I'm planning to start a 'series' (if I may call it!) of interesting conversations that I've had over the course of a long travel journey or one of significant entertainment. And as you may have guessed, this is the first of the lot.
I was returning from the institute. After having taken a 324 bus from Vidyavihar bus depot, I got off at Shopper's Stop (Andheri) and got into a rickshaw. The driver was not from this side of town. "Lokhandwala? Aap raasta bata dijiye bhaai" came the request. I nodded.
The driver as it turned out, had just come to Andheri after doing a Goregaon Mulund round trip. He'd faced a lot of traffic on the way and being unfamiliar with the Western line suburbs had handicapped his lane changing maneuverability. Our conversation picked up pace from this point onward.
"Aapki gaadi kahaan ki hain?" I asked. This statement always gets them in the talkative mood. That's my observation from a dozen odd conversations that I've had. "Mulund ki hain" came the reply. Mr. Driver had a handkerchief wrapped around his neck. It was soaked in cold water to beat the heat and humidity.
The rickshaw was owned by the driver's elder brother Ram. The driver's name was Laxman. Ram would have a shift from 7am to 3pm before Laxman took over till 11pm. The youngest sibling, Deepak, worked at the ICICI Bank HQ -- yup .. at BKC. Deepak was well educated while Ram and Laxman had barely done their schooling. A fortunate lad as Laxman put it. He was happy Deepak had had a good opportunity come his way.
Along the way, I kept pinpointing landmarks and areas he would be likely to come across later - Juhu, 4 Bungalows, 7 bungalows (with directions for Versova and Yari road) Andheri RTO and without a doubt, Lokhandwala itself.
It tool me 40min from the station but the conversation had kept the time ticking away fast.
I was returning from the institute. After having taken a 324 bus from Vidyavihar bus depot, I got off at Shopper's Stop (Andheri) and got into a rickshaw. The driver was not from this side of town. "Lokhandwala? Aap raasta bata dijiye bhaai" came the request. I nodded.
The driver as it turned out, had just come to Andheri after doing a Goregaon Mulund round trip. He'd faced a lot of traffic on the way and being unfamiliar with the Western line suburbs had handicapped his lane changing maneuverability. Our conversation picked up pace from this point onward.
"Aapki gaadi kahaan ki hain?" I asked. This statement always gets them in the talkative mood. That's my observation from a dozen odd conversations that I've had. "Mulund ki hain" came the reply. Mr. Driver had a handkerchief wrapped around his neck. It was soaked in cold water to beat the heat and humidity.
The rickshaw was owned by the driver's elder brother Ram. The driver's name was Laxman. Ram would have a shift from 7am to 3pm before Laxman took over till 11pm. The youngest sibling, Deepak, worked at the ICICI Bank HQ -- yup .. at BKC. Deepak was well educated while Ram and Laxman had barely done their schooling. A fortunate lad as Laxman put it. He was happy Deepak had had a good opportunity come his way.
Along the way, I kept pinpointing landmarks and areas he would be likely to come across later - Juhu, 4 Bungalows, 7 bungalows (with directions for Versova and Yari road) Andheri RTO and without a doubt, Lokhandwala itself.
It tool me 40min from the station but the conversation had kept the time ticking away fast.
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1 comment:
Very interesting read. I once was coming back from a ceremony organised by some family friends in Bangalore. They had organised for taxis to drop off ppl. On my route, I was the last one who was getting dropped, so I started chattin up with the Taxi wala after every1 got down. Unlike most Bglr auto wallahs, the taxi wallah are sumwot social. THis one had a wierd story: He is one of 3 brothers. The other 2 brothers are in Microsoft, and as i can recall, I think he said one was in Redmond and the other in Seattle. He spoke about his own misfortune. He said he has had to leave his house as his parents have kind of disowned him. And his words were: "And now I have to drive this taxi..."
As I was getting down, I sumhow cudn't help but feel very bad for the guy. He might have got a few things wrong when he cud have made them, but every1 deserves a 2nd chance. So I wished him "All the best, I am sure things will get better soon. Thanks, G'nite." with a handshake.
Destiny...
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