Mumbai: When it pours, I don't know what scares us more, the television or our mindset? Ever since 26/7, we panic earlier, we head home earlier, our loved ones call sooner telling us to leave work and some of us plan our bathroom stops for the long trip home with more precision. No point letting loose on the side of the road if you're going to get all wet in the rain!

TV channels get blamed for blowing the situation out of proportion. In their defence, they're not about to show a clean, non-traffic jammed, non-flooded stretch of road and say this is the situation in Bombay. They're going to show the worst of the flooding, however clear it might be in other parts of the city. 

But sometimes, it's not the images, it's the stressed out tone they use while talking about the state of the roads, not to mention the occasional sound effects. On Monday, when it was practically touch and go, the perception of flooding was a bit more than the reality on the road in a lot of places. It helped that there wasn't a major high tide, it didn't help that TV was getting us hassled.

Then there is this 'spirit of Bombay' rubbish. We have all of that, but it's a matter of pride, not an excuse. 'It doesn't matter what happens, we will overcome' all that is nonsense.

 Why are we in a situation where we have to 'overcome' every monsoon? Isn't it time the authorities stopped whining about the increase in population and high tides and found a solution. It's not as if we don't know that the population of Bombay is going to increase or that we have high tides twice a day. Figure it out or get voted out.

Unfortunately, the replacements are as bad as the incumbents.

So what do we do for the time being? Learn to panic less and figure out a way to enjoy the trip home on the one off day of flooding. My experience is that travelling with friends tends to help both conditions.