Seven years back, this day, 26/11, began as a normal day. People left homes for work and studies, not realising that a bunch of terrorists, armed with lethal weapons and sophisticated satellite phones were heading for their shores. Many of them didn’t know that their lives were about to change — not for the better, obviously.
26/11 left a bloodied Mumbai. Floors stained with blood, walls echoing wails and screams, an eerie, eerie silence piercing through the air heavy with fear — that’s what happened. Gunshots that reverberated through the corridors are yet to die down, scarred memories are yet to fizzle out. A picture of doom, lest we forget.
Many lost their lives, many lost their reason to live. Many, helpless; many scared; many angry; many shocked. But did these ‘many’ give up? No. They didn’t. Did they stop visiting those places? No. They were scared, but they didn’t let it get to them. They didn’t want to hand out that victory to the men who’d slain their city. They gathered their broken pieces and trudged on, lest we forget.
Seven years on, that silence of fear still rings through the city. Candles are lit, prayers are chanted and hands are held tight. The city is vulnerable; a beautiful, vulnerable city. But our shores are better prepared, the departed souls guarding their city of love. But is that enough? No. Many unsuspecting people leave their homes not knowing of they will return, lest we forget.
Many feel that despite being bitten once, we are not fully prepared to handle another one of these attacks. The perpetrators walk free, plotting, planning and training another bunch of naive youngsters who believe that slaying innocent people will take them to heaven where fairies will bathe them in honey and milk. They can do it again, sneak in and kill us in our own backyards, lest we forget.
We can’t afford a 26/11. Broken limbs, broken families and broken hearts. Unbroken spirit. Mumbai. #LestWeForget.