Is There a Room for Me? A Cycle, a City and Question

As I navigate the overwhelming energy of Mumbai, having left my hometown of Kochi behind, the first thing I lost in Mumbai wasn’t my sense of direction; it was my bicycle, and with it, a certain way of belonging to a city.

It’s funny the things you miss. For me, it’s the sound of my bicycle tires on a quiet Kochi evening. That ride to the Marine Drive Kochi was my little ritual. I knew every shopkeeper on the way, and the air always smelled like salt and earth. My bike was more than just transport; it was freedom. It cost nothing, polluted nothing, and it made me feel connected to my city. I just thought that’s how life was.

On this World Cities Day, with its powerful theme of “People-Centred Smart Cities,” my mind keeps circling back to one simple, glaring absence: my bicycle. Although it is a minor matter, its elimination from my everyday existence has turned into a potent representation of the enormous, frequently cruel disparities that happens beneath the surface of this great “city of dreams”.

The cycle was more than simply a means of transportation in my home town; it was an integral part of the community. They were utilised by elderly, fisherman, homemakers, and students. It was the great equaliser, granting everyone respectable mobility. The size of the city seems realistic. It’s not only a place to commute; you might live there.

On the other hand, Mumbai is a metropolis that never stops moving. It is a feat of human will and engineering. Millions of people have been moved by its local trains. In just a few minutes, its apps may call for a dinner or a cab. In some ways, it’s really “smart.” However, where is the room for the sustainable, the basic, and the genuinely human-paced? I attempted to bring my bicycle, but the city was hostile. The roads are a maze of rushing cars, there are no safe lanes, and the concept itself frequently brings out a confused grin. It appears that the city has no time for bicycles.

The “Smart” City That Forgot Its People

The theme of this year’s World Cities Day is also about enhancing urban living with data and AI. Mumbai offers a wealth of data. It maps traffic congestion in real time and is up to date on train schedules. Does this information, however, help a Virar nurse who commutes four hours because she cannot afford a house near her hospital?

The lack of the cycle is a sign of a more serious illness: a paradigm for city design that frequently puts speed and scale ahead of people and inclusivity. A city that disregards sustainable mobility is essentially telling its less wealthy residents, “This space is not for you.” 

A Hope for a Truly People-Centred Mumbai

But honestly, navigating Mumbai’s chaos hasn’t drained my hope, it’s clarified it. I don’t want this city to become Kochi. I want it to become the best version of itself. And for the past two months, working as a Social Media Associate at Waatavaran, I’ve been lucky enough to see that future not as a distant dream, but as a project already underway.

I’ve watched our work unfold from the inside, and it’s taught me what “people-centred” truly means. It’s not a buzzword; it’s the laughter of over 1,000 Mumbaikars rediscovering their streets during our Sunday Streets campaign. It’s the simple, powerful sight of a road without cars, where the community reclaims its space for cycling, walking, and simply breathing. This is what a smart city feels like, alive and human.

Our commitment goes even deeper. We began by learning from the masters of sustainability: the Mumbai Dabbawalas. By listening to them in a detailed survey, we didn’t just collect data, we heard their stories. And that evidence led to real change: dedicated bicycle parking at five key locations to make their grueling work a little easier. This year, we took a leap forward, distributing 28 e-bikes to their community. Seeing these modern tools in the hands of a timeless tradition was a powerful moment, a perfect blend of heritage and innovation.

But a city’s future belongs to its youth. When we surveyed 2,400 young Mumbaikars, we weren’t just counting opinions; we were gathering a blueprint for the city they want to inherit. Taking their voices directly to the Maharashtra Transport Commissioner meant their needs could shape real policy. This is the heart of our ‘Wheels of Change’ campaign and the co-created Maharashtra Mobility Charter, a promise that the future of mobility will be built with people, not just for them.

The local trains give you a sense of the city’s pulse, don’t they? Millions are being moved by this amazing, sustainable machine. However, the crushing surge and ongoing battle also serve as a lesson in survival. Although we refer to it as spirit, there are moments when it seems like we are simply enduring.

What if we didn’t always need to be so tough because we were a “smart city”? What if we used that famous Mumbai innovation not just to cope, but to actually make life easier? to construct bicycle lanes to make short trips easier. to build apartments in order to avoid a nurse spending half of her day on a train.

I have a simple wish. I just picture being able to pick my bicycle and ride it safely throughout the neighbourhood on this World Cities Day. For life, not for amusement. That basic independence would mean more to me than any sophisticated app. It would be the first time my city sees me.