Not just products and people, places are also in rivalry
When we think of rivals, we think of Coke and Pepsi. Or pizzas vs burgers, as to which fast food sells faster. In US politics, it’s Republicans and Democrats. In moviedom, SRK and Salman, with yet another Khan throwing his hat in the ring, Aamir.
Collectives of products and people called cities are also in rivalry and have long been so. In America, Washington DC with its grand monuments and sweeping vistas vies with NYC, the sky-scraping Big Apple, or Baghdad on the Subway so nicknamed by O Henry, with Chicago trying to butt in now and again to form a competitive ménage à trois.
In Australia, the tug-of-war between stately Melbourne and sporty Sydney as to which should be the capital led to a stalemate that resulted in the compromise creation of Canberra, derided by both of the livelier metros as ‘the biggest car park in the world’ for its alleged inert somnolence.
In the groves of British academe, the historic contest is between Cambridge and Oxford, the annual boat race between the two adding athleticism to academics, and fuelling the fervour of contention.
However, in terms of population, if nothing else, there are no bigger rivals than Mumbai, India’s financial capital and Delhi, the country’s political Capital.
Each dismisses the other with a sniff of superior disdain. All Bollywood fizz and froth with less gravitas than a gas balloon, scoff Dilliwalas at Mumbai.
Capital-shapital, goli maaro – the only capital worth having is spelt with a W for wealth, and that’s right here with us, retort Mumbaikars, thumbing their noses and banknotes at Delhi.
To prove their point, they can cite a chart of 32 cities across the globe, enumerating the number of USD billionaires each has, and on which Mumbai, with 95, comes 7th on the list, sandwiched between London (102) and Hong Kong (88), while Delhi lags at 17th place with 64.
Dilli not only door ast, and boor ast, but also poor ast, sneers Mumbai. To which Delhi might well riposte, that’s really funny, coming from a personification of the celebrated Shree 420, not to mention an Awaara, and a Junglee to boot.
Disclaimer
Views expressed above are the author’s own.
