UAE | General
Survey calling Mumbai 'rudest city' comes under fire from expats, tourists
Mumbai is 'matter of fact', Mumbai is 'practical' and does not poke its nose into other people's business, and Mumbai is extremely 'polite when required', said non-resident Indians from Mumbai.
- By Sunita Menon, Staff Reporter
- Published: 00:00 June 22, 2006
Dubai: Mumbai is 'matter of fact', Mumbai is 'practical' and does not poke its nose into other people's business, and Mumbai is extremely 'polite when required', said non-resident Indians from Mumbai.
They were reacting to Mumbai being named the "rudest city" on earth according to a survey conducted by the Reader's Digest magazine.
"I am ready to punch anyone ... who calls Mumbai rude," said Rekha Nigam from Mumbai, now a Dubai resident. "People in Mumbai do not have the time to 'yap?.yap' but if need be they will rise to the occasion. The best example is the manner in which entire Mumbai came together to help each other during the heavy rains last year," she added.
Is Mumbai as rude as it gets? Click here to have your say on the issue
Residents from other Indian states as well as other countries who visited Mumbai held a view different from the survey.
"In many ways it is an attractive city, particularly some old architecture there. I didn't find it especially rude," said David Moore, a Briton who works in a publishing house and had visited Mumbai. "It depends on which part of the city you are in. If you are in an area with big wide boulevards then it can seem reasonably peaceful but other parts of the city are quite hectic. I am thinking of going there again for a weekend."
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"A Mumbaikar [an Individual hailing from Mumbai] will take it as an offence if you call their city the 'rudest on earth'. The people or company who had conducted this survey have got the whole concept wrong," said Yogesh Kuray, a Dubai resident from Mumbai. "Mumbai is driven by 'money'. It is the city of dreams. People do not have time there but that does not mean that they are rude. The spirit of Mumbai comes forward at the time of crisis. In fact it is the coolest city on earth."
"For me New York is the rudest city that I have ever come across. I have been to Mumbai a couple of times and I loved it. The people and the place, but yes I agree it is very hectic. People are just too busy. Despite all this I did come across some wonderful people especially the taxi drivers who made me acquainted with the lanes and by-lanes of Mumbai in their taxi," said Dave Cunningham, a Briton and resident of Dubai. He has visited Mumbai five times.
"If you managed to survive in Mumbai, you can survive anywhere and under any situation in the world. Mumbai makes a survivor out of you. It teaches you to live and enjoy life irrespective of what you are and from where you come from. That is why every Mumbaikar is proud to say 'Amchi Mumbai' [our dear Mumbai]," said Nitin Madhukar, a resident of Abu Dhabi who comes from Mumbai.
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