From the medieval bazaars of Baghdad to the intellectual debates of Paris, to the warmth found in Delhi’s winters, poets, artists, writers, and aficionados have long captured what it means to be in a city, amid thousands of people, synchronising their lives to a rhythm entirely different from their rural counterparts. Life in the city is distinct. It is hard, exciting, liberating, and fast. Regimes are born in cities. Revolutions are ignited in them. India’s history, too, has played out against the backdrop of her many urban centres: Prayagraj, Gangaikondacholapuram, Pataliputra, Hampi, Shahjahanabad, Surat, Meerut, Kolkata, New Delhi, Navi Mumbai,…

In 1996, on a train to Bhilwara, Prakash Mandoth had to sit next to the toilets throughout his journey. That’s when he realised how broken India’s railway system is and vowed to fix it. Since then, he has made Bengaluru’s long-delayed dream of a suburban railway, proposed in  1983, as his personal mission. For over 26 years, he has petitioned, emailed decision-makers, met with officials, and voiced his thoughts at public hearings to turn this vision into a reality.  However, much to the frustration of Prakash and citizen activists like him, the Bangalore Suburban Rail Project (BSRP) has seen inordinate delays…