Day
3, Wednesday...
Two
days of the week have passed away already... The first two days were almost
exhaustible and irritable... Whatever happened was unexpected and whatsoever
was in the womb of time for Day three was also not expected then.
Till Day two came to an end, I already
understood that Life in a Metro is neither that easy to be traveled nor that
easy to be lived but as each of us know that life is full of surprises and
shocks, you might now know what’s on the other end.
I
woke up to a new and a beautiful morning... Although it was a beautiful
morning, still there were certain things which were differentiating it with
other mornings. Usually, I didn't use to hear the chirruping of the sparrows
nearby the window of my room... The morning tea was much tastier than it used
to be... The weather also was so good, which the city doesn't encounter usually...
All this can be regarded as a shear co-incidence but I believe that whenever “Beauty
of the nature is in the perspective of an individual, you can always rule out
the co-incidences and can always give second thoughts to the superstitions held
within.”
The experience of the entire morning was
exhilarating... It was beautiful yet different... There was uniqueness in the
pattern of this morning... After seeking and getting a feel of all these
mesmerizing things of the morning, I again started the day afresh... Took bath,
had breakfast and departed timely for office... Till this time, I was anyhow
habitual of getting into a bus or any public transport vehicle... So, struggled
a bit and to my surprise, got an auto-rickshaw early... While I was on the way
to the ‘Metro’ Station, I was really happy and it was clearly visible on my
face... And as we generally say, ‘what you give is what you get’... Similarly,
the surroundings were also reflecting the same happiness to me which already
was evident through my face.
I
reached the ‘Metro’ Station and went inside. It was crowded as usual but
somehow the crowd today was moving with ease. While moving onto the platform,
there was a girl who walked past by me. She walked so fast that she crossed and
almost pushed me... I then stood in the queue waiting for the ‘Metro’ Rail to
arrive at the ‘Metro’ Station. The ‘Metro’ arrived at the platform... As it is
widely known among the Delhi ‘Metro’ Commuters, that once the doors get open,
if you want to acquire a seat for yourself, don’t wait for the queue to move
in... So, the crowd which was standing in the queue pushed each other to move
inside the coach and to secure a seat...
When I got pushed in, I also tried to secure a
seat and after all the failed attempts, I preferred to give up and rather to
stand throughout the journey... I came
to a stable position to stand nearby the door... And this was when I realized
that the girl who walked past by me on the platform was standing just in front
of me... It was ironical that despite she almost pushed me on the platform to
be in front of the queue, she still didn't get herself a seat...
And
the further realization came at a point when both of us shared an eye contact...
Since, I was conservative from the beginning so I felt indifferent and
awkward... I somehow was unable to avoid the eye contact as coincidentally she
was also doing the same...
(Travelling in a Delhi ‘Metro’, you can always
encounter the youths commuting with their partners and then there are people
who travel alone. These are mostly the youths who are there on the social
networking websites flaunting their relationship status as ‘single’ and are
always in search of partners, partners for life... These were the people whom I
was able to relate with then as I was also sailing in the same boat those days)
All
of a sudden when the heart took in the place of the brain to think, I was
already dreaming like the rest. Perhaps, these were the dreams which I wanted
to come true. And while the dreams were continuously responding to the thoughts
possessed within, I didn't realize when I get completely involved into it... I
was thinking about something when this girl asked,
She:
- Hey!
Me:
- (Didn't notice)
She:
- Hey, are you listening?
Me:
- Oh! I am sorry... Were you saying something?
She:
- I wasn't saying anything... Perhaps, was just asking if I have to go to
Gurgaon, which ‘Metro’ station should I deboard at?
Me:
- Which sector do you want to go to?
She:
- I don’t remember the exact sector number but I need to go to phase-III...
Me:
- OK... I think you should deboard at Huda City Center...
And
while this conversation was going on, ‘Metro’ stopped at an interchangeable
station. As usual, habitual Delhi commuters came inside to grab the seat unaware
of the fact that there was not even a single seat vacant in the entire coach
then... Such a heavy crowd it was... It flooded the coach like the herd of
animals... After the crowd settled in and I got some ‘opportunity’ to breathe,
I composed myself and tried standing on both the feet... Post this; I saw her
standing just beside me...
‘More close but not
closer enough’
Still there was a lot to be said and a lot to
be done... And this was perhaps the only time when I was happy with the crowd
of Delhi Metro... No matter how firm you stand at your place but the unusual
pushing practice which normally most of us generally encounter in ‘Metro’ was
instrumental in reducing the distance between people. (Laugh)
And
while this was happening, she again broke the unwanted silence...
She:
- Hey!
Me:
- Yes...
She:
- For how long do I have to stand like this?
Me:
- Till the time you wants to!! (Laugh)
She:
- (Smiled) What?
Me:
- Oh! I mean till this crowd doesn't deboard from the ‘Metro’, you will have to
stand unfortunately...
She:
- Alright... Well you must be aware which station witness more number of people
deboarding the train?
Me:
- Yeah! The next one or I believe the one after that...
She:
- (Quiet) the next one only!!!
Me:
- Yes... You seem to be sad. Aren't you?
She:
- No, nothing like that. By the way, what’s your name?
Me:
- Oh! I am ‘Shantanu, Shantanu Sunil Saxena’... and you?
She:
- Wow! You have a different name... Well, I am Vasavi and I quite liked the way
you pronounced your name... ‘Shantanu, Shantanu Sunil Saxena’... (Laugh)
Me:
- (Laugh) Oh! I usually say like that only...
She:
- Okay, so where do you have to deboard?
Me:
- I need to deboard one station prior to the station you will deboard at...
Anyways, where are you going?
She:
- Oh! I am going for an interview... And, where are you heading by the way?
Me:
- Well, I am going to my office...
And
suddenly, the station on which the crowd had to deboard at arrived and the complete
lot deboarded over there... While, most of the people were walking out of the
‘Metro’, both of us searched for a seat and luckily we got one but this time
both of us were sitting in front of each other unfortunately... It seemed as if
there was a lot to say and a lot more to talk about but we couldn't do so...
Now, it was more of silence between us but we still were staring at each
other... Waiting for a single moment to break the silence, the moment didn't come... We couldn't even share the contact numbers by then...
And finally the station arrived on which I had
to deboard... I was left with no options but to bid a silent adieu to her... I didn't know then that it eventually would be the last goodbye to her... As the
station arrived, I stood with a sad smile on my face which was hiding many
emotions and thoughts in it... I wanted to say a lot to her but couldn't... She
also seemed to possess the same set of emotions... And when I was about to deboard, I heard a
whisper as if someone called me... I turn around to look if someone actually
called... I saw her waiving the hand and bidding a bye to me... She looked
equally sad with the separation and there was a hope in her eyes that we might
meet again probably... I did the same and moved out of the train... After
deboarding it, looked inside to see her... She was teary eyed yet smiling and was
glancing at me... And soon, the train started moving... Gradually, it
disappeared within few moments... For some time, I wasn't able to compose
myself but then I realized that she wasn't there anymore, and waiting for her
on the platform wasn't a wise decision either... And also, it is something
which usually happens in Delhi ‘Metro’. Then, I recalled the incidents with
which I was relating to earlier and the people who usually encounter this...
Composing
myself, I moved on... In the evening, on my journey back to home my eyes were
searching for her face and were eager to see her in the crowd... But this didn't happen... Neither then nor after that... And we couldn't see each
other since then...
I came back to home but that day it was really
tough for me to forget and I believe it would have been for her as well... I
still have all the memories afresh for the Day 3 journey when I lived that
“Life in a Metro”. But, thankfully, I don’t look for any more faces now...
Till
this day, I had been through different experiences of life, a “Life in a
Metro”...
Gathering all the
three days experiences, all I can say is...
Things happen in life
for a reason, but it is always better to move ahead without bothering about the
reasons of the incidents happened...
