City of love or ‘macchi market’? This Paris vlog might shock you

One might conceptualise Paris in a romantic light given the polished nature of the city as a concept. However, an Indian vlogger’s viral reel raises questions over these ideas as it shows viewers some untidy parts of the French city.

Vinayak Mishra, a travel vlogger, on Thursday shared a video on Instagram titled “Paris gave me a plot twist in the first five minutes”, wherein he captured his first impressions as he left a train station, only to be met with an unexpectedly dirty and chaotic environment.

“Kaha par hai ye? Ye Paris hai? Ye toh macchi market jaisa lag raha hai?” (Where is this? Is this Paris? Looks like a fish market), Mishra said in the video, which then transitions to a cleaner, more organised part of the city. Commenting on the contrast, he noted, “This neighbourhood is normal, but the other place was weird. People coming from all directions and screaming, as well as garbage lying around.”

He went on to say, “I did not have this image of Paris in my mind.”

In the caption, however, Mishra shared a positive outlook as he said, “Paris is real,raw, and still so beautiful.” “Paris is a multicultural city, and not every part looks the same. The area in this reel has a very different vibe, but that doesn’t mean the whole city looks like this. Just like in India, every place has different sides, and that’s what makes traveling so real and interesting.”

The reel has garnered over 2 million views, with many users expressing their disbelief and sharing similar experiences in the comments.

One comment said, “New York is no different...go and see”.

Another said, “Bhai stay in central Paris, if you are staying even slightly outskirts mein then this is what you will get also don’t step out in such areas at night. It’s extremely unsafe.”

Many commenters made hilarious comparisons of the area in the video to Indian locations such as Dilshad Garden and Hazrat Nizamuddin railway station.