So.. you want to know what happened on Bhim’s date right? Well first of all it started with a little confusion on meeting up at a place. The gal  told him to wait at a place called ‘Bachelors’. Now for Mumbaikars it’s considerably well known but what about outsiders like us? So our man went all the way to CST ( Victoria station terminus) until he came to know it was on Charni Road in Chowpatty.

Once he got dropped off by the taxi guy he still couldn’t see this goddamn place so he asked this guy  in front of him, Bachelors? The chap responded Haan kya chahiye?( Yes what do you want?) Bhim again repeated the same question and got the same answer until he realised he was in front of Bachelors! It was an obscure juice place with a small shelter 😊

The gal finally came and they chatted a bit and sat on the beach. It was kind of going well until dinner happened.

Without going too much into details it turned out the gal was kind of a stalker. When she recounted experiences of her ex and how she was not ready to give him up inspite of him ending it, it was  warning bells right there. And right when she told Bhim she would never ever give up on any person she befriended and if they ignored her, she would wait outside their office, house and keep calling until they gave in, that was it, Bhim was done.

Our man footed the entire bill like a gentleman and she insisted she  would pay for her half but by that point he didn’t care anymore, he wanted out so he ended it right there asking when was her last train? She gave hints saying  it’s ok and she can stay out pretty late but Bhim made sure she took her train, he dropped her off at the station said a super fast goodbye and that was it.

Believe me when he narrated in detail which I won’t do it here, I oscillated from shock to laughter! It was an experience alright!

With that date night out of the way,  we finally crashed off to sleep.

I woke up early morning and went for a run towards Oval Maidan, here is where all the budding cricketers practiced and it’s always nice to run in a different city.

It was 5.30 am, no sunrise yet and I saw a quiet Kala Ghoda and calm streets. Once I reached there I saw that my only companions were dogs and crows. I finished my rounds until the Bombayites started trickling in around 7 am. As I was getting out I saw kids and youngsters  with their cricket gear and coaches. Here is where all the legends from Bombay practiced and maybe a few of them were in the making.

I came back to a still sleeping and snoring Bhim. By now I was super hungry so I woke him up and we went to Mondegars for breakfast. We also wanted to celebrate Election results with beer. Yup beer at 7.45 am in the morning at Mondegars.

We were enjoying the ambiance, good music from the juke box, breakfast and beers. Another place was Leopold and we were not sure if we would be able to make it as it was our last night in the city.

We were so buzzed by 9.30 am that I remember us walking criss cross towards YMCA with the sunshine hitting us. We were laughing for no reason, just crazy laughter!

We would be staying at Pankaj’s place tonight and he told us to leave the luggage at his office nearby and post that we could meet Kashif – another trekmate and buddy.

Bhim was working and I was super lazy and we both decided we didn’t want to lug our baggage walking towards Pankaj’s office. So we checked out, took a cab to his house, dropped off the luggage and were right on time to meet Kashif for lunch.

Where do I begin with our soft spoken and gentle Kashif? Last year we did Rupin Pass with him and we bonded big time and when we visited Bombay last year we met him twice and I remember the crazy conversations we had. It’s always amazing when you know your crazy thoughts matches others 😊

He worked near  Kala Ghoda and he was ok meeting us for lunch even though he was on office hours. We met at Bade Miyan restaurant and he looked more skinnier than his skinny self! I told him he was a 17 year old now!

His was one of the greatest love stories I tell you. A patient guy, so patient that it was unheard of in today’s times. His girl was lovely and he was waiting for an approval from her parents. I mean he is a rare phenomenon in today’s times. Gentle,very positive, warm and kept his deepest thoughts to himself.

He shared his current situation while he guffawed loud on Bhim’s dating disaster.

I remember how crazy and ballistic we went with our conversations, we were laughing really loud in a family restaurant and Kashif said ssshhhh there is an old Sardarji sitting right next to us and instantly I shouted ‘Papaji’ so loud, Kashif and Bhim hid their face in shock and embarrassment 😁

We got out and I told them something very important.. Ahem how gals can kind of guess and gauge something from men’s fingers and these two chaps sweated,argued,checking their fingers! Bhim right out reached for Google and got crazy weird responses while Kashif refused  to show his hand saying he will check later. It was summer heat and humidity and here we were, the crazy threesome talking absolute shit in Kala Ghoda!

It was time for Kashif to leave and we gave him a big hug. Some people give you that separation pangs when they leave and I felt that with Kashif.

Kashif, Darshan and Saish – another trekmate were that kind of guys you would miss a lot. Saish, a super bright 22 year old whom I met in Har Ki Dun trek last year and way wiser beyond his years was not in town. This brilliant chap got into IIT, would be joining in June and he was visiting his grandmother out of Bombay.

After Kashif left, we tried to explore Colaba Causeway, but it was hot and humid and except us no one was breaking a sweat damn it! Initially we decided to go back to Pankaj’s place but we were to meet another friend Sid, so the moment Bhim saw Leopold, he said let’s sit there and wait for Sid.

Our bellies were overloaded with Bade Miyan food, so like goody two shoes we first ordered coffee and then immediately moved on to Beers.

Bhim said he was super full but the moment the peanuts were placed on the table he started munching on it. Maybe it was the beer buzz and all that laughter we had, I went into hysterical laughter the moment I saw Bhim chomping peanuts with his sun stricken face! I don’t know why but I went into a delirious laughter!On and On and On!

And then walked in Sid with his arms wide open seeing us 😊