You know I loved Bombay when I was growing up. All those stories about it being the city of dreams and the one that rewarded you for your hard work were things I believed in.
But it was around the age of 25 that I started feeling disillusioned. The bone crushing Mumbai local rides, the queues that took forever and the long working hours, all these started to get to me. But I thought the answer to all these problems was money. I told myself, “Once I make more money, I won’t have to go through all these daily challenges.”
It turned out, that wasn’t quite true. Even when you own a car, you are stuck in a mind-numbing traffic jam. Every new thing brings a new expense that makes you work longer hours than before.
I was 32, when I quit my job to travel the world and write. Despite all my problems with the city, I never thought of an alternative. But I traveled through beautiful cities like Medellin and Cali in Colombia. And I started wondering if a different way was possible. That was in 2016.
When I came back to India later that year, Mumbai seemed unbearable. The pollution, the pace and the crowds no longer felt like things to brag about. I had seen better cities and a better life. So, I decided to look for more agreeable places to stay in India(moving abroad somehow never appealed to me).
Around those days, I also wanted to learn Yoga and that pursuit brought me to Mysore. It is the yoga capital of South India. To my pleasant surprise, I found a city that matched my pace and desires. There were a lot of travelers in the city, the heritage was beautiful and weather was perfect. It was then that I decided that I’d move to the city if I ever had a chance.
2017, I got married. 2018, I got mom and my wife to Mysore. They fell in love with the city too.
My work was at least partially remote, so it was my better half’s job that tied us to bigger cities like Mumbai or Delhi.
But the pandemic gave us a shot at our dreams. We moved to Mysore in December 2020 and have been here since.
After spending little over a year in the city, I think it is a good time to share our review of this move. So here are the pros and cons of moving from a big city to a small one.
Perks of living in a small city:
1. Better pace:
Mysore still does not demand the speed that bigger cities do. Owing to short distances and less traffic we have more time for things we want to do. This is a major upside for someone like me.
These days I meditate for about an hour, cycle for an hour and also cook dinner on most days. This is despite my schedule being a fairly busy one as I am building The Story Co.
I would have never been able to pack so much in a day in Mumbai or Delhi, our previous homes.
Suggested read: Honest Vipassana Experience: Should You Go For A Course Or Not?
2. More time with family:
Sarika and I have spent more time with each other and our parents than ever before. As a direct result of that, our relationships with everyone in the family are much better.
This also means we are making better plans for the future. In fact, we all would like to own a small farm and offer weekend breaks or stays to others. I am sure that taking such decisions in a big city would have been difficult.
To me this is the biggest win of moving to Mysore.
3. More time for hobbies:
I became a regular at cycling only after I moved to Mysore. Beautiful spots are accessible within 10-15kms rides and I can’t think of a better way of spending my weekends. On most days, I am not bone tired when I get to bed(which was the case in Mumbai), and wake up totally energised.
So I feel like cycling or to explore a spot or two every morning. This change has been quite enriching for me. I am sure it has had positive effects in other areas of my life, including work.
Wifey is able to visit her gym on most days. Mom has taken membership in YHAI and goes for treks every other weekend. My cousin Tithi cycles, doodles and has even managed to join the local Toastmasters club.
Suggested watch: How to cycle everyday?
4. Better suited for WFH
Expensive apartments in big cities mean that WFH is a struggle. This becomes yet another source for stress at home for many people. Space is a real challenge with everyone in the family being online, whether on calls or classes. But with a city like Mysore, it is quite possible to get a spacious 2 or 3bhk apartment at a reasonable rent.
Our 1500 sq ft independent house on a 2500 Sqft plot is located in one of the top residential neighbourhoods. It costs us a little less than 16,000INR per month. With three of us working from home, the space comes in real handy. And we are able to create a good balance between our work and family time.
5. Better social life:
Now this one might invite debate. But in my experience, Mysore gives us a better chance of socialising than our previous homes.
People here are genuinely interested in getting to know us better. Everyone is at the park in front of our house for a walk every evening. And our indie dog, Kiki, whom we could adopt thanks to a bigger independent house, is also a networking magnet. Dog lovers in the neighbourhood are our friends, and we socialise every day and not just over the weekends.
Cons of living in a small city:
Considering there is a smaller group of like-minded people in the city, it’s easier to stay in touch with the few friends we have made in the city.
But not everything is great. There are cons that you must consider as well:
1. Lack of economic opportunities:
Well, its not like there are no opportunities to make money in a smaller city like Mysore. But there are definitely far less compared to bigger cities.
Despite spending over a year in the city, I do not have a single client for The Story Co from the city. Companies and professionals from bigger cities are generally ahead of the curve. They are more likely to upskill through acquiring skills like business storytelling. Concepts like these are not popular yet with companies and professionals in Mysuru.
Plus, there aren’t many corporates in the city. This making it difficult to build a sizeable business for a trainer like me. I am sure the same holds true for many job seekers.
For instance, Sarika, my wife would find it almost next to impossible to get a job of her liking in the city. She is a recruiter in the education space. This is a major problem for us. If we continue in our conventional careers, we would always have to depend on bigger cities like business and career.
Fortunately, Bengaluru is close to Mysore and that helps. But that isn’t the case with every small city. So this is a major point that would dissuade most people from moving to a smaller city.
2. Some services are difficult to get:
One thing I found surprising in Mysore was the lack of overnight couriers. Whenever I’ve had to send documents to Mumbai, it takes 2-3 days. I have never faced this problem in big cities. Services like overnight couriers, good salons, tailors, etc. are dime a dozen. And if you’ve always taken these things for granted in a big city, it can take some time getting used to when you move to a smaller city.
We have also been wanting to buy a wooden wardrobe for my mother which hasn’t happened. Again, fewer options are to blame. Even the best showrooms in Mysore store plywood or MDF wood furniture. I remember being able to buy wooden furniture easily in places like Oshiwara in Mumbai. If someone has contacts of good carpenters in Mysore, please will you share them with me?
P.S: I am also looking for a good men’s salon in Mysore.
3. People can be too friendly:
When we first moved to Mysore, everyone could not stop asking us why we did not have kids yet. That isn’t a question we are or were used to(except, of course, our family members asking us this). Depending on how you look at it, you may feel people are curious or nosy. Again, such cultural differences are something you need to get used to.
4. Not enough food options:
This one can be a problem if you are foodie. Having lived all our lives in big cities, we are used to dining options from across the world. Think Sushi, Mediterranean, Thai, etc. Though Mysore is much better off than many small cities in this respect, we do miss good Sushi and Thai once in a while. In fact, we have decided to spend a weekend in Bengaluru once a month. Why? Just to fill ourselves to the gills.
Having said that the local fare, Biriyanis and a lot of non-veg options are to die for in Mysore.
To me, the only point that really matters is the economic or the career one. And I have been trying to build a business that I can run from Mysore as well. Yes, this does mean that I may not be able to maximise revenue as much as I could in a Mumbai or Bangalore, but I am okay with that. For me the perks of living in a city like Mysore outweighs the challenges by a mile. The same holds true for my family as well.
If everything works out, we will make this city our permanent home and never move back to a big city. But like they say, ‘never say never’. What about you? Would you move to a smaller city?
