What's in a name?

When we moved to Bombay, we found it quite odd how everyone wants to know not only the locality you live in, but also the name of the apartment complex. Its something that we've not seen anywhere else, not in Kansas City, not it Providence, not in Bangalore and not in Delhi either. Housing complex/society names are a big deal here. Most names are cringe-worthy and corny as hell.

There seems to a definate tilt towards girls names I've noticed...with names like Akanksha, Pratibha, Shirin (manzil, mansion, apts), Suman, Manju...

Then there's the guys names like Vinit, Abhinav, Gautam, Sudesh...

Then come the double name ones like Ashish Manish, Jeevan Anand, Mahavir Vaibhav, Om Rajan...

There have to be the religious ones too like Sai Kripa, Sai Trishul, Guru Krupa...

There are ones named after other places like Patliputra, Nalanda, Allahabad, Takshila...

There are the ones with a 'View' like Garden View, Ocean View, Park View, Sea View...

Not to forget the ones tagged onto 'Sea' like Sea Legand, Sea Wood, Sea Green, Sea Glimpse (there have to be some really gullible people living here), Sea Lord...

There also plenty with nature inspired names like Primrose, Orchid, Garden Rose...

There are the over the top grand names like Royal Accord, Gold Coin (where we saw and almost rented an apt), Kamal Diamond...

And of course the ones taken from foriegn lands like Highland Park (in Lokhandwala, from where I used to catch the A2 when the main market road was being constructed), Green Park (Delhi has a Green Park, and well, its almost like a foreign country to Mumbaikars), Sheffield Towers, Sunny Side (like the cottage in Kasauli that Henry Lawrence built), Woodstock, Oak Land Park (inspired by Oakland, CA, maybe?), Beverly Park...

There are the off the wall names like Magic Carpet, Good Gift, Ben Hur (why, why?)...

Only in Bombay. Definately only in Bombay.