Monday, July 02, 2007

git-mit on a journey

A: You know what? It hardly rained in Bangalore, while it lashed heavily day and night in this city.

B: And still, we have powercuts in Bangalore. For long hours.

C: Kumaraswamy is pretty ok as a cheif minister. I mean, he fares better than the previous CMs'. Sir, what do you say?

A mobile phone is ringing in the backdrop, the ringtone is a popular track... Some of them start nodding their head to the tune. C recieves the call.

C: Hello; tell me, what's the matter?

D: Yes, he is young and has a positive attitude towards things. But....

A: He still has to do a lot of good for the state if he isto appreciated. What he has done is very little....

E: Consider this, he has done something, atleast, something good. A coaliton government. God knows, how long it will last....

D: How many kids do you have?

E: I've two sons. One is six years old, and the other is 11.

D: Both of them go to the same school, is it?

E: Yes.

F: Educating children... it's so expensive. We paid very small amounts as fees.

A: Come on, the times have changed. People have money with them, they spend. What else can it be used for?

B: Youngsters today spend quite a lot. You know, malls and the works...

A: Malls are boring. One simply roams about the place, and if possible, feeds on some junk food.

F: Where do you stay?

C hangs the call.

C: Isn't the song nice? The movie is still running to full houses.

A: Yes. The songs are lovely.

D: They've struck gold. The producer is minting money....

Travelling in trains is eventful. We meet different people, hear different stories, opinion...

We tend to be open with strangers. Disclosing, probably, even dark secrets which we fear to share with our friends.

Do we itch to get started? Fortunately, i've journeyed with amicable people, those who talk with strangers. I belong to that category too.

It's interesting. To converse about various subjects. And we comfortably shift between topics. Quite easily, like we've known each other for some time. And most of this happens without us knowing the other person's name. The liberality behind this surprises me.

Ranging from behaviour of kids.... money... lifestyles.... education... products of a particular company.... the weather.... movies.... soaps.... stories about a far relative.... prospects.... aspirations... food... At the end of it, we talk about everything under the sun. Sharing knowledge, learning about something new..... what not!!

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

ah!! nostalgic!! took me back to the days of my marathon weekend train journeys between B'lore & Chennai for 2.5 yrs...

It's not just conversations... scenes in the compartments... an old lady telling a story to her grandson, a guy dressed like a priest reading a vishnu sahasranaama or some other devotional book, a newly wed couple cuddling together, kids playing - climbing up & down the berths, calling his/her dad/mom to show how hogh s/he has climbed, a lone traveler hooked to a Sidney Sheldon/Robin Cook book, friends lost in their conversation, elderly couple comparing today's world to their god old days...

the list goes on and journey continues...

Srik said...

I think we've discussed about trains here, long ago!

mouna said...

prashanth,
yes, it's not only conversations, it's scenes played before us. A panorama, indeed! :)

srik,
'long ago'-yes. i guess that's the reason why i posted this one! i enjoyed this one :P

parijata said...

I travelled from Chennai to Bangalore too, during weekends for about one and a half years. Really, to see life in all its colours, one has to travel. I had made friends with a Christian social worker, a Palghat Iyer, a young girl traveling to write an exam... oh, so many people!

But, mostly being a lone traveller, I used to request for the topmost berth and sit glued to my book!

Anonymous said...

I too spend time talking while on the train.
books are for people who can afford--my son! :)

mouna said...

parijata,
when we were small, we used to clamour for those top berths. if we were allowed, it indicated that we were pretty big :)

neela,
in that case, i belong to your son's group!! :D