I’ve been attending the Mumbai Marathon since its inaugural run. It is now 20 years and the enthusiasm is kind of wearing thin.

But still I made it to the cheering squad at the top of the Kemp’s Corner flyover ( or bottom if you are starting the run from CSMT) that is cheering the runners for the last 5 km to the finish.

My reason for doing so is to see the wonderful smile of PARUL SHETH who has been the OG sunshine girl and has been running since the Marathon began

This Sunday after running 10 whole marathons, she has attained the status of a LEGEND.

Kudos to Parul who is a professional architect and runs for sheer pleasure. She has participated in Marathons the world over, is an IRONMAN and a loving mum to two wonderful children. In fact, during this race, she ran past her son on the Coastal Road while he was participating in the half marathon.

Times they are a-changing

I remember the first Standard Chartered Marathon, which was a novelty for both the participants and the Mumbaikars. Many who participated did it for a lark. As did us gawkers who just wanted to see what it was all about. It was an age of innocence, a freshness, a feeling of fun.

Gradually, the race has become more and more professional with proper stations for water, first aid and cheering squads. StanChart moved out and today the Tata Mumbai Marathon is a well oiled machine with its sea of blue runners taking over.

I was disappointed with that. What happened to the individual runners in their eclectic gear? The runners who ran for their organisations? The runners who ran in costume?

And crowds cheering have changed too. From bringing you own chai to keep you warm, the Peddar Road squad organised a DJ one year. Tea and samosas were distributed to the by-standers who drummed and whistled their support. One enthusiastic supporter used to shout out her encouraging words that often brought a smile to the runners. But this year, she got ticked off by another by-stander who couldn’t see the humour behind her words.

Too much has changed. Everything has become too ‘woke’.

And as Parul waved to us all, I wondered if I would cheer for her next year.

Ciao,