The Mumbai Trip

Prologue:

Om bhaiya is getting married and I am delegated the task of attending the marriage

ceremony and represent the Jha family at the function. Venue of the marriage, O.N.G.C

Colony Panvel, is the place where I spent my early school days. The excitement of

visiting the place urged me to get the tickets booked ASAP. With AC working fine and

being privileged to have the internet connection I booked the Train tickets online through

IRCTC. Sleeper class tickets confirmed for to and fro journey. Everything was planned to

have a smooth journey.

Bon Voyage:

The day of journey arrived and as usual I was late for the office. At 10:00 am I was

waiting at the MLPL gate for somebody to exit the Parking lot so that I would get a

chance to park my bike, Booster. Finally Luck god smiled on me and I was on my way to

my seat. Requirement phase of a project can give u a hard time surviving the initial 2-3

hours of office. Luckily no calls today, I devoted my time for flash games trying

unsuccessfully to break Shashank's record in copter. Clock ticked 12:30 p.m. to indicate

the Lunch time. Lunch time is basically a gathering for the 4 of us to sit together have

food, rate the girls in FC and crack some jokes on Krishna aka Chiru. During Lunch time,

Deep would discover that the FC(Food Court) is full of beautiful gals with each gal

beautiful in some aspect. We all make tacit communications to each other when anyone

of us sees a “maal”. After a sumptuous meal at Rumi’s we were back to our den. Now

comes the difficult phase of the day when one needs to fight hard to keep his/her eyes

open. Shashank and I got back to watching Friends and playing games. At this point

Shanky came up with the idea of the day, he asked me to leave home, watch Prison break

and then leave for Station. I agreed to it and was away in a flash. Packing was already

done so I could easily spend some time watching Prison break before I leave.

Journey Starts from Bangalore to Mumbai:

My bags were all packed and I left as planned from my home to the main road just

outside my home. Everything was planned; I was beginning to discover the Michael

Scofield inside me. After waiting for sometime the Volvo bus arrived. I adjusted my

luggage and settled inside the bus. I was very happy to see things going good for me as it

was reflection of the planning put behind. Conductor came to me for the ticket and

suddenly my head bumped into the ceiling of the bus as the bus driver chose the pot holes

instead of the concrete road. Somewhere deep inside, my pessimistic side gave me a hint

that journey is going to be rough. Nevertheless I reached the Bangalore Railway station

well in time; I submitted my luggage in the Cloak room and decided to have dinner. “It’s

a very small world” very true as I bumped into one of my friend, Shashi, from the office.

Shashi was on his way to face the MBA interview for IMI and S P Jain and guess what he

was traveling in the same train with me.

Train No. 2830 Bangaore to Kalyan:

6ft height can be a major disadvantage if you have a Side Birth in Sleeper class of Indian

Railways and I was cursing myself of being taller than the average accepted height of

India male. As it was late in the night I had no other option than to adjust and sleep. I

didn’t want to earn any Instant points but don’t know why I woke up at 8:00 am sharp.

Lazying around for more than an hour, I gathered consciousness to grab my brush and

toothpaste. After some time Shashi joined me in my bogey and we discussed every topic

possible on earth from nuclear physics to copy+paste and from Lalu to Obama. Train

journey is full of adventure and fun especially with someone like Shashi who never

leaves an opportunity to strike a joke. We quickly got our self acquainted with the other

passengers in our bogey. We passed our time by eating snacks, drinking masala chai and

hiding from eunuchs. The sound of clap inside the train compartment makes my heart

beat go dead but this time around I had Shashi and others with me to face the eunuch

gang. Actually one should be happy and elated if he/she is referred to as their favorite

Bollywood stars but don’t know why this is the only time I want not to be complemented.

Like every bad thing on earth that moment also came to an end. We entered Maharashtra

and were approaching Mumbai. As the discussion progressed I got to know from my

bogey mates that if I get down at Kalyan there’s no direct train connectivity to Panvel. In

Mumbai you have local trains running on 3 different lines Central, Western and Harbour.

I was concerned with the last one as it has Panvel as one of the station. My Bogey mates

gave me alternatives which included either getting my ticket extended to a further station

or to catch a bus from Kalyan. I chose the latter one as I was done with Train Travel.

Kalyan station arrived and I parted ways from my Bogey mates and Shashi.

Kalyan to Panvel:

So there I was at Kalyan station with luggage in my hand and dreams in my eyes. Oops

luggage in my hand and a hope to catch a bus to reach Panvel. I reached the bus station

and enquired about the bus to Panvel. There were a mob of people waiting for the Panvel

bus and I joined them. After ½ hr of waiting time suddenly the whole crowd started

running towards a bus and my instinct prompted my body to run with them. There was a

idle bus with the board saying “Panvel” and the crowd sealed the entrance in a flash. I

somehow managed very well and occupied front row seat in the bus and placed my bags

in the overhead compartment. Rest of the crowd was still settling in the bus and I was

proud of my accomplishment. After 40-45 minutes of waiting there was an

announcement from the Enquiry booth of the bus station that no bus is going to Panvel as

the whole road is blocked due to an accident. At that moment the “bump I received in the

Volvo bus” confirmed the belief that the journey was destined to be rough. I called up

Papa to ask for the alternatives as I was not pretty sure about what to do next. We finally

came to a conclusion that I need to board the local from Kalyan to Thane and then Thane

to Panvel. Long queues for Local train tickets frightened me even more about the thought

of traveling in local train with 2 bags in hand. I asked the security guards at the station to

confirm the line I need to get into for Local train tickets. Initially, the line looks very long

but the guys at the counter are really efficient; in software terms their turnaround time is

very less. Now I had the ticket for local 2 nd class travel from Kalyan to Panvel.

Asking commuters about the train to Thane I boarded a slow local and managed to find a

seat. The moment train started I had scenes of movies such as Mumbai Meri Jaan and

Wednesday running in front of my eyes. The train fully crowded with people returning to

their home after a hectic day of work by the mean which is the life line of Mumbai …The

Local Train. It took me exact ½ hour to reach Thane. I was happy as half of my local

journey ended without much difficulty. Next local would end up at Panvel, my final

destination. After enquiring from 3-4 persons I came to know that I needed to board the

local from Platform 7 so, I ran up and down the over bridge to get to the local. I was

standing in front of the local and just to confirm I asked one of the passengers inside the

train if the local was upto Panvel. The answer was Negative and I got to know that there’s

no direct local to Panvel at that hour. Suddenly the “bump on my head” paining more.

One of the commuters came to my rescue and asked me to the board the local as this was

the only local going near Panvel. He informed me that I can get a local to Panvel from the

last station of this local. I boarded the train which was almost empty with few seats being

occupied in my compartment. I got to know that it takes ½ hr to reach Nerul, my

penultimate destination. I was sitting by the window sipping water from my bottle when a

guy in his early twenties entered our compartment. He was covered in rags and was

holding an empty bottle in his hands which he used to play drums as if India had won the

World cup. After few minutes of public talent display he came straight to me and

demanded the bottle from me. I asked him to go away as there was still water left in the

bottle. Instead of leaving that guy sat next to me and tried to reach for my bottle placed

next to me. I stopped him in between and gave him a “beat to death” look which I

thought worked. He stood up and started to leave but suddenly he came back to me and

demanded for the bottle again and this time I intercepted his hand movement. Things

were pretty heated up and then came the rescue from one of the passenger sitting opposite

to me and the “rag” guy left the scene and I was relieved. After all this action I arrived at

Nerul and got the Local to Panvel. I reached Panvel in another 10 minutes without any

further hiccups. Finally, I reached Panvel and got an autorickshaw to Om Bhaiya’s house,

Gurusharan Society. I was soaked with sweat and stinking…Gosh! Mumbai is hott and

humid, I love Bangalore.

Marriage (Loosing Bachelorhood):

I reached Subhash uncle’s house and greeted Uncle and aunty. They were surprised to see

me there and asked the reason for mom and dad not being able to make it to the marriage.

I tell you being in Software industry you are by default loaded with inbuilt jars of excuses

and I came up with a reasonable one. There were at least a dozen of relatives in the house

for the ceremony. Right now only thing I was concerned about was bathroom, right called

“the Restroom” in Corporate or Business world. Almost 2 days in the train with 2 time

meal and snacks can give you a hard time if you are not used to toilets in Indian Train

Sleeper bogeys. You are never sure of the cleanliness and water supply in the toilet but

the toilet will be equipped with graphical representation of biological process. So, I was

waiting for the bathroom to be empty so that I can freshen up but things doesn’t work the

way you want. I took my dinner and went to sleep in the same room with Ajay and

Abhay, Om Bhaiya’s brothers. Next morning I woke up pretty relaxed as the whole night

I had the freedom and luxury to stretch my legs. I got my morning tea the moment I

stepped out of my bed and I took it happily as I know it would help me build up the

pressure. I met with all the relatives in the house and was pretty sure from their looks that

they didn’t understand who I was. I made sure to greet everyone in their family with a

smile so that my existence there doesn’t become hostile. Baarat(Family and Friends from

Guy’s side) was supposed to leave for the Bride’s place at 11:30 am according to the

shubh mahuarat decided by PanditJi. Except me, we all were dressed up for the big

occasion. Bhaiya and brothers were dressed in Sherwaanis with Pagdi being the only

indicator of Bridegroom among them. I wore my torn jeans and shirt and carried my

Camera with me. To be frank I made sure that even in jeans and shirt I’ll have my share

of gals drooling over me. It was hot outside and the whole band group was waiting for the

Baarat to leave from Gurusharan society to, Panvel O.N.G.C Colony, where Bride and

Her family were put up. We all adjusted inside the vehicles and started for the Colony

with Band truck following us closely and making their presence felt. We stopped at some

of the temples along the route and Om Bhaiya was supposed to gather the blessings for

his new phase in life. We reached the Community center of the Colony and band group

got the thumbs up. Suddenly everybody started dancing, clapping or to say the least

moving on the notes of Band group. I was busy remembering every bit of the colony as

this was the place where I started my schooling. I made sure to capture every corner of

colony with different scene modes present in my camera. I was beginning to take the

SLRBB very serious so tried to get the best shot possible using my imagination and

camera. The initial rituals of not handing over the Groom to Bride’s family went on for

sometime until we received some cash from their side. Finally, we all went inside the

community hall and took our seats. The pandal was all set with PanditJi waiting at the

center stage. I took a chair at the back away from the stage where the event was

happening. With no one to talk to I was left with no option but to daydream and click

some snaps in between to keep myself busy. Shifting uncomfortably on my plastic chair I

called up my mom, dad, sis and my friends. Time was hard to pass but finally lunch was

ready and indeed it was yummy the cutlet, the samosa, mutter paneer, jamoon and ice

cream. After having my lunch I decided to go for a walk in the colony as I wanted to have

a glimpse of my old house, school and park. It was such a relief to walk out of the

community hall leaving behind the disturbing noise of band instruments. Firstly, I visited

my house which looked to be recently painted. Behind the apartment was the park where

I used to swing a lot in the evening. After I was done with my house and park I visited

my school, Kendriya Vidyalaya. Already divulged in the nostalgic moments I made sure

that I capture everything in my camera. Done with a quick round of colony I was back to

the community hall and luckily for me the marriage ceremony ended in ½ hour. So,

everybody was supposed to rush back get dressed for the reception party.

The Reception:

Best part of marriages is the reception party. Everyone tries to be glamorous especially

the gals and the aunties and the guys love it as their purpose of attending the reception is

good food and good looking females. Being humble as I am, I dressed up in a party shirt,

formal black trouser and black leather shoe. I carried my camera along me and was ready

for the reception. I still feel that with camera in my hand the relatives in the house

thought of me as a photographer hired for the marriage pictures. I was even sometime

called upon to click some of their pictures as they gave smiling posses. So we were back

to the Community hall for the reception and let me tell you the decorators had done a

great job as the place was looking grandeur. I was little excited about the reception party

as I was hoping to meet Vijay, my college TT Champ. Vijay arrived shortly with his

whole gang and I was happy to meet him as I got someone to talk to. We chatted for long

before the dinner was ready to be served. Vijay ate his dinner and left with his gang. I had

to wait for the others to join me for the dinner. At around 12:00 am we gathered for the

dinner and our plates were being served by the caterers. I was seated next to Bhaiya and

Bhaabhi at the table and this was the first time the relatives must have thought of me

somebody more important than a Cameraman. Again let me mention that the food was

awesome but I didn’t eat much as I had to travel the next day. So, time to call it a day we

all came back to our house but importantly one new member joined us at our home. With

pleasant memories of the day we all went to bed.

Vaashi, Arijit and Singhda

Next morning I woke up early and quickly packed my stuff. Without wasting much time I

took a bath and freshened up. After having my tea and breakfast I was ready to move. I

bid goodbye to Uncle and Aunty and left for Vaashi. I called up Arijit, my college mate

working with ISPAT in vaashi, and informed him that I will be there at the Vaashi station

in ½ an hr. Panvel to Vaashi was my first peaceful ride in local since I was in Mumbai 3

days back. In my opinion, Vaashi station is one of the best stations we have in India with

broad passageways, neat platforms and good crowd all the time. Adjoining to the station

was the Vaashi IT Park with call centers of several companies. Arijit was waiting for me

at the station with a big smile, there’s nothing like meeting your old friend after a long

time and discover that even after getting into job we didn’t change a bit. We sipped a

large pepsi at the station and left for Arijit’s home. Arijit lived in a old looking apartment,

which could have proudly endorsed the tag of since 1920, with decent enough space for 1

or 2 persons. Arijit and I talked for an hour or two with topics ranging from college girls

to our life. We decided to go for “mall darshan” and catch a movie if it suits my time. I

called up some of my friends in Mumbai just to enquire if I can meet them in the short

time I have before leaving for the day, I was supposed to be at Kalyan station at 10:30

pm. Ashish Singh urrff Singhda was free as usual and was happy to be away from home

for sometime and meet his old friend. 2009 is a significant year in Singhda’s life as he is

now a legitimate Electronics and Telecommunications engineer. Arijit and I were at CCD

having coffee and waiting for Singhda to join us. After an hour of waiting, we had

finished our coffee and brownie when Singhda called us up. Singhda was waiting outside

smoking a cigarette behind the tree as if absconding from someone. I don’t know why he

took up smoking as he was so lean that he would have died any moment had his body

exhaled more than his body could inhale. Anyways we were at the ticket counter

selecting movie to watch as Arijit’s idea of fun is watching movie. But Singhda protested

and asked if we could go for drinks in an AC bar and the idea was unanimously accepted.

Navigated by Arijit, we rushed to an AC bar. I don’t know why but the moment I enter

any bar the mood sets up automatically. We ordered Vodka with sprite and chicken

starters and soon enough discussion about life and its definitions started pouring in. We

finished our drinks in close to 2 hours and decided to roam around in malls as it was

evening. On a Saturday evening you’ll find a quality crowd in malls but I think the

condition we 3 were in majority of the crowd looked beautiful. We wandered inside the

mall before deciding to go for bowling. We 3 faired decent enough on the scorecard after

the 10 chances to strike the pins. I still had 3 hours left for the day before boarding my

train from Kalyan so we decided to go for a game of pool for ½ an hour. I used to play

pool in Infy so capitalized on the experience and displayed panache in potting balls. We

were done with our leisure activities and it was time to part away. Singhda and I bid

goodbye to Arijit and left for Thane.

On my way back to Bengaluru:

Singhda got the tickets and we boarded the local for Thane. It was ½ an hour ride to

Thane and we past our time with me asking him about college and his plans for future. I

was sure from the response that he hadn’t planned anything. I tell you, sometimes things

like planning, timelines and deadlines do sound important in one’s life. Anyways we

reached Thane and Singhda helped me board the next local to Kalyan. I wished him luck

for his future which he had no idea about and bid him good bye. I was kind of feeling sad

and alone leaving behind 2 of my very good college friends behind. But I was happy that

I was on my way back to Bangalore, my home sweet home. Train was at 11:00 pm so had

to deal with the time in hand. Just few days before traveling, Krishna gave me the book

“Three Mistakes of My Life” and with that for the first time ever he had brought the thing

he promised to. Anyways thanks to Krish I had something to pass my time and I was on

my course with the novel. A Railway platform is one of the few places were one finds so

different mix of people. If you like observing people then its one of the best place you got

to be, anyways I was not part of that sophisticated group but just to ease my neck I used

to observe the crowd. Finally Train blew its way to the platform and the whole scene

changed from static to dynamic …err came into motion. After the train came to halt and

people rushed their way in I took some time and boarded the train. My bags were now

light in weight as I had passed on the Ganesh idol to Om bhaiya as his Marriage gift. The

birth assigned to me on my return journey was again the side birth, this time side lower. I

had no option but to surrender myself to my destiny and accept the fate. I set up sheet on

the birth, used one of my bags as pillow and lay down to sleep. Lying on the birth with

my eyes closed and not managing to sleep after much try I was thinking that How lucky

is Shashank to sleep within 5 minutes of hitting the bed. But after shifting my position for

around 20-30 times I managed to sleep. With no one to accompany sleep is the best way

to kill time in Train. I ate a lot the next morning and was busy finishing my novel. After

my lunch went to sleep for 2 hours and resumed back my novel. The novel was not that

interesting but as wise men say something is better than nothing so went along with it.

7:00 pm in the evening and all I waiting for was the train to reach the Bangalore junction

but the final 2-3 hours of the journey can be very testing. After having patience for hours

we finally arrived at the Bengaluru Railway station. My plan was very simple, catch the

Volvo 360, reach home and sleep. I was at Majestic bus stop waiting for the Volvo and

then came in the breaking news that after 9:30 pm there are no Volvos available. After

accepting the shock I started searching for 356 or 360 buses but was not able to find any.

Finally came in one 360 bus and the whole mob got into the bus as if it was going to

diamond city and not electronics city. I was now used to all this torture so had only slight

difficulty to get inside the bus and find a place to stand. That’s right I got a place to stand

inside the bus and I was going to be like that for at least an hour. Life is not compromise

neither sacrifice, it’s tragedy and I am experiencing it. 12:00 am sharp and I reached

Gopalan Gardenia. Got into my apartment and I was relieved for everything but most of

all for one thing…. My Mumbai Trip came to an End.