Chitrangada Satarupa

In Mumbai: For almost seven years and stays in Andheri West.

Bidita Bag

In Mumbai: For more than 10 years and lives in Andheri West.

Pamela Singh Bhutoria

In Mumbai: Has been in the ‘maximum city’ since 2013 and stays in Bandra West.

Rachel White

In Mumbai: This is her 12th year in Mumbai and currently she stays in Malad West.

Arpita Sinha

In Washington: Since fall 2018 for her PhD in anthropology at the Washington State University.

Satarupa Pyne

In Mumbai: Has been in Mumbai for the past seven years and lives in Lokhandwala.

These gorgeous go-getters — Bidita Bag, Pamela Singh Bhutoria, Rachel White, Satarupa Pyne, Chitrangada Satarupa and Arpita Sinha — all well-known faces of the Calcutta modelling and arts fraternity, may have stepped out of the city for career calls, but are still enchanted by the spell of its beating heart. And, in these times of anguish and jitters, when living alone is a Herculean task for many, with your emotions teasing you topsy-turvy, these girls, far away from their families, only have the City of Joy on their minds. Only if they had a magic carpet, though! We called them to hear their stories of coping and carrying on.

Bidita tries a variation of Navasana at her pad in Mumbai. Sourced by The Telegraph

Satarupa mailed us a bunch of her quarantine moments with this feel-good note: ‘Still posing, and still believing that nothing happened!’. Sourced by The Telegraph

Zoey is Pamela’s chill partner during this crisis. Sourced by The Telegraph

Colouring doodle books are Chitrangada’s canvas for a spot of cheer in this lockdown. Sourced by The Telegraph

Arpita in her sunny Washington pad on a Sunday. Sourced by The Telegraph

Rachel is catching up on reading for a mind-freshening quarantine Sourced by The Telegraph

Home alone: We need to stay alone right now. I feel I am not responsible for spreading anything. Whatever little I am having to step out for, if I would have had to come back home to elderly people, I would be in constant fear. I have started taking my medicines seriously. At no point did I plan to come back to India. My only concern was I do not want to pass through the airport.

Going through the lockdown alone: Though technically, the schedule remains the same, I don’t think it’s the same level of busy-ness. Now that it’s work from home, I feel claustrophobic. When I wrap up by 5pm-5.30pm, I make sure to go breathe fresh air. I don’t even see another human being when I am walking.

I find listening to Ravi Shankar calming. That usually plays in the background while I am trying to sleep. I play raindrop and meditation music and try to calm down. Talking to my parents has become more regular even if they last for a few minutes. I have got them to download Telegram (a messaging app). It is also important to eat well. My new motto is to watch Star Wars. It is very rooted in the cultural vocabulary here.

Lessons learnt: Times like these make you realise the importance of community. We can’t win this battle unless we support each other. In this hour of crisis there is no place for being selfish.

Difficult times: We know how to cope with the city. Now it’s all about complete isolation. This is the time you needed your family around. You can sit and talk over a cup of tea or coffee. Now, it is like life staring you into your face and telling you to be a certain way. You feel like you are getting punished for your karma. How much can you pamper yourself or read a book? At the end of the day, you need to talk to someone. Honestly, it is getting difficult.

Major missing: I was supposed to work for a web series on Hoichoi. They asked me to come on March 19 or 20 because they were planning to shoot from March 22. I had a shoot on March 18. Then the lockdown became effective. A lot of my projects have got postponed. I should have taken the decision to go back to Calcutta on March 18, which I didn’t and now I am stuck and stranded. I am just waiting to board the first flight out of Bombay to Calcutta. This feels like pressure. And in Bombay, you are busy with so many things... auditions, gym, Zumba... all that is missing and it’s really starting to affect my mental health. My parents would have been my dose of medicine at the moment. I speak to them all the time. Every hour, I guess ! Every micro detail of life is getting discussed and recipes are getting exchanged. Video calls with my family are the only escape route I am looking forward to at the moment. They are motivating me to enjoy the mundane tasks. Though they have never doubted my strength and ability to handle tough situations but this time they too seem a tad worried about everything, considering the situation in Mumbai. They can’t wait for me to be back as soon as things are better.

Keeping busy: I have been reading and rereading books, like Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life. It gives you a lot of insight into life. I am feeling much better after reading it. I am going live on social media, I am singing, the selfies are going to a different level, the eye make-up is on point... everything is getting better... from cooking to singing to taking care of myself to self-analysis! I am going out for only groceries, nothing else. That’s the only time to get some fresh air.

Lessons learnt: This is the time to ponder... what we can control and what we can’t.

The initial days: When it was announced that this was going to continue for a while, it was a little scary because of the whole work scene. Paying a huge amount as rent... how to manage and balance that was a little scary. But in India, the economic balance is so lopsided... my problems are minuscule compared to what rest of the population is going through. I comforted myself thinking on these lines.

The worry: The only thing is that mom (filmmaker Satarupa Sanyal) stays alone... that bothers me... that makes me anxious at times. I have lived away from my mother for days at a stretch but now that they have said that you cannot step out, it bothers you psychologically. Ma is very strong. She has been making art out of waste material, writing poetry... but how long will a person stay inside? You can go slightly crazy.

It’s not that I didn’t want to go back to Calcutta. My ticket was for March 30. The day (March 11) when WHO announced that Covid-19 was a pandemic, the idea of social distancing was slowly filtering in and we had no idea of a lockdown. I have been shooting for a web series and I was supposed to come to Calcutta for an event.... everything got postponed indefinitely. But, Bombay being so active, I was still getting audition calls. So, I was not being able to understand what exactly was happening. When the lockdown was announced, the flight ticket got cancelled.

No time to get bored: I am not getting bored to be honest. There is so much to do... household chores... from cleaning to mopping the floor and doing your dishes. I am working out regularly. Yoga feels good now. I am doing my gaaner rewaj every day, playing the ukulele and cooking different things. I am also doing live Instagram sessions with women from different fields, mostly artistes. Shomoi ki bhabe beriye jachhe bujhtey parchhi na.

Lessons learnt: It is a good time to introspect and ask yourself what are the things you really need.

State of mind: I am feeling very scared because the times are scary where all of us are under threat in every way possible... especially for people who are self-employed. Every day honestly I pray for some time for everyone because everyone is going through it. I am not in this alone.

The nagging worry: Ma is not here with me. Actually, I wanted to bring her down or I wanted to travel, but the flights got cancelled that very time. So, my constant concern is my mother. She is not stepping out, but for whatever little... here I can order vegetables and groceries online... which my mother cannot avail of. I have a car. So, I can drive down and get some essentials if I want to. These are some of the advantages that my mother doesn’t have. She went out in 20 days for the first time to the bank. I am trying to get things done with the help of friends. That’s a nagging worry. I talk to her several times a day, reminding her to wash her hands... she is also having to do all the household work, which is also a cause of concern for me. Otherwise I have been doing okay. I thought I will go mad if I don’t get to step out and drink coffee, but ekhono pagol hoini... let’s see!

Keeping busy: This time hasn’t been monotonous or boring though. I am busy with the household work and I have been trying to read up and feed my soul and mind and do little things that make me happy. I think god has given us this time to step aside from the hustle and look into the essence of being. Freelancers don’t work every day. So, we do spend a lot of time at home.

I meditate every day. I am listening to music... keep myself busy. And cry! (Laughs) Ektu sad cinema dekhe kede nao. I do cry! I am listening to a lot of Bengali songs and Bangla gaan shunle monta ektu kharap hoye jai.

Living alone during Covid-19: Living alone right now is different because I don’t get to see my friends and loved ones. I am video-calling them. Auditions are not happening. Things which seemed so easy, you are having to prep and plan. Now you realise what really are the necessities.

Pet therapy: I have my Zoey (a cross between a Lhasa apso and a poodle) with me. Nothing has changed in her world. Sharakhon moja! She has me all the time! But she is getting sick of me, but I am not getting bored!

Lessons learnt: This might sound philosophical, but, at the end of the day, we are all alone. It’s the best time to reflect upon things that you have been ignoring. This is the time to restructure and live a life which is simpler, which we have forgotten. It is also a good time to reflect. I see this as nature’s comeback for the things we do to nature and how ignorant and unaware we are... may be it is nature’s way of healing.

Quarantined for 10 long years: It’s not inconvenient to stay alone... I have lived alone... quarantined for 10 long years! This time it is risky because we don’t know what’s going to happen next. The first thing that came to my mind after the lockdown was ‘ebar khabo ki?’ Or, who will look after me if I take ill? What if that person also takes ill? We are a nuclear family with everyone scattered around... my brother is in Delhi, my sister-in-law is in Sri Lanka and my parents are in Howrah. So, karur kichhu hole, aami jete parbo na. I would have gone back to Calcutta had I known that everything will go under lockdown. We could have prepped better had we known about this in advance. We could have been together in this global crisis.

Staying connected: We talk on WhatsApp group call. My father has to step out for groceries. Aamar mon ta okhanei pore aachhe. Both my parents are above 70. Khub bhoy lagchhe.

Keeping busy: This is unprecedented. No one has seen or heard... feels like science fiction. I haven’t stepped out and am living on dal and bhaat. I am working out at home. We are doing online workouts too. I am also uploading my culinary skills.

Lessons learnt: I believe this is nature’s way of taking revenge and teaching us that tum kuch nahin ho.

Going through the lockdown alone: Quite frankly, I have been a boarding kid. I have spent 13 years straight in a boarding school and not a very fancy one... so, we are used to chores like cooking, washing and cleaning. Then my adult years were spent in Bombay. Again, staying alone. On top of that I am quite a couch potato. I can sit at home and be doing nothing.

But when this happened, you are being told that you are not allowed to go out. That was unsettling. In our building, they are checking your travel history and no one is allowed to go up to your flat. Just knowing that you cannot go out and also the fact that though the shops are open and you can go get things, but the government is saying it has to be limited... the amount of things available is also very limited and by the time you go, people might have picked up and left. So, managing your ration wisely... the other day, I made chutney with peels of jhinga. So sticking to basics and coming to terms with it and not panicking is the key.

Dealing with anxiety: I have always had issues with anxiety. I see my counsellor on a regular basis and I do my meditation. Initially it was so bad. I was so restless that I was trying my best to get back to Calcutta, come what may. In one week, I ended up with so many cancelled tickets. Finally, I became so desperate that I just wanted to take my dog (a beagle called Cupid) and go by road. I knew Bengal and Bombay were both sealed... I was waking up at 5am and wasn’t getting enough sleep. I wasn’t been able to watch TV for lapse of concentration.

My family is scattered... I have a lot of family in London and my sister has moved to Australia to study... both risk zones.

This is when you need to be home with your family... in your comfort zone... in Calcutta, your neighbours are very involved. If I was back home in my building, if I ran out of provisions, I know that my neighbour would help me. In Bombay, you stay on rent. You are shifting every two-three years.

On top of that, the rent rates are steep. I don’t how people will manage right now... now that no work is happening, we won’t be able to pay that much... Rs 1.5 to Rs 2 lakh a month. In Calcutta, you have your own apartment. You are at ease. Your loved ones are closer and even if it is a few more days, you will be able to sail through in a better way. I was in the middle of shifting and I had gone and paid for another house. So, basically I am running rent for two houses in Bombay.... I have seen zero consideration (among the house owners).

My doctor asked me not to watch the news. How much information you are taking in has to be limited, otherwise you will go mad. The kind of content I am watching is lighter because your mind is so restless you cannot focus. I am trying to watch a new series... people are recommending so many things, but my mind is wandering off. My counsellor sent me a nice, long voice note. If you are thinking about something bad constantly, it is going to have a negative effect on your mind.... Then I came to terms with it... that it’s just not my problem alone. I have also started taking Spanish classes.

Pet company: My pet Cupid has put on so much weight because I am not being able to take him for his walks so much. The building has put very strict time to go down... it is not fitting into his walk time. He is also confused why I am at home so much... why is the hustle bustle missing....

Lessons learnt: I come from a humble background... nothing too fancy... I can adjust to different situations. What this has taught me is we might have all the money, but can you buy everything?