The Pursuit of Happiness- Welcoming Monsoon 2k22.
The hot, sulking, sweaty summer has come to an end. This year saw the warmest summer in India in more than 100 years. It saw many deadly spells of heatwaves one after another. However, as we move past this, the time has arrived to welcome the new season that brings fresh hope with a unique, refreshing atmosphere. The start is filled with new positive vibes.
Although winter remains my favourite season, there's a special attachment to it, monsoon-especially the Mumbai monsoon. Monsoon brings a fresh ray of positivity along with itself. Every tiny droplet on the windowpanes provides hope. Every dose of lightning provides a booster dose of energy and the brute power of the thunder makes you thrilled, bright and alive. That’s why I love the Mumbai Monsoon.
“Do not be angry with the rain; it simply does not know how to fall upwards. ”— Vladimir Nabokov
The transformation into monsoon is an enriching experience. The tide of weather begins to turn slowly. It's that time of the year when the skies, the variation in temperatures, the behaviour of the birds, the movement of the trees and the oscillation of the clouds begin to give enough indicators for the moment that the pluviophiles like me desperately have been waiting for -the arrival of the monsoon.
When you're in the rut of summer, battling the unbearable humidity and surviving the heat, a glimmer of hope provides reassurance that better days are around the corner. And that glimmer of hope begins a month before the actual onset of the monsoon when you start to see the clear blue skies being occupied by layers of puffy white clouds with a little mixture of grey in them.
They won't be big to make you go wow, as they would be filled with gaps in them, but the shape of these clouds will be large enough to mark the beginning of the first indicator that change is in the air. Slowly and steadily, they increase their numbers. Later during dusk, they form beautiful random shapes. The setting sunlight provides a tinge of a mixture of grey and orange.This phenomenon happens for a few days, usually a week or ten days before the onset.
Later, the wind comes into the picture as the days begin to close in. It starts to flow as if it has been given the complete freedom to go out there and express itself. As a result, it also gives the branches of different trees the swings of their lifetime- moving them left, right, and centre in all directions. It's nothing short of a rollercoaster ride in the amusement park for them.
A mini dust-storm with all the dry leaves on the road forming a cyclone-type shape starts to form. This is the last stage before the actual onset showing that the rains are just a few days away. The fragrance of the leaves and the air surrounding it, the moderate flowing wind, the sudden spike in sweat and the reducing intensity of the Sun are indicators that monsoon is on its way. These things don't happen all day but slowly and steadily in a fortnight.
The high humidity during the latter half of May becomes bearable with the sheer thought of monsoon being around the corner, with the clock ticking for the reverse countdown for the number of days remaining to get the much-awaited respite from the humidity with the monsoon onset. Just the thought of the monsoon onset makes me incredibly happy and cheerful that it is difficult to say how much it helps during the last leg of the summer to shred off the summer frustration.
And then the wait finally pays off. The pre-monsoon thunderstorms indicate that the days to monsoon onset can now be counted on your fingertips. The dance of the evening thunderstorms wipes off the high accumulated sultry humidity of the day.
And after the trailer to the showdown is done and dusted, the monsoon arrives grandly, with every raindrop saying that it means serious business.
The first showers are always special. It's a relief and a welcome change from the intolerable searing Mumbai humidity. It makes me close my eyes and soak in the fresh aromatic scent of Earth. Once you have lived in and grown up with the Mumbai monsoon, it becomes an inseparable part of your life. You belong to it. Who doesn't like the smell and sound of the mid-day rain? Who doesn't like to sip a cup of tea, watch the rain & listening to your favourite songs? I have a self-set ritual of welcoming the official monsoon rains through a small cake-cutting tradition. So every year when the official onset occurs, I celebrate the occasion by cutting a small cake.
Nothing surprises like the monsoon rains. The tidbits of weather are so dynamic that there is always something new to learn. One can never proclaim himself to be a weather expert who can deliver forecasts with pinpoint accuracy because if he does, you can be sure he is lying. There is so much that monsoon teaches us with each passing shower. There is never a dull moment because of the changing moods of the monsoon, its patterns with the different shades, and the evolving nature over the four months. At the end of every monsoon, there is something new that you experience and gain knowledge of. This is what makes tracking monsoon extremely exciting.
Monsoon has a significant role in my life, where it has shown its presence on some of the most important days in my life. It has been there when it mattered the most to calm down the jittery nerves(probably deserves a separate blog on this). That's why it has a special place.
The Mumbai monsoon begins to peak by the last week of June, and the month of July is probably where it is at its absolute best. The monsoon mania starts at this time. The aura of Mumbai rains and the sheer reputation that it has gained over the years are on full display at this time of the year. Once you fall in love with this avatar of the Mumbai monsoon, you'll never like the rains in any other part of the world wherever you go because nothing, I repeat, nothing can match or come closer to the spectacular dance of raindrops & the memorable showdown that the Mumbai monsoon does in July. It sets such a massive benchmark that it is almost impossible for rains of any other city to come even inches closer to the aura of the Mumbai monsoon. This monsoon mania is what makes people romanticize and fall in love with the Mumbai monsoon.
It is a paradisical feeling to see the continuous downpour of the magical raindrops pouring down from the heaven, with the sky turning into a complete shade of white and grey while sipping a hot cup of tea may be accompanied by bhajias or going to the local chai tapri and having a 'cutting chai'. Working by the window-side with the monsoon in full flow is a natural stress buster. The sheer ability of the monsoon to take away the pressure of the external surroundings makes it extra- special. The monsoon mania in July is a spectacular sight to behold, undoubtedly the best period for four months.
Also, there is at least a day every year in monsoon where the trains are delayed, or there's unusual heavy traffic(not the daily that you face). At least one day, the city comes to a standstill because of its inadequate infrastructure to deal with the downpour. The authorities find a convenient excuse year- after- year to blame it on the monsoon. And the frustration is bound to creep in during such times. Unpopular opinion, but there is a hidden beauty inside this traffic, train disruptions, crowds etc., that happen on one day every year during monsoon. It's not every day that you would see train disruptions. Not every day will you see 100mm rain in an hour.
It's not everyday that you will not see sunshine for a day. It's also not every day where you will take 1.5 hrs to reach Mulund to Ghatkopar by train.
It's not every day that you will reach the office so late and no one will utter a word because of delays caused by rains. It's also not every day that you will see the dance of rain & clouds resembling in its truest form. And lastly, it's not every day you will have to bear the brunt of the shower because even monsoon has its day. And that one particular day belongs only to the monsoon. So it is always beneficial to give that space and that single day to the monsoon. You'll find happiness in these not-so-everyday things that don't happen often. Accept with a smile😃 & I assure you that you'll love every bit of it.
August is a month of two halves. The first half is usually similar to July. The latter half is where the monsoon starts to tee off a little, playing its mind games with pluviophiles. The many moods of the Mumbai monsoon can be seen during this part of the year. The sheer unpredictability and the vagaries of the Mumbai monsoon are fully displayed here. It loves to play games of hide and seek at this stage. On days when you expect heavy downpour, it surprises you with clear blue skies and on days when you expect sunny skies, a sudden unexpected spell of heavy rains will catch you off guard and take you by surprise. This ability of the Mumbai monsoon to surprise you makes this part of the monsoon extremely likeable and joyous. But being a pluviophile, I always have a burning desire to see less of the Sun and more cloudy skies with rains here.
As we enter the last leg of the monsoon in September, the chances of a heavy spell of monsoon are always bleak and begin to dwindle with each passing day. Seeing more than two such spells of heavy rains is a blessing from the Rain Gods. The Mumbai monsoon goes in retreating mode; hence, it is with mixed emotions that its farewell takes place. It is always painful to bid farewell to the Mumbai monsoon. But on the other hand, it is also exciting to welcome my favourite season — the serene winter. (Why winter is my favourite season is a topic for another day).
It retreats in grace. The retreating monsoon has a different beauty in itself. The retreating monsoon is unique in its way. A perfect blend and a cluster of dark grey and light grey clouds are formed. This lays the groundwork for the thunders to pitch in and storm the area and for the lightning to show its magic. The skies of the retreating monsoon are some of the most beautiful monsoon skies you'll see. The skies look majestic. Since its retreating monsoon, the winds begin to blow from East to West & North to South, making the temperature cool & pleasant.
The Ghats and interiors see more rains than the coastal areas during the retreating monsoon phase. That is why neighbouring cities like Pune receive more rains during the retreating phase than Mumbai, which makes me extremely jealous. Delay in anything is frustrating. However, the only exception can be the monsoon withdrawal delay. The longer the departure delay, the fewer transition days to winter. Every day of evening thunderstorms in October is a blessing and a Diwali bonus. Once the monsoon withdrawal is done, the transition phase towards winter is painful because the villain makes a comeback for a short duration- The humidity famously known as ‘ The October Heat’
Hoping that we will witness a bumper monsoon this year with no excesses-no floods and no shortages-no droughts. The forecasts seem to be headed for a bumper monsoon but as mentioned earlier, nothing surprises like the monsoon. So hoping that the monsoon provides only pleasant surprises and we get to see a spectacular showdown as we come closer to the best phase of Monsoon 2022- The July showdown.
