The Underworld

This constant reference to another world, namely, the underworld, is unsettling, to say the least. Where exactly is this? Is it the Pataal (netherworld) that exists in our legends? How deep under the regular visible world is it? Six feet under? Hundred feet? A mile? How does one commute to that world from this world, and vice-versa? Can one enter that world and be a temporary resident with a visitor visa? Or is it a one-way street, as our filmi villains keep impressing on the poor Hero who wants to go straight after a temporary dalliance with its temptations?

All these and more are important questions that beg an answer. How is it that all major ills of our (for lack of a better word) overworld society get blamed on the underworld? Is it really such a bad world? Conversely, are we of the overworld really so good? If we are, how did the underworld come into existence and thrive, as it seems to be doing. Is there a census of the underworld? Do they have a UID that gives them Aadhar? Too many imponderables...