Bus ride one hot Thursday afternoon
It was a hot Thursday afternoon in month of May in Chennai. The Mercury was touching 43C. The entire city was literally burning in the heat. The sea breeze had not settled in yet. The motionless air only added to the woes of the people.
I was sitting in a local bus traveling home from Central Station. I had just arrived from Bangalore where it was pleasant 28C. The bus was crowded and there were close to 20-25 standees. People were irritated. Tempers were running high. A small nudge or push by someone, even by mistake, would be received with a barrage of expletives. Cursing the Chennai summer and the heat for the Nth time, yet happy to be back in Chennai after one year, I kept looking out of the window trying to see the changes the city had undergone.
I was looking at the Amul hoarding near Spencer Plaza, when angry voices broke my thoughts. I looked around and saw that there were two men inside the bus who were arguing about something. They had been having the argument for a while, I guessed. Shrill voices were now added to the existing cacophony when two women (presumably wives of the two men) joined in the argument. The conductor was trying his best to bring about some sort of order but he was failing miserably. I tried to listen to the argument and understand what they were fighting about but gave up soon and continued looking outside the window.
As the bus neared the next stop I saw this lady in her mid 20s with a kid (may be one year old) hoisted on her waist. The kid was the prettiest thing I had seen in a long time. Even in that hot sun and irksome afternoon, he was smiling and giggling. The bus pulled to a stop and the lady with the kid got in at the rear entrance where I was seated. The kid suddenly sensed that it was in a new environment and started looking around. His big eyes opened wide as he scanned the people around giving everyone a smile. He looked at the four people arguing and smiled. They stopped arguing and suddenly the bus was silent. Though the argument had stopped the tension in the air was palpable. The kid, I guess, sensed this and in a split second started wailing out loud.
Suddenly all eyes turned towards this kid. While everyone was watching the kid I decided to watch the people and their reactions. First the young girl standing next to the kid tried to make some sound to distract the kid. She tried pointing at some colours, clapping her hands, batting her eyelids but it was of no avail. Then one of those men who were arguing decided to try his luck. He whistled at the kid. That immediately got the kid's attention. Then he started making faces at the kid and tried making some funny sounds. The kid stared at this guy and slowly stopped crying. And just as the man thought that he had succeeded, the kid burst into tears again. The mother was trying to distract the kid herself but the kid was in no mood of listening. This time the other man stepped in. He had a few coins in his pocket. He took them out and was shaking them in his hand. This new sound quietened the kid whose wail had by then reduced to a few intermittent sobs. The mother holding the kid was trying to reach for her purse which was stuck between her body and the kid. Seeing this, the two women who were arguing took the kid from the mother and started to fondle him.
The kid let out a faint smile and that brought smile to a lot of faces on the bus. Someone in the front of the bus had a rattle and passed it on. The two women now were making sounds with the rattle. The bright pink and yellow colour rattle with its distinct sound was made the kid bare its only two teeth.
The mood in the bus had changed. The men weren’t arguing any more. There was a sudden chatter in the bus. Strangers were talking to each other. They may have been cursing the weather and the heat or lamenting about the water problem in various parts of the city but the general atmosphere in the bus had become more amicable. I was lost in my thoughts wondering how a kid within a short span of 5 minutes changed the mood of 50 passengers, when I noticed the entire bus saying good-byes and giving flying kisses to that kid as he and his mother got off. I too waved at the kid from the window and gave him my best smile. He winked back at me as though telling me that he knew what I was thinking.
I was sitting in a local bus traveling home from Central Station. I had just arrived from Bangalore where it was pleasant 28C. The bus was crowded and there were close to 20-25 standees. People were irritated. Tempers were running high. A small nudge or push by someone, even by mistake, would be received with a barrage of expletives. Cursing the Chennai summer and the heat for the Nth time, yet happy to be back in Chennai after one year, I kept looking out of the window trying to see the changes the city had undergone.
I was looking at the Amul hoarding near Spencer Plaza, when angry voices broke my thoughts. I looked around and saw that there were two men inside the bus who were arguing about something. They had been having the argument for a while, I guessed. Shrill voices were now added to the existing cacophony when two women (presumably wives of the two men) joined in the argument. The conductor was trying his best to bring about some sort of order but he was failing miserably. I tried to listen to the argument and understand what they were fighting about but gave up soon and continued looking outside the window.
As the bus neared the next stop I saw this lady in her mid 20s with a kid (may be one year old) hoisted on her waist. The kid was the prettiest thing I had seen in a long time. Even in that hot sun and irksome afternoon, he was smiling and giggling. The bus pulled to a stop and the lady with the kid got in at the rear entrance where I was seated. The kid suddenly sensed that it was in a new environment and started looking around. His big eyes opened wide as he scanned the people around giving everyone a smile. He looked at the four people arguing and smiled. They stopped arguing and suddenly the bus was silent. Though the argument had stopped the tension in the air was palpable. The kid, I guess, sensed this and in a split second started wailing out loud.
Suddenly all eyes turned towards this kid. While everyone was watching the kid I decided to watch the people and their reactions. First the young girl standing next to the kid tried to make some sound to distract the kid. She tried pointing at some colours, clapping her hands, batting her eyelids but it was of no avail. Then one of those men who were arguing decided to try his luck. He whistled at the kid. That immediately got the kid's attention. Then he started making faces at the kid and tried making some funny sounds. The kid stared at this guy and slowly stopped crying. And just as the man thought that he had succeeded, the kid burst into tears again. The mother was trying to distract the kid herself but the kid was in no mood of listening. This time the other man stepped in. He had a few coins in his pocket. He took them out and was shaking them in his hand. This new sound quietened the kid whose wail had by then reduced to a few intermittent sobs. The mother holding the kid was trying to reach for her purse which was stuck between her body and the kid. Seeing this, the two women who were arguing took the kid from the mother and started to fondle him.
The kid let out a faint smile and that brought smile to a lot of faces on the bus. Someone in the front of the bus had a rattle and passed it on. The two women now were making sounds with the rattle. The bright pink and yellow colour rattle with its distinct sound was made the kid bare its only two teeth.
The mood in the bus had changed. The men weren’t arguing any more. There was a sudden chatter in the bus. Strangers were talking to each other. They may have been cursing the weather and the heat or lamenting about the water problem in various parts of the city but the general atmosphere in the bus had become more amicable. I was lost in my thoughts wondering how a kid within a short span of 5 minutes changed the mood of 50 passengers, when I noticed the entire bus saying good-byes and giving flying kisses to that kid as he and his mother got off. I too waved at the kid from the window and gave him my best smile. He winked back at me as though telling me that he knew what I was thinking.
6 comments:
Nice read! You write really well!!! Spend your vacations posting more like this!
Who is woodworm? Is he fm ur batch? Neway ... thats why ppl shud have kids .. thats why i love Sushmita Sen for adopting a child ... nice post ... :)
Well, look who's here! :)
Nice post. If only people would pause and see eye to eye...
awesome.. you write well.
Wonderful post!!
"He winked back at me as though telling me that he knew what I was thinking."
A very poigant line..
Sometimes i used to feel that as kids are closer to the creator, as they r so pure and yet-to-be corrupted by the world.. As we grow and draw more of the earthly contaminants in, that we lose touch with the Supreme... Same goes with old ppl too.. As they get closer to going back to where they came from, they regain most of the purity and benevolence that one would associate with God...
Yes, i m in Banglore, and ofcourse we could meet :-).. Would be my pleasure...
woodworm: thanx
unpredictable: thanx
consumerdemon: im flattered on ur comment
musafir: cudnt agree more
solilioquist: well put. yeah we'll meet soon.
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