another round of serious problems. Yes, it is slum dwellers we are talking of, people who do not have a roof over their heads, who are denied the basic human right of adequate shelter. Twenty-five-year old Meena is one such person. She lives in a makeshift home built with huge plastic sheets. "Rains are the worst time for us. Yesterday night the wind blew away the roof and my family had to spend the night under a tree, she says despairingly. "I was blissfully sleeping when this huge drop of water fell over me —and I knew the rains had arrived. This happens every monsoon —our house is not a pucca one and each rainy season we have to contend with a leaking roof, "says Bikha, gesturing towards the various pots and pans that are strategically placed all over the room. The good, the bad and the ugly — the rain, in its various moods is here.

Compiled from Local News Media