Peace Rally At The Gateway of India

One of the main reasons I chose to do my internship in Mumbai is because I have always been enamoured by the energy and enthusiasm in the city and its people. The city gave me a positive vibe the minute I landed here.

Looking back at the history of the city we come across a number of terror attacks and tragedies. The people of this city have been hit time and time again but they always get back on their feet almost immediately. When I used to live in Calcutta, i watched the coverage of the previous attacks on the city and read about it in the newspapers, but I could never actually fathom the emotions of fear, helplessness and panic that people go through. This time I was present in the city and for the first time I understood what it all really feels like and what is it to be afraid for your life. Although life has returned to a fairly normal state, people are still shocked from last week's events and fear for their lives and for the lives of their loved ones.

I attended the Peace rally at The Gateway of India and was amazed. I was amazed at the number of people and the energy in that area. People from all over Bombay attend the rally. Alyque Padamsee organized a campaign 'Enough Is Enough' in which almost everyone in the rally participated. Leaflets were given out where we had to fill in our contact details and state three things of the government that we wanted changed. The persons concerned would put forward an ATR with the list of demands. People were present with candles, banners and of course their spirit. The place was flooded with media people who were clicking away and interviewing as many people as possible. It was good to see people of all ages, walks of life and religion.

The Peace rally was quite an experience for me although after a while the motive of peace was lost. I personally didn't feel comfortable after a point because all one could here were anti-Muslim, anti-Pakistan slogans and of course the ones against the politicians. There was a lot of anger and rage and after a point it was a little unnerving. Frankly I feel that instead of blaming the government and the media and various other people for their irresponsibility and insensitivity we should take charge and change our ways too. We should become responsible and vote for the right people and take a stand against things we don’t agree with. If we don’t do it this time, we’ll be lighting candles and having many more peace rallies and not solving the real problem.