David Ranz, the new US Consul General in Mumbai, has marked his arrival in style. A week after he took charge of the Mumbai Consulate office in BKC on August 26, he posted a special message on the official social media handles congratulating India on completing the one-year anniversary of the decriminalisation of Section 377 (which made gay sex unlawful) of the Indian Penal Code. A few days later, he took out time to pandal-hop during Ganesh Utsav. But his rendezvous with the vibrant Indian culture did not end there. His office asked for recos online so that Ranz could get a taste of Mumbai's multi-cuisine restaurants and historic attractions. So, a few hours before his afternoon meeting with us, he did quick trips to the Gateway of India, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (CSMVS) and the iconic Aaswad Hotel in Dadar. "The experience, so far, has been extraordinary. I've also had the chance to explore Kala Ghoda and Jehangir Art Gallery, where they had an exhibition on one of the earliest representations of Lord Ganesh. All of this has been an introduction to the culture here," Ranz says, as he begins pouring his emotions out to us.

A native of New York, Ranz sees several similarities between the two cities that stand thousands of miles apart. "New York is a city of immigrants. There are people with multi-generational backgrounds, like me, and then there are others who are first-generation immigrants, like my wife Taly Lind. She was only three years old when she moved to New York." He continues, "Similarly, there are people who have lived in Mumbai for many generations, and there are others who have migrated not just from other parts of India, but the world. This multi-ethnic diverse society always fascinates me."