28 December 2023
“What's everyone's screen time? Let's reveal it to the world today.” A famous influencer asked another famous actress on a podcast dressed in a so-called casual conversation. “Mine is really horrible!” She said in a fake accent hoping to get follow-up questions about it. “3 hours and 17 minutes! Man, that's embarrassing.” The influencer set the room's tone. “Wow, mine's less than yours! 2 hours 20 only.” They laugh their caked make-up off. Mine can't be more than that? He's an influencer. He lives on his smartphone. Mine must be lower than that, definitely. I said to myself as I tried to reach the stat from the settings’ Labrinth. 10 hours and 56 minutes.
I needed a break. An oversaturation of reels had turned my brain into the cheese Jerry dreamt of. I couldn't pay attention to my work the next day. It's affecting all the aspects of my life. I'm not ambitious in my work. I pushed away my closest friends. I am not happy. “That's enough?” I scolded myself. Let's make use of the screen time. A couple of minutes and countless screen taps later, I had booked some flight tickets. Didn't overthink the time, and didn't plan my itinerary. I didn't even check for the price, didn't compare nor find a good deal. It's done. As I walked home, one by one I started realising the problems. I had no choice, but to tackle them now.
As I started to overthink, another brilliantly reckless idea popped into my head. Let's go shopping! A few taps on my screen again and there was a two-wheeler at my location within minutes. He complained about life and I joined in as he dropped me to the nearby mall. I roamed around cluelessly. What am I here to shop for? I don't know. That's when I found a fancy store covered in yellow lights and a spectrum of scents. A luxurious ayurvedic stop as they claim. I floated towards it the way Tom floated towards a pie (I know, another Tom and Jerry reference? They're timeless I can't help it). The saleswoman used all her might to my gullible nature and sold me such beautiful fragrances. Flowers are my weak spots. It's like she knew that before I walked it and made a huge commission check off of me. One reckless decision and a casual walk into a store led to me walking out with a 5 figure worth of purchase. This, plus the flight tickets in the morning. Oh, I dare not check my bank account. I'll drop dead instantly in shock. “you needed a treat for yourself. You deserved it!” my friend tried to rationalise my stupidity when I told her about this. “You did buy stuff for yourself right?”. “Nope,” I answered shyly hoping she wouldn't hear me. “They're all gifts. And that makes me happy.” I tried to justify. A few moments of silence from her confirmed that the justification did not do the job for me.
I packed my trusty backpack right to the brim. Just like when I was young and excited, I decided what I was gonna wear the next day, and I arranged it properly next to my bed. Sunglasses on top, then the t-shirt neatly folded. A pair of jeans with the lint brushed off under it. Then my shoes. All my accessories went perfectly to their places and a properly dressed invisible me lay on the bed. Tomorrow's gonna be fun.
29 December 2023
I woke up so excited that the first few minutes of my day went into settling a head rush. For the first time in my life, I was up and ready before time. I was proud of myself. I started planning the day accordingly. Since I'm before time, obviously so must be the world! This trip is going to be so efficient. I was out to take on the world. This time after I left my house with a loving flying kiss towards it (as is the travel ritual). I didn't get a feeling that I'd forgotten something or I missed out on packing something. This anxiety has been there with me on every trip. Well, not this one. It's gonna be perfect.
I was at the bus stop right on cue and so was the bus to the airport 15 minutes later. “Would you like a window seat sir? '' the kind lady asked at the flight counter. I'll let you guess my answer towards it. Every time my bags come from the security scanner without objections, I squeal under my breath, excited but nonchalant to everyone else. After a year's worth of flying at night, It took a rash decision for an impromptu trip to make me appreciate the beauty of day flights. I missed these heavenly sights, the weightlessness of flying through such gorgeous terrain. The adrenaline of being somewhere you never belonged. I was making castles in clouds, quite literally, which concluded with a soft landing on the ground. The contact with land swept across me like an electric current and got me out of my trance. What a wonderful flight. I almost contemplated being a white woman in a bob cut and applauding the pilot. “We apologise for the delay in landing. Hope you have a wonderful day.” The lead air hostess announced. Delay? I checked my watch. My train arrives at the station in just 30 mins.
I rushed out of the aircraft and almost pushed a couple of oldies too. The journey from the airport to the railway station is 25 minutes. I had a buffer of just 5 minutes! That's when I realised, I did not calculate the buffer between my flight and train at all! I'm so screwed. I ran across the airport and jumped hurdles and tight ropes. The CRPF soldiers were cheering on along the way. A couple of pilots wished me godspeed as I ran faster than any Mach speed they'd seen. I did slow down when a couple of air hostesses winked at me in awe, but I still ran. I dived from the exit gate and landed perfectly into my cab. He was so impressed by this feat that I had to scream, Drive, Station, NOW!! Surprisingly, bald and in a black tank top, he gripped the steering wheel, turned up the Turbo NOS, and floored the accelerator as he mumbled “For family”. Okay, some of these things might not have happened and might be exaggerated. He might be wearing a white tank top. It's a race against time. 10 minutes to reach and 10 minutes for the train's departure from the station. We reached the railway station, I thanked him immensely and ran inside as I saw my train, glorious and beautiful, so perfect, just moving away from me. I trekked the footover bridge, reached the correct platform and there she was. Crossed the station boundary. Waving me goodbye. I was almost there. I was late by just a minute. And she was gone, forever.
I'm not gonna let this drag me down. It's just a hiccup. I turn on my phone. I need to check for options now. As soon as the mobile signal lines were activated. My phone has a seizure. 15 missed calls, 43 text messages and a massive fear of impending doom. My boss, his wife, my department’s HOD, my department colleague, Studio manager, Project Manager, 2 ex-employees, 2 friends and my Dad. All spamming my phone with texts and calls. Well, how did I just plan a trip during the workweek? It's simple. I lied. I planned to put in sick leave for today and turn this Friday into an extended weekend. It was perfect and I was hailed as a genius in my brain. The only problem was, I forgot to apply for the leave. Which led to my HOD calling me if I was gonna be late for work. But all he found was a switched-off phone, out of coverage. The person he was trying to contact was 30,000 feet high up in the sky wondering scenarios of how I'll fight hijackers single-handedly if the situation arises. How I'll be hailed a hero and be awarded the Nobel prize for bravery which obviously will be renamed after me. This led to my boss calling me, the same. The studio manager. Wouldn't you guess? The same. My studio, a team of 15 people, I'll rephrase, a team of 15 distinguished personnel, all experts in the industry and leaders of their trade, overreacted like a teenage girl not being allowed to watch. Taylor Swift’s concert. The Manager drove to my house to find a locked door. My boss thought I was ignoring him so started calling from his wife's phone too. Calls were continuous despite my phone being switched off. Ex-employees whom I were close with and who are now scattered across the country, somehow had a soft reunion in the search for me. And my Dad was informed that his son was missing. Thankfully he and my boss decided not to tell my Mom, or else the world would've ended. My Dad called my childhood friends, the first two suspects if ever you find my dead body. He knew that very well. They obviously knew about my trip but couldn't tell him. It was still a risky decision, they had to figure out and line up their stories if the law was involved. And they know with my luck, it's bound to happen. I called my boss. In a very frail voice, on the verge of grabbing the light at the end of the tunnel, I explained that I was sick. I don't know if he believed me, but I gave a performance for sure. I apologised and then texted everyone that I was okay. My phone died and now I'm good. The only honest answer I got was from my HOD. “I thought something horrible had happened, but it's all cool now.” I didn't know if I should be proud that people cared about me so much, or afraid that's how little people trusted me not screwing up. I do need to work on my lying skills. Such a simple lie made into such a big deal. Not acceptable. All of this happened while I absent-mindedly stood on an empty platform. This chaos made me forget, that I needed to figure out alternatives to reach home.
It's New Year's weekend, and every single book and cranny of every train was overbooked. The next train available was on the 2nd of January. That might be a tad bit late. I walked around the station to no avail. Taxi! That's the next best option to reach on time. I searched for a taxi depot only to find that I was the only customer waiting in line. They need a minimum of 4. It's been an eventful day. I hoped a random group of three would pop by and we'd be off on a fantastic road trip. Well, my ‘Dil Chahta Hai’ group of friends never did arrive. An hour passed by and my anxiety started growing. That's when I random guy came by the depot and asked for the cost. I stood up straight, smiled and presented myself proudly. A wide smile on my face in the hopes he'd adopt me on his journey. “Where are you heading” he asked. We had the same destination, just not the correct time frame. “I'm travelling at night, otherwise I would've definitely taken you with me.” My dreams were crushed. But not for long as he continued, “What are you doing here though? If you wait on the highway, there's a car going every 5 minutes.” I apologised to my God for being an atheist for he sent down an angel to prove me wrong. “Come I'll take you there”. I hopped on the back seat of his scooter and we were off. At this stage, I was hoping his kind soul might drop me to my destination, 150km away. But I didn't wanna take such advantage in the first meet itself. I'm civil too. Sometimes. We went to the Van depot, turns out, no cars. Bus depot. There are no buses. Where was everyone? Isn't this their job? To have a car at a car depot? A bus at the bus depot? Isn't that, the bare minimum? Or did they too lie about being sick and are on their own adventure? I hope not. We walked away, sulking. “Wait!” A loud sound came from behind us. There stood the counter guy. A pen in his hand writing on a piece of paper. Spectacles half down his nose bridge with his other hand pushing the earphone deeper into his ear. We looked at him in confusion and in awe. He took his pen hand and gestured for us to wait a minute with just his eyes moving up to look at us and no other facial muscle moving. It was almost as if the ISRO shuttle re-entry had failed and everyone's lost hope but suddenly a protagonist engineer heard static and everyone holding their hearts for a piece of good news. I could hear my heartbeats. So did my newly made friend. Static…static…static… “Why are you getting static in a phone call?” I asked which wasn't well received. “There's a bus.” We screamed and rejoiced. All our prayers had been answered. What a wonderful day, blessings on all. The counter guy was proud. The re-entry was a success. His hard work, all paid off. “What time is it?” I asked while dancing. “5 hours later and it'll be another 5-hour journey to reach.” He had the audacity to announce. Silence. My friend had to hold me back as I pounced on that frail old fellow. “Oh I'm gonna kill you, you sadistic bastard!” I needed an out the the day I've had. For my good luck and to avoid being beaten up by a bunch of bus drivers, my friend prevented a quarrel. He truly was my guardian angel. “What's the plan?” He asked. The last option left was obvious to us both. The ever so feared and deadly, General compartment.
He gasped at my bravery. But there was no other way left. He dropped me to the station back. As we reached the station, I thought this was goodbye. I was wildly wrong. This was the moment he decided to learn more about each other. I was set up, this was a first date! He told me about his family and his wife’s favourite dishes. What are his kids studying in school? He worked in a toy manufacturing company, which led him to promise that when I had my first kid. He'll gift me a bunch of their toys. I learnt about his lineage and what they do on vacation. All of this is at the entrance of the railway station, the busiest part of the city. “And now tell me about you.” He ended his life story monologue. He's been quite kind to me, I wondered. There's no harm in making a new friend. I started telling him about my job, my likes and dislikes everything. As I went on with my life story, he noticed that my overgrown hair had covered part of my forehead. So he slowly pushed it back with his own hands. Literally what Munna Bhai was fantasising about Vidya Balan when he saw her for the first time. Well, this isn't going as I hoped it would. Am I being hit on? Do I look cute today? What's wrong with me? Well, I do have a nice smile. He's a random person you found on the road! Is this honeypotting? Is the government trying to extract secrets? I fought my demons for a good second until I realised the announcement of my train. We exchanged numbers and somehow made plans to meet again on Ganpati. For a minute I felt bad that I'm gonna break his heart by not showing up. What a weird day.
The train lived up to its expectations. Indian trains have so many problems, but none you can point out. Is it not clean? Well, it's swept and mopped, yet looks dirty. Are the electrics not working? The fan is running but it's not emitting winds. Are the seats torn? They somehow look new and rotten at the same time. Is there no support staff? They're here but looking at them, I don't feel like getting their help. The train’s general compartment is one filled with so many characters, that Pixar would be exhausted. Every kind of human being, you see here. There is no stereotyping here, it's not possible with such vivid personalities. A sleeping college-going kid, an old uncle long past retirement with an ID card around his neck. A lady with a massive polybag full of chips. Mother was sleeplessly fed up with her two children screaming their lungs out. A dad holding all the luggage and standing while his family enjoys a cup of tea on the seat. A teenage boy exhausted his phone battery with Netflix trying to find a sweet spot in the plug point that charges his phone. A loving uncle visiting his relatives with obvious bags full of gifts for his nieces and nephews. It's truly a wonder to see people from all walks of life. Well, it is marvellous only if you do find a seat to sit on and observe. Luckily, the people standing did not find novelty in the sweaty crowding across the aisle. There were fights and quarrels over the most trivial things. They looked trivial cause they weren't happening near my soft cushioned seat. Dare I say, the perks of being early after a day full of being late everywhere. As the train hiccuped her way to departure. I sighed a sigh of relief. For a moment I felt like the prisoner of the station like Tom Hanks in the terminal. Expect much filthier. Moving away from the station was liberating. And another milestone had been crossed.
Now I was used to drama in this journey. I understood to expect everything I go hilariously wrong everywhere. Nothing could surprise me now. Well, wouldn't you guess, the trip did surprise me again? After such a struggling journey, with some magical blessing, my train ride was somehow, problem-free. This wasn't expected. With a timely vada pav put stop midway, the entire journey went by so smoothly. Maybe my quota of today's drama had finally been exhausted. It's funny how congested and depressing life gets when you're fixed into a routine, yet some people are stuck into that for practically their entire lives. The world seems so heavy and serious, that it makes you helpless and forces you to accept this fate. A simple adventure, a simple break to do something new is enough to make you realise how wrong this feeling is. How shrouded my brain was thinking it can't change this draining leech off of my life. It's a newfound spirit, a new life. Mario has fallen into the pipe, the game's restarted from the last checkpoint. It's time to look ahead to changing small things in my life, to not let this feeling creep up again. Although no matter what I change, falling into a routine is inevitable as is our nature to tend towards a comfort zone. Such trips are important. A little bit of masala is necessary for life. A little bit of trouble, a few smiles and definitely a couple of tears is what makes life. I hope I explore more of these feelings this new year and definitely have more of these weird adventures. To more false sick leave, to more crazy problems to tackle, to me evolving further as a person, to the new year. Cheers
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