cities through different lenses.

Mythic city and city at its limits, both the articles dealt with the cities, factors that define them , the challenges people face to survive within it.

Mythic city was basically about Bombay and its glories in the by-gone years. Bombay was one name people used to look up to. It was the heart of the glamour industry.  It was a city of dreams, wish fulfilment. People all over India used to be obsessed about Bombay and used to dress, talk and even walk like their favourite actor or actresses. Like any other city with the upsides came the down sides like dance bands, cabaret acts, architecture, cinema, and art or famous murder cases, exposés of brothels, illegal gambling, or the manufacture of illicit liquor in the Prohibition era etc., but the media would illustrate them lavishly to make it appear glamorous. Bombay was also seen as a sensual place and that it offered pleasure.

Bombay was seen a place where rules were made to be broken, this had huge impact in the ordinary man’s mind who is bound by his day-to-day chores to make a living. There was a thrill to enjoy “modern” life styles and to go beyond the limits.

There are conflicts and contradictions related to city but that does not lessen the sense of appreciation for the place in the people. There is a lot of confidence and optimism in the heart of the people living there. Bombay is a socially and linguisti- cally mongrel world. Politics also plays a major role in this city. However people say that Mumbai exists, but India’s most lib- eral, economically vibrant, multicultural metropolis, Bombay is no more.

“City at its limits” deals with the taboos, customs, beliefs, society of the city of Lima.

It showcases the issue of an old lady undertaking the act of nudity in public to gather a repulsive force from the crowd to grab their attention. The taboo of being covered from head to toe in public as decency should have evoked a lot of disapproval and detest from the crowd. Also more likely because the lady undertaking nudity was an old lady was also a major part of the issue.

The article deals basically with how blind faiths and taboos. Taboos change the mind-set of the people in a locality. These rules which are usually set to bring peace and harmony to people , brings about a negative impact on the society as the people can’t think themselves out of the box made of rules created by the society making it uncomfortable for the common man and often more than just uncomfortable. Also these taboos more than often revolve around women, discriminating them.

Both of the articles talk about cities from a different view point.

- Sohini Mukherjee