Sunday, May 11, 2008
A tamilian, a Dane and a French
This weekedn was kinda different. All i did was hang around with a some people. But the fact that they included a Tamilian, a French and a Dane made it a really interesting weekend with loads of chit chat , dinner, lunch , lots of coffee and a Movie. Myriam a French Ngo worker, a pretty bold girl and somebody who freaks out at the word "Control", Johan is a pretty cool headed Dane doing his NGo work before his graduation, but despite being a Euroepan he is got a pretty decebt English accent, and ofcourse Andrew another social worker who has been in the field for a long time. It was fun dicussing the great Indian cultural and taboo conflict, everything form marriage to the traffic signals in India. It was fun and different with a global perspective to things.
Monday, February 25, 2008
Death
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.........................................................Death comes to all and death only hurts, but when it comes totally unanticipated it hurts the most. It virtually rips your heart apart and brings in that lump down your throat that is just so hard to swallow.
My dog, Victor died yesterday night. He s dead, no more and i would never ever be able to see him again, never ever. Never ever would i see him running up to wards the gate all excited to pounce on me when I head home, neva again would i have him curl down next to my legs when I sit in the verandah in the afternoon, neva again would i have to chase him down to get my sandal form his mouth, never again would i have to drag him to the cage when guests coem by, never again would I see him get all excited when he hears the word "Bread, Paapu or my bro s name
"Anson". I am gonna miss everything about my cream coloured mischievious labrador. Everything.
He was fighting with a cobra that entered our premises, like he had done in the past he was thrashing the snake, and mum and dad could only watch form a distance beause he hurls the deadly snake around making it dangerous for anybody to get close or to distract him, with the risk of a cobra bite. He thrashed the cobra to death, but nobody noticed the fatal bite the cobra delivered. So after the fight , when Victu all victorious and elated over his triumph came ova to mum and dad to receive his share of appreciation, he didnt kno that it would be his very last .
Mum got him his fav plum cakes and milk, before she noticed the blood oozing from below his ears. Afetr cleaning the wound, she knew it, Victu received a bite .
He didnt suffer much and in another 30 minutes he died in her arms. "Vittu" as she calls him with affection was no more.
My mum s four legged son is dead, her Vittu is dead. And everything about him is gone , foreva.
It was devastating, mum broke down, my bro was in tears when he rang me up and said
"Vittu is gone , bro .. our Vittu is gone ", and I had a lump develop in my throat which wudnt go down. My handsome labrador is dead and this time when I head home in april, I wont see Victu run over to pounce on me, I would see his empty cage.
Death takes away everything, it leaves behind a vaccum in your life and that nothingness would shatter you, especially when are not mentally prepared for such a vaccum. It s gunna take a while for my mum to comprehend the fact that her "Jiggar ka Tukda" is gone.
When she is in the kitchen and making food , they would no more be Vittu lurking around near the kitchen for his biscuits , there would no more be the lunch time barking, there would no more be the afternoon bark , there would no more b the break fast bark, there would be nothing at all.
Mum would nt need to worry about the clothes in the clothline, she would not need to worry about the banana plants "Vittu" would rip apart, Dad wudnt need to worry abt the morning newspaper getting soiled. They would nt need to worry about anything at all. And that would leave devastated.
He s gone and now what s left of him are the memories , the photographs and the videos.
Victor is gone and he died like a hero, with honour with pride. He had a gr8 life, he received all the love he could ever imagine. A mum who would only pamper him, brothers who would play with him and treat him more than a brother and a dad who cared after him.
Victor is gone and with a heavy heart, I have to accept it.
Victor
Born: 25th Oct 2004
died: 24rth feb 2008
R.I.P
My dog, Victor died yesterday night. He s dead, no more and i would never ever be able to see him again, never ever. Never ever would i see him running up to wards the gate all excited to pounce on me when I head home, neva again would i have him curl down next to my legs when I sit in the verandah in the afternoon, neva again would i have to chase him down to get my sandal form his mouth, never again would i have to drag him to the cage when guests coem by, never again would I see him get all excited when he hears the word "Bread, Paapu or my bro s name
"Anson". I am gonna miss everything about my cream coloured mischievious labrador. Everything.
He was fighting with a cobra that entered our premises, like he had done in the past he was thrashing the snake, and mum and dad could only watch form a distance beause he hurls the deadly snake around making it dangerous for anybody to get close or to distract him, with the risk of a cobra bite. He thrashed the cobra to death, but nobody noticed the fatal bite the cobra delivered. So after the fight , when Victu all victorious and elated over his triumph came ova to mum and dad to receive his share of appreciation, he didnt kno that it would be his very last .
Mum got him his fav plum cakes and milk, before she noticed the blood oozing from below his ears. Afetr cleaning the wound, she knew it, Victu received a bite .
He didnt suffer much and in another 30 minutes he died in her arms. "Vittu" as she calls him with affection was no more.
My mum s four legged son is dead, her Vittu is dead. And everything about him is gone , foreva.
It was devastating, mum broke down, my bro was in tears when he rang me up and said
"Vittu is gone , bro .. our Vittu is gone ", and I had a lump develop in my throat which wudnt go down. My handsome labrador is dead and this time when I head home in april, I wont see Victu run over to pounce on me, I would see his empty cage.
Death takes away everything, it leaves behind a vaccum in your life and that nothingness would shatter you, especially when are not mentally prepared for such a vaccum. It s gunna take a while for my mum to comprehend the fact that her "Jiggar ka Tukda" is gone.
When she is in the kitchen and making food , they would no more be Vittu lurking around near the kitchen for his biscuits , there would no more be the lunch time barking, there would no more be the afternoon bark , there would no more b the break fast bark, there would be nothing at all.
Mum would nt need to worry about the clothes in the clothline, she would not need to worry about the banana plants "Vittu" would rip apart, Dad wudnt need to worry abt the morning newspaper getting soiled. They would nt need to worry about anything at all. And that would leave devastated.
He s gone and now what s left of him are the memories , the photographs and the videos.
Victor is gone and he died like a hero, with honour with pride. He had a gr8 life, he received all the love he could ever imagine. A mum who would only pamper him, brothers who would play with him and treat him more than a brother and a dad who cared after him.
Victor is gone and with a heavy heart, I have to accept it.
Victor
Born: 25th Oct 2004
died: 24rth feb 2008
R.I.P
Friday, January 4, 2008
How valuable a remote could turn out to be
The other night, I headed home early from work and I planned a DVD night, hence went out to the video shop, got a dvd with a gud collection, 3 romantic movies and a black and white one Alfred Hitchcock thriller( a very odd movie to be in the bunch). And then i go to get the chips, pepsi and all set for the movie night.
My roomie said that he would be joining me after his hair cut. So I gear up for a movie night, something I have not done for ages. My roomie comes over and then we put in the DVD, the 1st movie turns out to be Rebecca, the supposedly Hitchcock thriller( It looked pretty lame to me thou), so we search for the remote to switch the title.
Well.. another couple of hours passby, me and my roomies are sadly hogging on the lays chips and the pepsi.. and nothing else.. coz the Remote control was missing and there was no possible way the title would change, we tried fast forwarding the Rebecca ova and ova gain and it starts again. The movie night turned out to be the struggle of the title change.
In a previous similar dilemma the fast forward button was the saviour, but this dvd was an obstinate one, it wud only listen to a God Damn remote. Sheesh and the worst part is the first movie had to b Rebecca, instead f Serendipity, Sweet November or You Got Mail. I fast forwarded Rebcca atleast a dozen times, before I called it a quit.
So instead of spending a perfect movie night( or lemme put it as " The Title switch night" or " The Rebecca Forward night"), frustrated and disappointed, we go on hogging all d chips and the pepsi.. and go to sleep..
eva since that day, the prerequisite for a movie night is the remote control and the DVD player in place, but the next night ( another supposedly wonderful movie night with everything on the checklist ticked), there was a
ummm a
POWER FAILURE !!!!!!!
well......
sometimes life SUX....
My roomie said that he would be joining me after his hair cut. So I gear up for a movie night, something I have not done for ages. My roomie comes over and then we put in the DVD, the 1st movie turns out to be Rebecca, the supposedly Hitchcock thriller( It looked pretty lame to me thou), so we search for the remote to switch the title.
Well.. another couple of hours passby, me and my roomies are sadly hogging on the lays chips and the pepsi.. and nothing else.. coz the Remote control was missing and there was no possible way the title would change, we tried fast forwarding the Rebecca ova and ova gain and it starts again. The movie night turned out to be the struggle of the title change.
In a previous similar dilemma the fast forward button was the saviour, but this dvd was an obstinate one, it wud only listen to a God Damn remote. Sheesh and the worst part is the first movie had to b Rebecca, instead f Serendipity, Sweet November or You Got Mail. I fast forwarded Rebcca atleast a dozen times, before I called it a quit.
So instead of spending a perfect movie night( or lemme put it as " The Title switch night" or " The Rebecca Forward night"), frustrated and disappointed, we go on hogging all d chips and the pepsi.. and go to sleep..
eva since that day, the prerequisite for a movie night is the remote control and the DVD player in place, but the next night ( another supposedly wonderful movie night with everything on the checklist ticked), there was a
ummm a
POWER FAILURE !!!!!!!
well......
sometimes life SUX....
Wednesday, December 26, 2007
Jingle Bells
Bro calls up and tells he wants to head for the midnight mass at St Patricks, and so we jump on the bike and head to Pune. Like he puts it, "What is Xmas without the Midnight mass at a big church and since we go to the church only for Xmas and Easter, lets celebrate them in style".
And then the long ride of 30 km to the church which was a testing time for the speed limit in the low night traffic. Took my karizma to a 128km/hr and with a pillion rider daz pretty fast.
After the 30 km ride,me and bro in our spiffy look, enter the St Patricks church and were welcome by the buzzing sounds of people before the midnight mass, the lights, theXmas carols and the scent of Xmas.
Its Christmas, I had to tell that again, the festive season, the holiday season, the seaon of love and gifts, and after a long time it felt magical to be at the church, singing the hymns and the prayers, and the Christmas feeling started sinking in. The mass lasted over an hour and i enjoyed every minute of it. I am not a religious person but I still cherished the one hour, it took me to a different world for a while, or perhaps the peaceful ambience was overwhelming and even seducing to an extent. The mass concluded, and me and my bro wished each other merry christmas, and since we did not know any body else in the church that was all the wishing that had to be done. And then we headed back, i dropped him at his place and then went home and had a good xmas snooze.
The Pastor had a good message in his sermon, "In the midst of the entire celebration fever, the expensive gifts, shopping and the parties at Xmas, let us not forget why we celebrate Xmas."
It was a really good message, christmas and diwali and eid and the other festivals have more or less become occassions for good marketing campaigns and nothing else.
And then the long ride of 30 km to the church which was a testing time for the speed limit in the low night traffic. Took my karizma to a 128km/hr and with a pillion rider daz pretty fast.
After the 30 km ride,me and bro in our spiffy look, enter the St Patricks church and were welcome by the buzzing sounds of people before the midnight mass, the lights, theXmas carols and the scent of Xmas.
Its Christmas, I had to tell that again, the festive season, the holiday season, the seaon of love and gifts, and after a long time it felt magical to be at the church, singing the hymns and the prayers, and the Christmas feeling started sinking in. The mass lasted over an hour and i enjoyed every minute of it. I am not a religious person but I still cherished the one hour, it took me to a different world for a while, or perhaps the peaceful ambience was overwhelming and even seducing to an extent. The mass concluded, and me and my bro wished each other merry christmas, and since we did not know any body else in the church that was all the wishing that had to be done. And then we headed back, i dropped him at his place and then went home and had a good xmas snooze.
The Pastor had a good message in his sermon, "In the midst of the entire celebration fever, the expensive gifts, shopping and the parties at Xmas, let us not forget why we celebrate Xmas."
It was a really good message, christmas and diwali and eid and the other festivals have more or less become occassions for good marketing campaigns and nothing else.
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
The Rat King
Third one in a row, this time squashed under the wrath of my red jordan sneakers. Like Chinni puts it, I ve become invincible in the art of killing , and my red sneakers have earned itself a nickname "Khooni Jhoote" ( Killer shoes).
Killing.... yep those tiny rodents who chew up on your clothes, the very good old Jerry, I am talking about none other than RATS. Yep, a hole in the top floor seems to have provided the neighbourhood rat population a new abode , ie, our house. And now since i really dont enjoy the company of rats, I ensure their termination.
So here goes the latest hunt, the teeny weenie cutish looking rat, had been in the hiding for quite a while, behind the television set, and he committed the cardinal sin of exposing himself, out in the hallway, which is a sure shot to his execution unless he is just too lucky.
But he was not or rather i didnt let him to be. The beast within me ( or the CAT within me) took over, and with me and chinni locking all the escape mechanism, the lil rat was forced to the kitchen. U bet the guy was cheeky, he went straight for the washing machine nearby, but I was in no mood for to let him go, pulled the washing machine apart, rat has no way to go, he heads for the cabinet doors, chinni strikes the rod, misses, killer shoes strike, one kick, misses, second one, oww yea this one hit, and it hit hard, the rat flies away to a corner , before the fatal red shoes, squashes the gut, SPLOOOSH!!!!!!! the intestines and the yellow juicy matter and blood spills over. Game over.
One more feather to the hat of the Rat King, more to follow.
Killing.... yep those tiny rodents who chew up on your clothes, the very good old Jerry, I am talking about none other than RATS. Yep, a hole in the top floor seems to have provided the neighbourhood rat population a new abode , ie, our house. And now since i really dont enjoy the company of rats, I ensure their termination.
So here goes the latest hunt, the teeny weenie cutish looking rat, had been in the hiding for quite a while, behind the television set, and he committed the cardinal sin of exposing himself, out in the hallway, which is a sure shot to his execution unless he is just too lucky.
But he was not or rather i didnt let him to be. The beast within me ( or the CAT within me) took over, and with me and chinni locking all the escape mechanism, the lil rat was forced to the kitchen. U bet the guy was cheeky, he went straight for the washing machine nearby, but I was in no mood for to let him go, pulled the washing machine apart, rat has no way to go, he heads for the cabinet doors, chinni strikes the rod, misses, killer shoes strike, one kick, misses, second one, oww yea this one hit, and it hit hard, the rat flies away to a corner , before the fatal red shoes, squashes the gut, SPLOOOSH!!!!!!! the intestines and the yellow juicy matter and blood spills over. Game over.
One more feather to the hat of the Rat King, more to follow.
Sunday, December 16, 2007
Sneakers
Last weekend I had to help my bro with his shopping, more dan just helping him out( coz he didnt have d money and I had a credit card, hope dat provides a clear picture..)
I had already taken a pledge, that I am not getting anything, and that I would be saving some hard coded money ( I am a so called techie..), and so things were seemingly going as expected, bro got a good pair of levi's jeans, woodland shoes, a couple f tees, before my eyes laid upon a slick pair of Nike sneakers, black graphite, with silver spring shox, one enticing pair of sneakers.
I had a strange feeling writhing inside me, but since bro was trying on a pair of trousers , I thought of trying out( just trying out) the sneakers and well it felt betta then it looked, it obviously looked in the 7k range and I had no plans of getting it until the salesman just blurted out dat I cud get it for 2.7 k.
"2,700 you kidding?", I blurted out and he went onto explaining some factory sale fundas and a 70% discount, and well so long for my pledge, the mind games already started,
"My shopper self: Well my sneakers are kinda old now and its time I got new ones.
My thrifty Self: But then what about those Puma shoes.
My shopper self: Oww, those are casuals, they aint sneakers.
Yea, yea, thats right, I need a pair of sneakers, BADLY!!!!!,
My thrifty Self: But what about the pledge, and you could still use your old sneakers, they aint all that ripped apart.
My shopper self: But, dis is a lifetime deal, 70% off.. blah blah blah!!!!"
The next thing I know, I was paying for the shoes.... so long for the mental conflict.. The shopper in me wins, well it wasnt a bad deal after all.
But thinking over the shopping stuff, why do people indulge in shopping, I mean most of the people who shop frequently dont really do it coz of a lack of clothes in their closet, nor coz their clothes have become old, faded or outta fashion, I do agree that if you are a celebrity or a socialite, you do have obligations to have a different look every time, elz you could see yourself in some page 3 gossip shit for an ENCORE, but else its more gotta do with the feel good factor and the look good factor.
I am not sure if you have observed this, but most people I have observed always appeared sanguine in their new jeans or tees or dresses, the higher the expense, the more sanguine they turn out to be, which is demonstrated when the purchase is a mobile phone, bike or a car, trust me most people love to spend money, its a feel good factor, perhaps the materialisation of their hard earned paper notes or plastic( credit cards) into a useful commodity provides that sense of satisfaction or accomplishment.
Or perhaps it has to do with the feel of loooking new, looking betta in the new faded jeans or a nice fitting shirt, the booming economy may have a say in it and the wide range of brands available from the big ones across the globe to our Desi giants, perhaps its the influence of globalistaion or our very own fashion savvy Bollywood stars, people just love the feel of looking new, fashionable more than eva, or in more sophisticated form, find shopping a stress reliever or a good way to kill time.
Whatever be the reasons India sure is in a good mindset to shell their money on what would have been termed as opulence a decade back, whatever be the cause, everybody from the shopper to the shopkeeper, the advertisers and the economy, everybody seems to be loving it.
And so am I enjoying the feel and the look in my new Nike Sneakers,
After all money is meant to be spend ....
I had already taken a pledge, that I am not getting anything, and that I would be saving some hard coded money ( I am a so called techie..), and so things were seemingly going as expected, bro got a good pair of levi's jeans, woodland shoes, a couple f tees, before my eyes laid upon a slick pair of Nike sneakers, black graphite, with silver spring shox, one enticing pair of sneakers.
I had a strange feeling writhing inside me, but since bro was trying on a pair of trousers , I thought of trying out( just trying out) the sneakers and well it felt betta then it looked, it obviously looked in the 7k range and I had no plans of getting it until the salesman just blurted out dat I cud get it for 2.7 k.
"2,700 you kidding?", I blurted out and he went onto explaining some factory sale fundas and a 70% discount, and well so long for my pledge, the mind games already started,
"My shopper self: Well my sneakers are kinda old now and its time I got new ones.
My thrifty Self: But then what about those Puma shoes.
My shopper self: Oww, those are casuals, they aint sneakers.
Yea, yea, thats right, I need a pair of sneakers, BADLY!!!!!,
My thrifty Self: But what about the pledge, and you could still use your old sneakers, they aint all that ripped apart.
My shopper self: But, dis is a lifetime deal, 70% off.. blah blah blah!!!!"
The next thing I know, I was paying for the shoes.... so long for the mental conflict.. The shopper in me wins, well it wasnt a bad deal after all.
But thinking over the shopping stuff, why do people indulge in shopping, I mean most of the people who shop frequently dont really do it coz of a lack of clothes in their closet, nor coz their clothes have become old, faded or outta fashion, I do agree that if you are a celebrity or a socialite, you do have obligations to have a different look every time, elz you could see yourself in some page 3 gossip shit for an ENCORE, but else its more gotta do with the feel good factor and the look good factor.
I am not sure if you have observed this, but most people I have observed always appeared sanguine in their new jeans or tees or dresses, the higher the expense, the more sanguine they turn out to be, which is demonstrated when the purchase is a mobile phone, bike or a car, trust me most people love to spend money, its a feel good factor, perhaps the materialisation of their hard earned paper notes or plastic( credit cards) into a useful commodity provides that sense of satisfaction or accomplishment.
Or perhaps it has to do with the feel of loooking new, looking betta in the new faded jeans or a nice fitting shirt, the booming economy may have a say in it and the wide range of brands available from the big ones across the globe to our Desi giants, perhaps its the influence of globalistaion or our very own fashion savvy Bollywood stars, people just love the feel of looking new, fashionable more than eva, or in more sophisticated form, find shopping a stress reliever or a good way to kill time.
Whatever be the reasons India sure is in a good mindset to shell their money on what would have been termed as opulence a decade back, whatever be the cause, everybody from the shopper to the shopkeeper, the advertisers and the economy, everybody seems to be loving it.
And so am I enjoying the feel and the look in my new Nike Sneakers,
After all money is meant to be spend ....
Monday, November 26, 2007
d IIFT exam and d Mumbai trains
CAT '07 didnt go gr8, well honestly speaking it went BAD, yeah it was disappointing, just made me realise dat there is still a long way to go when it comes to my preparations.
After CAT, came by IIFT, and I really didnt have any hopes on the exam, nevertheless I had to head to Bandra west, my examination centre along with my colleague.
I have to admit, Bandra West sure is a nice place to be, people dressed in designer wear, a lot of designer boutiques , from Ritu Kumar to GAS, imported cars and d typical fast food restaurants, a lot of shopping arcades, a seemingly happening place from all angles. After a bit of sight seeing and some hogging, me and kalam( my colleague) lodged up in a hotel and had a good nights sleep.
Next day, exam day, the IIFT exam went okie dokie, a different pattern this time though, kalam soon left for Pune, while I was waiting for my college mate, Prabhu.
I was just about to experience what Mumbai is all about , coz i was heading to the railway station, the life line of Mumbai. Prabhu got the tickets after a 20 minute wait in the queue, and we headed to the platform.
The platform was flooded with people, it was just people, people and more people, we were more like drowning in a sea of people, heading to every possible place in Mumbai,
And then a train comes by, and what follwed was a virtual stampede, a two metre wide open door, with atleast a 100 people tryin to get out and another 100 people trying to get in all at d same time, to me it looked more like the start of a rugby match , when the referee blows the whistle and the players ram into each other for the ball, but in here people felt boarding a train and alighting the train was a life and death scenario, such was the intensity and the vigour.
Prabhu patted on my back, and said " Welcome to Mumbai", and dats how it is in the worlds most densely populated city with nearly 30,000 people every square metre and an overall 16 million population. In one word, I could label a mumbai railway station as " Overwhelming", for a newbie in Mumbai, but soon people get used to the hustle bustle, the stampede rush, the noise and everything so typical about Mumbai, and that people get so used to the so called Mumbai rush, that life otherwise seeems to be very laid back in nature.
Prabhu then told we had to board the next train, and I had this adreanline rushing into my nerves at the very thought of it . The train came over, and I was already slow to attack to get in, the oppostion team( people alighting) had made their move, push , shove , squeeze ur way thru, and i finally got into the push stream but my hand got stuck in the bar that stood between the doors, meanwhile the crowds kept on pushing, and i was virtually stuck there for a while and it , those seconds, seemed like forever, and finally after a lot of effort i got my hand through without much damage and officially boarded the train. I hung onto a metal holder that is suspended, and hung on, in the midst of a tight packed compartment, stuffed with people, all of them hanging on to those suspended metal holders, clinging onto their journey called life in the commercial capital of India, looking to make a living, and chasing their dreams.
The next station came by and a guy next to me, got up , so i was finally able to sit, though not completely , coz i only got the space for resting my single butt, and the other one was in air, so the relief of getting a seat didnt last long, coz sitting on a single butt is actually not all dat comfortable, and on top of dat you have people standing in the place, which is supposed to be the leg room, and me already being in an awkward position, i had my head in between a couple f guys butts, virtually sandwiched and immobile, and I am not sure if it was the suffocation or fatigue, taking the butts as my pillow, i dozed off, and i woke up up when i felt this excruciating pain in my feet, a lady was actually stamping on my feet with her heeled sandals, while she was making a move to the trains doors, by then, the train was approaching Thane station, so time to get up from my single butt seating posture, and gear up for another game of rugby, and the push flow took me out with a gush, and me and prabhu were finally at our destination, thane, it was a feeling of relief, a feeling of accomplishment, and an experience worth every second. It would sound pretty trivial to a normal mumbaikar, but for very the first time, it sure is an overwhelming experience.
We headed to prabhu s flat, went out for bowling, followed by a good booze with some gr8 tandoori chicken recolllecting the good old college days, followed by another bowling session and a sound sleep.
Next day morning, packed up, headed back to pune.
After CAT, came by IIFT, and I really didnt have any hopes on the exam, nevertheless I had to head to Bandra west, my examination centre along with my colleague.
I have to admit, Bandra West sure is a nice place to be, people dressed in designer wear, a lot of designer boutiques , from Ritu Kumar to GAS, imported cars and d typical fast food restaurants, a lot of shopping arcades, a seemingly happening place from all angles. After a bit of sight seeing and some hogging, me and kalam( my colleague) lodged up in a hotel and had a good nights sleep.
Next day, exam day, the IIFT exam went okie dokie, a different pattern this time though, kalam soon left for Pune, while I was waiting for my college mate, Prabhu.
I was just about to experience what Mumbai is all about , coz i was heading to the railway station, the life line of Mumbai. Prabhu got the tickets after a 20 minute wait in the queue, and we headed to the platform.
The platform was flooded with people, it was just people, people and more people, we were more like drowning in a sea of people, heading to every possible place in Mumbai,
And then a train comes by, and what follwed was a virtual stampede, a two metre wide open door, with atleast a 100 people tryin to get out and another 100 people trying to get in all at d same time, to me it looked more like the start of a rugby match , when the referee blows the whistle and the players ram into each other for the ball, but in here people felt boarding a train and alighting the train was a life and death scenario, such was the intensity and the vigour.
Prabhu patted on my back, and said " Welcome to Mumbai", and dats how it is in the worlds most densely populated city with nearly 30,000 people every square metre and an overall 16 million population. In one word, I could label a mumbai railway station as " Overwhelming", for a newbie in Mumbai, but soon people get used to the hustle bustle, the stampede rush, the noise and everything so typical about Mumbai, and that people get so used to the so called Mumbai rush, that life otherwise seeems to be very laid back in nature.
Prabhu then told we had to board the next train, and I had this adreanline rushing into my nerves at the very thought of it . The train came over, and I was already slow to attack to get in, the oppostion team( people alighting) had made their move, push , shove , squeeze ur way thru, and i finally got into the push stream but my hand got stuck in the bar that stood between the doors, meanwhile the crowds kept on pushing, and i was virtually stuck there for a while and it , those seconds, seemed like forever, and finally after a lot of effort i got my hand through without much damage and officially boarded the train. I hung onto a metal holder that is suspended, and hung on, in the midst of a tight packed compartment, stuffed with people, all of them hanging on to those suspended metal holders, clinging onto their journey called life in the commercial capital of India, looking to make a living, and chasing their dreams.
The next station came by and a guy next to me, got up , so i was finally able to sit, though not completely , coz i only got the space for resting my single butt, and the other one was in air, so the relief of getting a seat didnt last long, coz sitting on a single butt is actually not all dat comfortable, and on top of dat you have people standing in the place, which is supposed to be the leg room, and me already being in an awkward position, i had my head in between a couple f guys butts, virtually sandwiched and immobile, and I am not sure if it was the suffocation or fatigue, taking the butts as my pillow, i dozed off, and i woke up up when i felt this excruciating pain in my feet, a lady was actually stamping on my feet with her heeled sandals, while she was making a move to the trains doors, by then, the train was approaching Thane station, so time to get up from my single butt seating posture, and gear up for another game of rugby, and the push flow took me out with a gush, and me and prabhu were finally at our destination, thane, it was a feeling of relief, a feeling of accomplishment, and an experience worth every second. It would sound pretty trivial to a normal mumbaikar, but for very the first time, it sure is an overwhelming experience.
We headed to prabhu s flat, went out for bowling, followed by a good booze with some gr8 tandoori chicken recolllecting the good old college days, followed by another bowling session and a sound sleep.
Next day morning, packed up, headed back to pune.
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