Dear friends,
Here is another "BMTC bus experience" of mine. The reason why I am writing so much about Bangalore (called affectionately as “Namma Bengaluru”) and especially about BMTC buses is because I spend a good amount of time, may be over 3.5 to 4 hours travelling by bus every day. The distance I travel is not much but the traffic during peak hours, like in any other city, is very slow moving. Well, now on to this wonderful experience I had on the 9th of May 2010. Bear with me it’s a little lengthy :) :)
The previous night: For people who know me well I may not seem to be a person who plans for the day ahead but trust me I believe a lot in planning. Not only believing but I also practice a lot of planning. The clock struck 12 ‘o’ clock which signaled the beginning of what was to be a very hectic Sunday for me. There were three important “things to do”. First I had to meet my anna (big brother) before he left to Mumbai after which I had to attend the birthday party of a good family friend’s son. After these two “events” I had to attend the informal meet with our IIMK juniors. What I did not know was that God had another beautiful “event” in store for me. It usually took around an hour for me to reach Majestic Bus Stand from my grandma’s place in JP Nagar. I am always excited and eager to meet my anna because he is my best friend, guide, mentor and all the good things you can think of. Anna had to catch a flight sometime before noon because of which I could spend only around an hour with anna. Not wanting loose even a second of being with anna I told myself that I would get up at eight in the morning, exercise for a few minutes have a nice oil bath and leave exactly at 9:30 as anna was expected to reach Bangalore by 10:30.
Meeting anna: The distant sounds of my aunt calling my name and asking me to get up almost seemed irritating. In the state of trance I was in it was all sounding like a gramophone gone bad. Those sudden jerks of sound made me clench my teeth. In the midst of all the gibberish I heard the words 9 ‘o’ clock. Those words made perfect sense to me and the fact that I was late hit me like Tendulkar would hit Shane Warne, “Down the track and out of the park” :( :( . Anybody who saw me get out of bed and run to the bathroom would have thought I was running from a man who had caught me red handed with that man’s wife. With all the speed I could gather I got ready and left home at 9:45. Luckily anna’s train was delayed and I was not late. I met anna and we had breakfast together. Like all our meetings he was giving me some very useful “gyan” and I was all awe for the words of wisdom spoken by anna. He had been to a very scenic mountain the previous week and showed me the photos he had taken there. The photos were taken using his new SLR Camera. I don’t know if it was the camera or if it was anna’s photography skills but the photos for sure did seem nice. Like all the good things my meeting with anna came to an end. We said good bye to each other and he left for the airport. I was a little sad that i could not spend more time with anna and little did I know that I would have one of the best bus rides of my life to cheer me up.
The bus ride: It is said all good things come to an end only to make way for better things to happen. On that particular day it was true. After I said good bye to anna I went to the bus stand to catch a bus to M. G. Road. In Bangalore bus stand now a days a few the Volvo buses start from a common place. Bus series numbers 335, 365 and 356 usually start from this place. I got on to a 335E bus. Oh! By the way I was a proud owner of an A/C Volvo bus pass. The pass had cost me Rs. 1250 but it was worth every paisa I had paid. The heat was too much to bear and the A/C in the Volvo buses was heaven. I got on to the bus, flashed my pass at the conductor and smiling to myself went and sat on an empty seat. Sunday morning is a good time to travel because the roads and buses are usually empty. Plus I had a Volvo pass which gave me immense sadistic pleasure. As bad and as sadistic as it is, the thought that you travel in an A/C Volvo bus and somebody else doesn’t is pleasurable none the less. While travelling I constantly listen to the radio or to a few songs stored on my phone and keep looking outside the window just to see if I can find anybody “interesting”. That day was no different and I just happened to turn right and saw one of the most beautiful hands I have ever seen. The hand belonged to what I now call “Lady on Bus Number 356”.
Those hands were so remarkable that the urge to go meet her and tell her how beautiful her hand was, was almost unbearable. I was sitting on the right side of the bus and could only see her left hand. She was talking on the phone holding the phone in her left hand. This meant I could not see her face. I bent forward to see her face but as luck would have it her bus went forward. I was now felling like a child who wanted his chocolate so badly that he would do anything for it. I thought of getting down from my bus which was stationary and jump into a bus that was moving. Luckily my bus too started and was now right behind bus number 356. Let me describe her hand for you. It was fair but not too bleached. The skin looked like silk and shone in the sunlight. Her forearms were the perfect size. Not too fat not too thin. Her hand tapered towards her wrist and the tapering was in a perfect ratio. God! What a hand God had made! The skin on the back of her palms was a shade fairer than her forearm and they held together the shapeliest fingers I have ever seen. “God must have spent hell of a lot of time to sculpt her hand and especially her fingers” I thought. Her hand was the work of art and whoever sculpted it must have been amazed at his own ability to create beauty. She wore a watch which constantly reflected the sun’s rays.
The two buses 335 and 356 have a common route for around two kilometers. It is said when you truly want something the whole universe conspires to get you what you want. On that day all I wanted was to see that lady’s face and talk to her if possible. I was really hoping the universe would help me. The universe did help me by creating a traffic jam not more than half a kilometer away from the bus stand. Her bus was stationary and my bus was getting closer to her bus. As the buses came closer my heart felt warmer.
My bus was now right next to her bus. Her hand was still covering her face. This time I noticed a ring she was wearing. It seemed like an engagement ring. She was on the phone for over 10 mins. The ring and that long conversation made me believe she was engaged. The thought that she might be engaged made me feel jealous of her fiancé. The lucky chap could look at those hands all day, hold them, kiss them…. To hell with that guy and his perverted intentions. As both our buses inched forward they seemed to come closer. I was so hoping that the next song on my phone would be “Bol Na Halke Halke” one of the most romantic numbers from the movie Jhoom Barabar Jhoom but to my anguish the next song was “You can’t always get what you want” a song by the Rolling Stones. What the hell!!! I mean which idiot of a mobile plays “You can’t always get what you want” when all I wanted was to see that lady’s face. All my anger on the mobile vanished momentarily as both our buses took a right after the flyover and my bus went slightly ahead of hers. Damm it! All I could see was the tip of her nose. Her nose tip was as fair as her hand. There was this beautiful lady, I wanted to see her face, it was a bright Sunday morning and everything was perfect for a romantic adventure. As the jam showed no signs of easing up my hopes of seeing her face went up a great deal. There was at least another kilometer before her bus turned right and my bus turned left. With this amount of traffic one kilometer would easily take around 10 mins I felt.
In the midst of all these calculations the grown up part of me started thinking. “What if her face is really ugly? What if her eyes are squint? What if her teeth are like Dracula? What if her ears are too big? What is the guarantee that I will like her face as much as I have fallen in love with her hand?”. It was like a magician’s student’s dilemma. We all love to see magic. We are in awe of it. We even worship it but how many of us would like the trick after we know how it is actually done? How many of us will like a mystery once we know what happens in the end? Will her face let my hopes down? I even felt she was like the new age Bollywood movies where the trailers are good and the films are a letdown. The grown up in me dint want to see her face. It wanted to believe that her face was more beautiful than her hand but the child in me wanted nothing more than to see her face. While I was trying to resolve this dilemma she kept her phone down and my heart skipped a beat. I would finally see her face.... but then somethings are never meant to happen.
Two things happened at the same time as she kept her phone down. Her silkly black hair alomost immediately covered her face. It was like curtains covering a window when you let it loose. It was also symbolic of curtains falling on my hopes of seeing her face. Second, her bus was supposed to go right and the right side of the road got cleared by some divine intervention. Her bus sped away and I was left on the left side of the road staring at the back of her bus in anguish. All I could do was smile to myself and say “Sour Grapes. What you don’t get are sour grapes. You are better off not eating them” :) :). Will I see that lady again? Even if I do meet her how will I recognize her? Can I ask every beautiful girl I meet to show me her hand so I can find out who that lady was? Well there are no answers to these questions at this point of time but am sure the answers will come. If fate shall have it then I shall see that damsel again if not I would continue to think of it as a short and beautiful encounter God wanted me to have. I usually believe that we make our destiny and I do believe I will meet this lady someday.
