hk´w
STORY
ARATI BIJU
BUZZ IN THE BUS
Not that I haven’t travelled by the buses in
genders, made me shun the area.
Kochi, I have run after them, fell on the road in that
If one has a curious mind and a keen eye for
process, and even got my school changed once
observation, the crowd being a heterogeneous one,
when my father happened to witness by his own
a bus journey can never be boring.
eyes my adventurous jumping onto a bus before it
stopped. I will never forget his startled expression.
School girls get in, looking around for
sympathetic faces to
Blame it on the 10 years gap of living in
lay down their heavy burdens. And if you
Dubai and the cosy buses there. Anyhow, for the
agree to hold it, you are sure to end up holding more
rst time after the ‘break’, when I got in, I had the
than one, with your view to the outside world totally
shock of my life. I thought I would fall off as soon as I
barred. There is one more psychology in holding
got in from the doorless doorway. Though I had
bags which is applicable to all. That is, if the person
held onto the handles, I was swaying like clothes
holding your bag gets up to alight the bus, that seat is
laid to dry outside on a windy day. I stood there and
yours for sure. School girls can be very good actors.
wondered. 'What material were these buses were
One day, as usual, I stood in the front line. Four of
made of ? The parts at the front made quite a
them occupied the side seat, with two laying their
clamour,
heads on the laps of the other two.Those sitting
vibrating violently. Finally got a seat
adjacent to the driver’s amidst the din, only to
upright asking the other two sympathetically if they
were ok!
repent the idea the very next moment as I too
Ok, high school girls, they have their own
started vibrating, with my face feeling like it was
pains, but I registered their faces in my mind, hoping
having an electric massage. But, in order to know
to see them again, to know
the real Kochi, one has to travel by bus.
if it was just a tactic for not giving up their
Soon, I started enjoying the journeys; I
seats to elders or ladies with kids. Some others sit
could balance decently well, but for the new type of
there looking outside all through the journey
hanging handles which can betray you by making
oblivious of those standing beside them.
you slide a few feet away at a sudden brake.
One afternoon, an old lady stood next to one,
I knew I could get seats fairly easily if I stood in the
and a woman sitting in the front suddenly lashed out
line parallel to the driver. There was one more
–“In which standard are you studying? I know from
reason in my preferring that place -the
which school you are, is this the culture you get from
remembered 'unpleasant' experiences from
that school…?”
adolescence, of standing midway, between the
amˬv 2014
The girl still sat there in a trance staring at the
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