NDTV.com
Taj reopens as symbol of Mumbai's grit
Shai Venkatraman, Miloni Bhatt, Ketki Angre Sunday, December 21, 2008 10:46 PM (Mumbai)
Three weeks after the 62-hour gun battle, the Taj Towers reopened on Sunday as a symbol of Mumbai's resilience and grit. People from all walks of life were there to help it get back on its feet.
All the 541 heroes of the carnage at the Taj hotel - employees, who worked tirelessly when terror struck their hotel, were welcomed to a standing ovation when the Taj opened its gates.
"Message we want to give is that we can be hurt but not knocked down. The old Taj will stand again for the next 100 years as it has for the past 100 years," said Ratan Tata, chairman, Tata group.
The message is quite clear from the man himself, less than a month after terror came knocking and killed 31 people. And while the guest list was impressive, it was also a time for many to recall what they were trying hard to forget.
"We came today for Sabina," said Nikhil Sehgal, Sabina Sehgal Saikia's brother.
Two fifty rooms and some of Taj's world class restaurants will play host once again, not just to Mumbaikars but the world. And while the tower still stands tall, the old heritage building is slowly but silently getting back on its feet, a process that will take another year.
Taj is a symbol of pride. If it would not have opened, it would have bogged people down. We are here to show solidarity to the symbol that is the Taj," said Prasoon Joshi, lyricist.
For many of those who came to the Taj on Sunday, it was an attempt at reclaiming memory, reclaiming their space while for few others it was an attempt at finding closure. However the message of the reopening of one of the wings of the Taj is overwhelmingly "we will not forget, but it is time to move on".
-- My humanity is in feeling we are all voices of the same poverty. - Jorge Louis Borges