Yesterday morning, as I was leafing through the real estate ads in the newspaper, suddenly the catch line of an advertisement caught my attention. It said: “ Diwali, probably the only time you will see your neighbors”...and then went on singing eloquent praises about the apartment not having any common walls, and assuring complete privacy etc etc. The crux of the matter is that you don’t even meet your neighbors on regular days, and it is almost like being marooned in an island alone.

Maybe, I am exaggerating! Maybe, what the ad has stated is bare fact, we hardly get to meet each other in the same family itself, leave alone neighbors, because of our hectic schedules and busy life! But still, it set me thinking. Are we becoming a clone of our Western counterparts not only in our attires, attitude, but mentally also so that we feel our privacy is of utmost importance? Even a warm “good morning” from the next door neighbor or a “hello” from the elderly uncle staying in the next house becomes an intrusion into our privacy?

In Kolkata, this phenomenon of the ever protective yet sometimes over-inquisitive and irritating neighbor still exists to some extent. Maybe that is the reason the city has retained its humane, warm side which is so glaringly invisible in other big metros. Lots of people who come from other cities to Bangalore, Mumbai go into depressions, and then commit suicide. I am not stating that being on one’s own is the only reason behind this. But sometimes, when the pressure is too much it does matter, if you have a caring next door auntie coming and asking you how you have spent the entire day. It gives vent to all the pent up frustrations, grief and emotional turmoil.

Of course this has a negative side as well. Sometimes you feel so bugged when all your movements are monitored and commented upon by the over protective and conventional family staying next to your home. But, I feel that can be handled subtly, and keeping the doors and windows of your mind as well as your house open will only benefit you in the long run. At least, if you are fortunate enough, you are guaranteed to get a steaming cuppa of coffee from ‘Leela Auntie’ next door on a lonely, rainy and depressing evening after coming back from work…if you are staying alone!