This is why Delhi monsoon is the worst

Delhi monsoon is here in full swing and we know it because getting stuck in traffic jams becomes a daily ritual. Being a Delhi resident now and having enjoyed monsoons in so many other cities of the country, here is why I don’t enjoy Delhi monsoons at all. And no, I won’t mention traffic as one of the reasons.

The lowest rainfall in India: On an average, Delhi gets one of the lowest rainfalls across all major cities of India. I mean so low, that you blink your eyes and rains are gone. You make a plan to bunk office and visit India gate and by the time you reach there, the sun is out in its full glory! I don’t recall incessant or never stopping rains at Delhi- it comes and goes, as if it never came. It leaves behind it heavy traffics and hence we do remember it for long after it’s gone (oh, sorry, I had said I won’t talk about traffic).

Rains have a peculiar time: For don’t know what reason, rains in Delhi come in its maximum fury at nights. When you wake up next morning, you realize that it’s been raining whole night and the roads would have turned into massive pools- and you shudder at the thought of office journey ahead. But no, I won’t talk about traffic.

Buildings all around: To get a good view of the rains and the raindrops on the trees, you need to step out of your home; because through your home window you can only see the cars and walls getting drenched. India Gate is the only place Delhi residents love going to if they want to enjoy this weather. And then it becomes so crowded and jammed (oops, no mention of traffic I said) that you don’t even feel like going there.

Eating brings with it diseases: The amazing street food of Delhi comes at a risk of contaminated water during this time, and hence most people have now shifted to enjoying bhutta (corn) during the monsoons. How long and how much can you eat bhutta? I mean, really, can’t we get some more choices of food? Now don’t say pakoras- we guys are anyways grappling with weight issues, another high fat food, and that too every single time we want to “enjoy” the weather?

Safety is a key concern: You can’t expect to start walking and dancing in the rain with your group of friends. A girl, that too drenched, on a Delhi street- need I say more?

Being a small town girl, I have enjoyed and loved rains all through my life and I miss them now. Miss them too much because for me rains means watching the line of trees sway endlessly for hours, the mud giving that smell, the getting together of friends and running and falling in the pools, the schools getting closed on account of heavy rains, the clothes not drying for days together and then us getting so fed up of so much of rains that we would start singing in chorus, “Rain rain go away, little johny wants to play”.

Here, in Delhi, unfortunately, with just the first shower, the heart sings- “Rain rain go away, we need to cross the highway”.