Cats of Colaba

The flight from Delhi to Mumbai was extremely tiring for me. We left at early in the morning for our flight and reached around noon in the Mumbai airport. My eyes were barely open, and I was sulking in a corner because it was a challenge booking a cab in a crowded pick-up point. My heavy bag on my back didn't help me either- it just seemed to pull me towards the ground more, encouraging me to sleep right then and there. 

After the cab finally arrived, I got inside and sighed happily as I felt the cold air of AC hit my skin. I took off my bag and kept it on my lap. I looked out the window, and I saw people dragging suitcases and their children, as we zoomed past them. 

I slowly, gradually, dozed off to a deep sleep. A sleep so deep that I didn't even hear the driver showing my parents the Taj Hotel, the Gateway of India and other such sights exclusive only to Mumbai. 

I woke up in a daze as the car came to a slow stop. I opened one eye to see that we had finally reached our destination, the hotel. Our hotel was situated in Colaba. I looked up at the sky, and I saw branches of trees with a serene green color to it providing a cooling shade for the entire street. If you are from Delhi, you would know that's not particularly common there unless you live in the forest area. 

Since I had finally gotten the beauty sleep I very much so deserved, I was getting impatient of being cramped up in that car with other luggage. I got out and my eyes suddenly caught a small ginger blob basking in the rays of the sun that managed to escape from between the leaves. The sleep still in my eyes, I rubbed them and looked closely. 

It was a cat.

If you know me personally, you will know I am crazy about cats. I squealed with joy, then slowly and silently, I made my way towards the cat. I was speechless when the cat didn't run away, because I was used to cats running away from me right after I used to scream "Oh my god, it is a cat." Maybe the cats don't particularly like being pointed out by their common name for the species. I mean, would you like if I pointed at you and screamed, "Oh my god, look, a human!" You would be mildly annoyed and would probably avoid me too.

Anyways, I approached it slowly. I stopped my hands right in front of its face to see whether the cat wanted to be petted or not. It didn't budge, so I petted it gently. 

You would notice that one of the ears of this cat is chipped. At first, I pitied this little creature, for I assumed it got into a fight and it turned brutal, because of which one of its ears got bitten off. Turns out I couldn't be more wrong. Every cat's ear had a small cut, in the right ear, so as to signify that they have been spayed, and cannot reproduce anymore. 

If I could, I would go on and talk about these cats in detail, but honestly, it has been months. I wouldn't have written this blog in the first place, had my father not randomly sent me pictures of me petting the cats.

The cat I liked the most was called Julie. There was a building right opposite to our hotel, which housed just a couple of people. A fat white cat, called Julie, used to live with someone there, but was a stray cat as well. She randomly came to me and started rubbing against my legs. The guard sitting on the opposite side of the gate in front of that building told me that her name was Julie, and she sometimes gets a bit moody. Realistically, she was moody most of the time. 

Julie (on the left)

I wasn't in Mumbai for long, yet whenever we left the hotel for, let's say, lunch, dinner, or just exploring Colaba in general, I used to kneel down in front of the gate and say "pspspspspsps" continuously, till I saw a chubby cat trotting towards me while meowing. The cutest part about that was, because there was a skip in every step she took, her meowing pulsated.

She used to love head scratches but used to have an attitude and hissed at me if I pet another cat and went back to petting her. Even if she was pissed off at me half of the time, she would lay her head on my shoes, and walk all around me in circles and rub herself on my pants. Her claws used to snag against my clothes, but the moment I used to bring my hand anywhere near her, she would hiss at me and try to bite my hands or slap it. Weird, but somehow, I got her. 

One day, I came across a black cat around the same building as Julie. It was silent and didn't seem to have an attitude. I kept petting it till my parents scolded me for wasting their time, but even then, it was sitting there getting pets and scratches from me. It was weirdly calm, and as soon as I left, it quietly and slowly went under a car and disappeared in the shadows- black cats tend to do that, but I still love them. I saw glimpses of it every now and then, yet it slowly used to emerge, cry sometimes, which I didn't get but my mom did- and again used to disappear in the shadows.

There were approximately 15 cats in the street itself. An old Persian man used to come twice a day to feed them cat food. You may call them stray cats, but oh boy, were they picky with what they eat! 

During feeding time, all the cats used to come to the trisection at the beginning of the street and used to patiently wait for their food. The old Persian man used to slowly come with plastic white jars full of cat food. He would pour a certain amount of cat food in each bowl for every cat. It may sound like a simple task, but it takes excellent memory and sharp observational skills to ensure all the 15 cats in the street under his care are getting a fair amount of food without any fights breaking out. 

While serving the cats, one cat kept peering and tried to eat the food given to other cats. Curious, my mom enquired, "Why are you leaving that cat out?" The old man smiled and said "This cat isn't under my care. It belongs to the other building, and the owners there take care of its food". It was baffling to see that in the huge clowder of cats, he was able to differentiate between each and every cat, even the ones that looked eerily similar- calicos and all the other common stray cat breeds. I couldn't even tell my batchmates apart till a month into college!

Some cats had designated spots too! The ginger cat I talked about used to have its spot on the hood of a Mercedes car. So luxurious to be sprawled across the white metal and casually munching on cat food.  Otherwise, it was spotted sitting on someone's bike. Some would call it ostentatious in the world of cats. The entire neighborhood is filled with cat lovers. The owner of the bike put a soft cloth on the seat of the bike for the cat to sleep comfortably and not slide off slowly when it's in the middle of dreaming about fish and all the other things cats like to dream of.

Ginger cat's feeding time on the Mercedes

Me annoying ginger while it's trying to sleep

I came across multiple cats in the other streets and Colaba Causeway, but none of them were like the cats in the street my hotel was situated in. Cats were something that the people living there united for. I've heard stories from the locals about how they go to great lengths to cure the cats, if they are injured or sick. Regular checkups and vaccinations are done to ensure they are safe and healthy. Moreover, since they are all spayed, that reduces the chances of cancer in cats (Thank you Google).

Yeah, that's all. I don't know how to finish this blog. Love cats and you shall be happy. Take care of your loved ones and don't forget that spaying is an option for animals only. Happy summer holidays!